ROVERS defender Stig Bjornebye has returned to Norway in a bid to aid his recovery from a serious foot injury.

The former Norwegian international has endured a nightmare 12 months in which he has suffered two separate career-threatening injuries.

But the plucky 33-year-old is determined to battle back from his latest trauma and he hopes a two-week break in his homeland can help to speed up the healing process.

"I've been given a few days break to get away from things for a bit," said Bjornebye.

"It's been a rough 12 months for me and I just wanted some time off to get my head back together.

"Whilst I'm out here, I'll be doing some alternative training with a view to stepping things up when I get back to England.

"But I'm not really thinking too far ahead right now. I'm just concentrating on having some time with my family."

Bjornebye's problems started when he fractured an eye socket in a freak training accident last April which required two separate operations.

Then, after battling his way back into first team contention, he was struck down by a foot injury which required further surgery.

However, he went to visit a specialist at the weekend for an up-date on his latest problem and he was pleased with the progress he's making.

"The specialist said he's happy with the way things are going at this moment in time," said Bjornebye.

"The visit at the weekend was basically a check-up after the foot operation and he's confident that everything will be okay.

"It was quite an unusual thing and that's what made it a bit scarey at the time because it was so unusual.

"But when I saw the specialist, he was impressed with how it went so I'm keeping positive."