Lee Bullock is bursting to go again this afternoon as he steps out for his first game in three months.

The commanding midfielder has not kicked a ball since tearing knee ligaments when his foot stuck in the turf during City’s 2-0 loss at Shrewsbury in September.

But Bullock will put 11 weeks of frustration behind him by appearing for the reserves against Hartlepool at Valley Parade.

And he revealed that seeing Paul Scholes playing for Manchester United again has given him an extra lift ahead of his comeback.

Bullock said: “It’s been a long slog but a few other players suffered a similar injury around the same time. Scholes was one of them and he got back playing last week.

“Seeing him on the telly proved it was about the right timescale for me, so I can’t wait to get out there on the pitch again.

“People might say it’s only the reserves but it’s a game and, after being out so long, you just want to be playing football. I need games.

“I think I’m ready for it now. I’ve been back fully training for a week and I got my confidence up by giving the ball a full whack – although David Wetherall was probably more shattered than me from running after my wayward passes!”

Bullock will be the first of Stuart McCall’s long-term injury absentees to return to action and, though it will take him time to get back up to speed, the 27-year-old’s presence will be a welcome boost ahead of the crucial Christmas run.

“It’s always a great time to be involved as a player. It’s busy, you get big crowds and it can make or break seasons,” said Bullock.

“We’ve coped with all the injuries quite well and the squad is getting back. If the manager can have a full set of players available to pick from it would be great for everyone.

“I’d never done anything like tearing my medial ligament before but, speaking to people in the game, they warned me it would be a long, slow and boring drag back, which it has been.

“But now I’m looking forward to a good run-out and then hopefully I’ll be in the manager’s thoughts again for the Christmas period.”