For Leon Clarke, all the hard work was worth it.
At 36, the Bristol Rovers striker's time in the game appeared to be up when he limped off at Hartlepool in September. Hamstring injuries had wrecked his spell at previous club Shrewsbury Town, and Joey Barton was fearing the worst when Clarke required surgery.
With a six-month recovery the prognosis, Clarke had two options: call it a day, or have the surgery and give it one more go.
