RYAN Dickson has admitted he was “hit hard” by the virus that left him sidelined for weeks.

But the Colchester United left-back is hoping he is now finally over the illness that has disrupted his season.

Dickson started seven of the U’s opening eight league and cup games, after signing for them on a free transfer from Southampton in the summer.

But he was forced off after just 20 minutes of their 2-0 defeat at Coventry City, in early September.

Dickson underwent medical tests, in a bid to get to the bottom of the virus.

And the 26-year-old made his long-awaited comeback as a late substitute in Colchester’s 1-0 win over Peterborough United, last Saturday.

Dickson said: “It’s been very frustrating after an enjoyable start to my Colchester career.

“It’s just one of those things but it’s good to be back.

“I’ve had a virus which means there’s been an onset of fatigue.

“It’s one of those things that takes time to get it out of the system.

“Initially, I thought it would only be for a week or two but it just seemed to go on and on.

“It’s not something we could control.

“To start with, you try and push yourself and say “I’ll be alright tomorrow”.

“But in the end, I realised it was going to take a bit of time and I needed to be a bit more patient with it.

“I didn’t want to miss out on games and I thought it was just a normal flu virus but that wasn’t the case.

“It hit me a bit hard but hopefully I’m over that and I can crack on.

“It was a mixture of a few things - being ill and then playing and also having a lot of things going on at the same time.

“Playing football can take a lot of toll on your body and it’s just one of those things.

“There’s nothing you can really do about it - you put your trust in the medical staff and crack on.”

Dickson is set to be named in the Colchester squad that travels to Rotherham United today.

The U’s have taken four points out of a possible six in their last six games and the full-back is hoping they can pick up another positive result, at the New York Stadium.

Dickson added: “The squad has been hit really hard by injury and illness this season.

“But the boys have done really well to keep the momentum up.

“We haven’t been far off and fingers crossed, the Peterborough result and performance will be the break we need.”