Irish League star admits Irish Cup shock 'made it all worth it' after marking return from near two-year injury nightmare

It was while playing for Ards against Dergview in February 2023 when Calderwood first suffered the ACL injury which would ultimately keep him out of senior action for 672 days, carried off 13 minutes into the fixture at Darragh Park, and it has been a long road back.

Not only has Calderwood had to recover from the injury and subsequent surgery, but there has been the mental torture along the way of constant setbacks and watching from the stands as his team-mates celebrated landmark moments like an Irish Cup penalty shoot-out victory over former club Crusaders 12 months ago.

However, fast forward one year and Calderwood started as Ards once again upset the odds, dumping top-flight Ballymena out at the fifth round stage and the 25-year-old admits it’s a memory that will live with him forever.

"It has been 20-odd months getting back with countless setbacks along the way,” he said. “I have to give my physio Scott Hughes a special mention because he has been brilliant throughout every setback that I've had, whether it was hamstrings or hips not being right, every part of my body seemed to be playing up on me when I needed it to go back.

"He's based in Lurgan and I was travelling an hour every two weeks sometimes thinking 'what am I doing here?'.

"You feel like calling it a day when you've had that many setbacks, but then you get a result like that on Saturday in your first game back and I'm so glad I kept going - it made it all worth it.

"You take football for granted. I'll be the first one to admit that my Ards career has passed me by – I haven't done anything, I've never won anything.

"You always feel like there's next week but once it gets taken away from you, you treasure it more and realise that it's a short career which can end at any minute. I'm going to enjoy it.

"Thankfully I got that fairytale of coming back to the cup shock - it's a result I'll always remember because of the circumstances."

While Calderwood is the one suffering through the pain and putting hours into rehabilitation, the recovery process is assisted by family and friends who provided crucial support during the lowest moments.

"My family have been brilliant with me,” he added. “You can't move for three weeks after that operation so mum was bringing me my dinner up and you feel like an inconvenience being stuck in bed.

"My granda and mates...TJ Murray was still at the club at the time and would bring me McDonalds breakfasts when I couldn't move!

"The club and players were brilliant with me. I can't fault the two managers - Matthew Tipton was still there when it happened and he kept me around the club, same with John Bailie.

"I lost count how many times I said I wasn't going back and that I was done. Then you get around the lads on a Saturday or get a win and you want another crack at it.

"I didn't want my last memory on a football pitch to be getting carried off - I wanted to walk off on my own two feet.

"If it happened again, I'm not sure I'd go through it all again so maybe this is one last crack at it...I'll enjoy it and give it everything.

"You don't take days like Saturday for granted anymore because you now know how easy it can be taken away from you."