Chris Cadden aiming to add to spine of Hibs team on return to action at Ibrox
That was in April and after a frustrating period on the sidelines, Cadden is back in the mix and he and his team-mates return to Govan on Sunday, intent on proving they have the backbone for a prolonged tussle at the top of the Premiership table.
It is a mouthwatering prospect for a player who was forced to miss out on the climax to last season, as his colleagues challenged for cup and Europe, wrapping up their highest league finish in 16 years and coming tantalisingly close to silverware.
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Hide AdBut at least he eventually got an answer to what was ailing him, even if the cause remains a mystery.
“Basically, I had a weak pain in my back around March-time. I said to the physio and he thought it was alright and I was probably playing through it for about a month. Then after the last Ibrox game – the 2-1 – I was really sore and achy and the physio said I needed a scan and to maybe prepare for being out for a few weeks or whatever.
“But the scan came back and it showed about a 4cm crack on the bottom of my back. No-one saw it coming or thought that’s what it was.
“Probably the most frustrating thing about it is you just need to sit and wait for it to heal. There is no way of progressing it. You just have to wait for the fracture to heal before you can do anything. That was it.
“I’ve never heard of someone breaking their back without actually falling on it. But it happened to me.”
A stress fracture, one suggested cause is that he simply ran too much, but, an all-action wingback, who racks up the miles each game bounding back and forth on the flanks, he isn’t completely convinced. “I don’t know! It sounds mental saying it.”
He has been assured that everything has healed, though, and, after a pre-season set-back when he tore his thigh, he is building back to full match fitness, with appearances in the capital derby, and three more matches - one of which was the League Cup quarter-final win over Dundee United under his belt.
But running back out at Ibrox is expected to be the biggest test to date for Cadden and an Easter Road side as yet undefeated on domestic duty this term, who ran Rangers close in last term’s head-to-heads without getting a win.
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Hide AdThe most recent Ibrox showing is even more laudable, knowing that Cadden was a broken man that day.
“It wasn’t actually that bad. I came on and felt okay. The adrenaline gets you through. It was more after the game that I felt it sore. Even sitting down there was a wee ache at the bottom of my back.
“The week after, before Stranraer, I tried to train through iit but it was really difficult and sore. That’s when we went to get the scan.
“I actually thought I’d be ok for the next week but that was pretty much it for three months! I couldn’t believe it when the doc told me, but I’m past it now.”