CLARETS midfielder Lennie Johnrose has booked himself into pre-season training a week early as he battles to win back his first-team place.

Johnrose hasn't played since the middle of Feburary because of Achilles and ankle problems.

But after two bouts of surgery he's on his way back and checked in at Gawthorpe yesterday to get a head-start in the race for a starting slot when Burnley kick-off their First Division campaign at Sheffield Wednesday on August 12.

Johnrose said: "I have gone in early to try and get some extra work in because I don't want to be too far behind. I'm usually quite fit but having not trained since the end of February it's a long haul. I have to get in shape, but that's what pre-season is for.

"It's not often you look forward to getting back to pre-season but I can't wait. I'm not the only person to have gone through this kind of thing with injury but everything is relative and for me it was terrible, watching from the sidelines.

"Touching a lot of wood, hopefully, that's behind me. There's a lot of expectation and I want to be part of it."

The latest operation at the end of May involved key-hole surgery to remove a couple of bone growths from the player's ankle.

And Johnrose, who has just returned from a honeymoon in Rome, is pleased with the result.

"It's coming on okay. It's a little bit stiff but I've done a couple of runs in the last week or so and there's been no reaction so hopefully that should be it," he said.

The tough-tackling midfielder started just 10 games last season after injuring a knee on the eve of the new campaign and then being hit by his ankle problems.

And he is desperate to play a bigger role this term as Burnley bid to repeat their top-six challenge. He added: "It can't be any worse than last year. There were a lot of exciting times and I missed out on it, so hopefully I can put that right this season.

"It's always a blank canvas and you've just got to make sure you're in that starting 11. If not you've got to force your way in and the best chance of doing that is by getting off to a good start."

Johnrose wasn't training on his own yesterday as he was joined by Graham Branch, who is recovering from a knee injury, Paul Weller and Glen Little as they also look to sharpen up ahead of the official start of pre-season training a week today.