Monday February 2nd 2026
Livingston faced off against Motherwell at home on Saturday.
Written by Glasgow View Reporter, Ewan Hornell
It was the pre-season of 2024 when former Jambo turned Steelman, Sam Nicholson, first began experiencing injury problems. After a long period of setbacks, he finally made his much- anticipated return to the pitch in Saturday’s win against Livingston.
His road to recovery was anything but straightforward. Misdiagnoses and career-threatening scares made the journey uncertain, and at times, Nicholson feared he might never play again.
‘It was quite emotional, I was trying to hold it together a bit on the pitch. It’s been a long road and I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time.’
The problems started during pre-season 2024, when what was initially thought to be severe tendonitis turned out to be a tear in his patella tendon.
‘They tried to play me through it, and I was in pain every day. It got to the point where I said I needed a scan. They found the tear, repaired it, and I went through full rehab, but I was in even more pain,’ Nicholson explained.
A second consultation brought more worrying news.
‘I was told I might never play again if the next surgery didn’t go well. Thankfully, it did,’ he said.
What was originally expected to be a three-and-a-half to four-month recovery ended up taking far longer due to complications and several incorrect consultations. Nicholson is just glad it’s over.
‘I’m through the other side now,’ he said.
Nicholson joined Motherwell in the 23/24 season but has only made 27 appearances due to his injury issues. He thanked everyone involved at the club for their support during his difficult time.
‘ I do owe the club a lot of thanks because they sent me to the best people in London who managed to save my knee.
‘Once I had the second surgery I was just focused on trying my best to get to where I am now. With the help from the club my teammates and management staff who’ve been great the whole way through, checking on me, not just physically but mentally as well.’
Nicholson also highlighted the importance of his support system away from football.
‘There was time when I was out injured that and had the bad news that it was a huge worry and I was thinking what am I going to do?
‘You see how people go to these bad places and I’ve been lucky enough that I’ve been surrounded by good people.
‘My dad phones me every day after training, I’ve got my brothers there as well, my wife and two kids keep me pretty occupied.’
Back on the pitch and hoping to hit the ground running. Nicholson noted how good it felt to be back out there.
‘It felt great just a couple of rusty passes which is normal when you’ve been out for so long. I’m looking to build on that, get sharper, get fitter and try and contribute to the team.
He now has the tall task of trying to find his way into a Motherwell side in stellar form.
Nicholson spoke on how watching from the sidelines, while difficult, fuelled his determination.
‘When you’re injured and watching the boys playing so well, your buzzing for the boys but there’s heartache thinking I want to be involved in that
‘The way the gaffer wants us to play, I think anyone would want to play in this team
‘I know the start of the season we didn’t get the wins and there was draws here and there but everyone believes in it from the start. We kept playing the way he wanted us to and you look at it now, it’s a joy to watch.’
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