Jacob Beetham is aiming to hit the ground running in the season ahead, following an injury-plagued year in Blue & Black.
A recurring ankle injury limited the full-back to just five appearances during a frustrating 2024-25 campaign – illustrating the highs and lows of professional sport having won his first Wales cap in June 2024.
But now progressing through his rehab programme following surgery, Beetham is hoping for an injury-free run and the opportunity to feature in Cardiff’s pre-season friendlies against Richmond FC and Leinster.
Speaking at the Royal Welsh Show this week, Beetham said: “Yeah, rehab is going good. It’s been a long process, but we’re going into the end stages of rehab and looking to hopefully being fit for these pre-season games. From there it’s obviously leading into next season.
“I’m just excited to get back. Hopefully I’ll get a bit of training before the games and then if I can get some game time, that will be great.
“The thing with a lot of injuries is the staying positive, that’s probably one of the hardest things to do, especially when you’re out for a long period of time. So that’s been difficult at times but luckily there’s a good group of us at the moment who are injured.
“As much as none of us would like to be injured, it’s nice to have those boys around as well because it makes it all a bit easier.”
While Beetham has been following his own individual programme, he has also been keeping tabs on the wider group and has been impressed with the fight, grit and determination on display.
He added: “It’s been interesting. Obviously I haven’t been around the boys too much with rehabbing, but the vibes have all been great. Everyone’s been very positive and getting stuck in.
“They’ve been getting put through their paces with Ryan Campbell (head of strength and conditioning) and all the training that they’ve been doing.
“You could see how hard they are working at the dunes. I’ve always been injured when the boys have done that but it doesn’t look nice at all.
“Although I’m rehabbing and that’s tough, pre-season when you’re fit is a different level, so to be fair to the boys, they’re grafting and training very hard.
“It’ll be a test of my fitness when I get back to running and being put through my paces, but it’s all going good and I’m looking forward to getting back with the boys.”