Ryan Hedges is hoping to be fit again for Blackburn Rovers sooner than expected after making a positive start to his rehabilitation from injury.

The winger suffered a serious hamstring away at Ipswich Town on September 23, going down minutes after coming on. Hedges was initially ruled out for around three to four months after going under the knife.

Since then, he has been working hard in the gym on his recovery. He was in a brace for the first month and is now aiming to be back on the grass within the next two to four weeks.

With such a serious hamstring issue, recovery can't be rushed but Hedges is hitting all his milestones ahead of schedule. He is chomping at the bit to be back in action again for Rovers soon.

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“It’s never nice to be injured, but I’m heading in the right direction, getting better every day and feeling more positive,” Hedges told RoversTV.

“I hope I can be back out on the pitch pretty soon. It’s still very early stages and I think it’s not until I get to eight weeks post-operation that I can start opening up and doing a lot more.

"It was four to six weeks in the brace and I was out in four. It's eight to ten weeks to be back on the grass and so I am aiming for eight. We're moving in the right direction.

“The physios are really happy with the progress we’re making and I hope we’re ahead of schedule and can be back earlier than we think. It's a tendon injury so time is the best healer.

“You can see light at the end of the tunnel once you’re back out on the pitch. Being stuck in the gym isn’t what you want to see and the first three weeks were very repetitive, small movements and those things.

“I was in a brace and the first checkpoint was getting out to it and having a freedom that made me feel like a new man again.

“It’s then about getting the strength and the size of your quad back, and everything’s heading in the right direction now.

"It's a 14 to 16 week injury from surgery so I hope to be back before then. I am taking it week by week and trying to make sure I get to my markers. I'll see where I am at the end of December and in January."

The 28-year-old is one of several Rovers players who have suffered long-term injuries this season. Joe Rankin-Costello is now facing three months out with a similar problem, though he doesn't need surgery.

Aysnley Pears will have missed two months of action by the time he returns from an ankle issue, the same for Sam Gallagher with a calf problem. Dom Hyam will have also missed six to eight weeks when he returns in a month's time.

Injuries have been a major source of frustration for Jon Dahl Tomasson, who already has a thin squad to work with. For Hedges, it has been a frustrating time on the sidelines with the team needing bodies.

He knew straight away he had an issue at Ipswich when he felt his hamstring pop after a fairly innocuous challenge. The Welshman is desperate to be back soon to help the team.

“I’d never really had a big hamstring injury, but I knew it was bad because I kind of felt it pop," he explained. "I knew there was no chance of carrying on in that game and it was about focussing on the recovery from there on in.

“The physios and staff have been amazing and we had surgery as soon as we could to get back on the mend as soon as possible.

“You never want to be injured, you want to play every week and to help the team. I’m now looking forward and aiming to come back stronger."