CHRIS Lucketti will be glad to get back in the side - for a rest!

The £500,000-rated Shakers centre half is coming to the end of his first extended injury lay-off. And it has been the busiest time of his career.

The picture fans have of injured players spending their recovery time at home with their feet up could not be further from the truth insists Lucketti, who injured knee ligaments in the first game of the season.

"It's quite the opposite," he says.

"I've been into the club seven days a week for the whole six weeks I have been out.

"I've never been busier. I've had to go in for treatment morning and afternoon every day and I've been training on the weights five days a week." Lucketti describes his time out of the side as a "nightmare" and says he is itching to get back involved in the senior set up. But he knows with the defence operating impressively in his absence he may have to wait for his chance.

"I started light jogging at first and have stepped it up every day until I am running now at full speed," he added.

"I have got my fitness back and now I just need match practice. I feel fine and feel I just need a couple of games under my belt and I'll be ready to return.

"It's been six weeks without any involvement and the previous longest I was out injured was about three weeks so it's been a new experience for me and one I don't want to repeat. "I'm dying to get back. It's so frustrating to get injured so early in the season after all the hard work that I did over the pre-season.

"I got myself into good shape then found myself having to watch the lads play from the sidelines. It's a nightmare when you're not involved and I've found myself just counting the days to when you can start training again and then when you can get back involved in the first team."

Despite suffering his injury in the opening match, Lucketti won't need any time to settle into the Shakers three-man centre back formation which was introduced this season.

"It's a new system here but I was already used to it because we played almost an entire season with the same system at Halifax before I joined Bury," he explained.

"In fact when I came to Gigg Lane playing a flat back four was quite new to me."

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