Graham Burke is relieved to be finally up and running this season after fearing he would be left playing catch-up.
And the Ireland international insists that Shamrock Rovers' vast array of attacking talent can all be kept happy at the Hoops.
Burke was rocked when he contracted Covid on the first day of pre-season and it impacted his recovery from hamstring and quad issues.
He quickly fell four weeks behind the rest of his team-mates - and the alarm bells were starting to sound in his head.
Not least with playmaker Jack Byrne back at the club, Danny Mandroiu looking to drive on from an impressive 2021 and Richie Towell trying to stake his own claim.
Asked if he worried about falling behind his direct competition, Burke said yesterday: “Yes, of course.
“As a football player it’s only natural when there’s competition around you. We all know that here.
“If you’re in the first XI you have to make an impact because it all depends on your performance whether you’re going to play and stay in the team.
“You want to try to give the manager a headache with your performances to keep you in the team.
“But I missed the first three or four weeks of pre-season. The lads were all flying around and I was finding it difficult to breathe.
“I got back and played 60 minutes against Bray, just before the President’s Cup, so I was miles off the rest of the lads.
“It’s not ideal because you get the bulk of the hard running and minutes under your belt in pre-season.
“But I’ve started the last two games and I feel OK in terms of where the body is at and where my fitness levels are now.”
Hoops boss Stephen Bradley reckons it will be another month before Burke is at the peak of his powers.
But ex-Aston Villa man Burke, 28, is eager to make another impression on proceedings tonight when Rovers host Sligo Rovers.
The Hoops want revenge after losing to the Bit O’Red in Tallaght in May last year - a game Bradley feels was a wake-up call and which spurred his team to the title.
Burke, who has two goals this season, said: “Even though I’m not at the fitness levels of the other lads, you still want to contribute.
“There’s healthy competition (in attacking positions) and it spurs you on and keeps you on your toes because you know going into games that you have to perform.”
The champions go into this one on the back of Monday’s 0-0 draw in Dundalk while Sligo Rovers thumped Finn Harps 3-1.
And while it’s too early in the season to be making sweeping statements, Burke is sending a stronger challenge from the chasing pack.
“Teams have got stronger,” he said. “But we want to put in a performance ourselves tonight because in certain games we’ve only put in a half.
“We need to put a full 90-minutes together. Hopefully we can come away with three points because it’ll be a tough game.
“Whether we’re leading the league or a point behind St Patrick’s Athletic, it’s going to be a race to the end.”
Meanwhile, Alan Mannus is set to face Sligo Rovers tonight after missing Monday's scoreless draw in Dundalk after feeling unwell.
