Hearts give update on long-term absentees

Hearts have confirmed that Monica Forsyth should return to action this calendar year while Katie Rood will not play for the club again.

Forsyth suffered a knee injury in pre-season against Dundee United while Rood picked up an ACL injury at the back end of last season against Celtic. As a result, the duo have both missed the start of the new campaign, with this set to continue into the near future. However, assistant manager Sean Burt is hopeful that Forsyth this year as he confirms that Rood will leave the club once she has completed her rehabilitation.

“Monica [Forsyth] will be back this calendar year,” he told the Edinburgh Evening News. “It is a different situation with Katie Rood, she will do her rehabilitation at the club but then she will be moving on so she obviously won’t be featuring for us again. However, Monica [Forsyth] certainly will.

“We anticipate that her recovery is going really well and hopefully, we can have her back on the pitch at the turn of the year. Monica [Forsyth] has been a huge miss for us and she is only going to add more quality and depth to our squad when she arrives back. We are very much looking forward to it.”

Monica Forsyth (left) and Katie Rood (right). Credit: Malcolm MacKenzie

Both players had a significant impact on Hearts’ campaign last season as they finished fourth. Rood signed for the club last summer and netted some vital goals throughout. Meanwhile, Forsyth returned from a long-term injury in December with her performances earning her Young Player of the Year for Hearts.