A quick surgery. A bit of rehab. Six weeks and he'd be back to help keep Huddersfield in the Championship.
Yet it is now 13 months and counting since the 31-year-old last started a league game for the Terri ers.
A combination of groin and hernia problems required a more extensive operation and in January doctors ordered the former Oxford left-back to sit out the remainder of the campaign to focus on his recovery.
Forgotten
While Ruffels battled for fitness, Huddersfield were relegated and two managers - Darren Moore and Andre Breitenreiter bit the dust.
The upshot was that by the time he returned for pre-season, Ruffels was a forgotten man with little to no part in the thought process of new gaffer Michael Duff.
"I tried to be as positive as I could," says Ruffels, who started his career with Coventry and made over 300 appearances for Oxford before joining the Terriers in 2021.
This story is from the December 15, 2024 edition of The Football League Paper.
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This story is from the December 15, 2024 edition of The Football League Paper.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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