It's been a long road back for Stephanie Roche.

After a difficult spell at Sunderland, which coincided with a 14-month absence from the game, she made her first appearance for her new club - Italian side, Florentia - on Saturday evening.

"I've been out for a long time so getting back on the pitch was the goal," she told Wednesday's OTB AM. "I'm happy to say that I've done that now.

"It was 14 months since I played my last game, but obviously I was out of contract at Sunderland and then I came over here on trial. I've been fit, but I haven't been ready to play as such.

"I haven't been able to do an awful lot of team training. I've been raring to go - but then when I was over here I had another setback and that was mentally draining."

Another injury only added to the feeling of frustration. Having worked so hard to get fit, the former Peamount United striker faced another stint on the sidelines.

"When you come back from a long-term injury, you find out you've been compensating on one side. That's what I ended up doing according to the physio. I ended up hurting my ankle by putting too much pressure on it and overloading it. I had to take a step back.

"When I came here first I went at [my game] all guns blazing as you would at a new club but my body wasn't quite ready.

"But I'm sharp and fit now. I'm ready to go."

I ended up hurting my ankle by putting too much pressure on it and overloading it. I had to take a step back...

It's been a long road back for Stephanie Roche.

It might have only been 10 minutes at the end of Florentia's 3-1 over Verona, but the relief must have been palpable.

Her focus now is returning to the sharpness that earned her moves previously to Sunderland and prior to that, US based side, Houston Dynamo.

"The instinct as a striker never leaves you. I just think getting back in and playing full matches is the big thing. I'm playing a lot of smaller sided games and did well in that.

"I'm thankful to say I played a friendly match last week and I scored in that game so it was a full 90 minutes and 11 v 11. That gave me the feel for it again."

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