I never enjoy sitting out a match but it is even more difficult to do so when I watch and we are on top of our game.

As you probably heard I was injured 24 hours before our game with Preston on Sunday and as a result I had to watch from the stands.

Now a lot of people probably think I should be confident sitting there having scored 28 goals. They probably think that no matter how the game goes or how well the players perform I'll be back in the line-up as soon as I recover my fitness.

But that is not the case.

I know from playing in the team that our midfield is so good that even a half-decent player can get in there and do well with the service they provide.

As a result you never really want to be the one sitting on the sidelines.

Obviously, you want the team to do well, and of course I include the strikers in that, but you don't want them to go and get a hat-trick each!

Sitting there made me think about a quote I read in former Holland and Chelsea star Ruud Gullit's autobiography. He was talking about leaving a club and whether you are remembered or not for the contribution you made. Gullit said if no one talks about you after you've moved on then you have a problem. If you leave and people still mention your name then you know you have done a good job.

I thought about that again when I was watching the game afterwards on television. I wanted to see if the commentators were saying anything at all about me!

Normally I don't even listen to what they say - I play my game and assess it myself or with the manager later, work on things and then move on. You don't really analyse what a commentator might have to say.

On Sunday I just wanted them to mention my name.

Don't get me wrong it's not like I need to be constantly reassured, but because our team is doing so well I think any one player can be out and we can still get a result.

That was perfectly illustrated at the weekend during the game which we won 3-2 to go three points clear at the top of Division One. I turned out against Preston earlier in the season and thought they were the best team we had played and so it didn't surprise me that they made things difficult for us. That made the victory even more impressive.

The injury, a pulled muscle in my left leg, was sustained on Saturday in training.

We had a good warm-up and just when we were doing some sprinting I felt it slightly. I thought I'd get through the rest of the warm-up and then at the end of it I would know whether I could carry on or not.

We started a keep-ball session and during those you're expected to twist and turn, jump and sprint and so forth. It was then that I felt it again.

Once that happened I knew it didn't make sense carrying on. If I had, not only would I not have been fit for the game the day after but also I would have been risking making the injury worse than it already was.

So the club physio assessed it, gave me some treatment and then wanted me to do a physical on the morning before the game. But when I got in it hadn't really improved that much so they said it was best to leave me out.

Next weekend we play Newcastle United of the Premiership in the FA Cup. They are third in the league and it goes without saying it is a game I want to be a part of.

Because I caught the injury early there is a great chance I will be fully recovered in time to make the squad.

I think despite Newcastle's position we are capable of going there and causing an upset because when we get our game going I think we are a match for anyone.

If we do well, not only will it mean we are in the next round of the Cup but it will also give us an idea of how far we have come since getting relegated last season.