"I want more" - Harrison Burke on injuries, high standards and Walsall goals

Harrison Burke trudged off the pitch on the cusp of half-time during Walsall’s final day defeat at Bromley in May.

It marked the end of a frustrating campaign for the defender, who had seen his debut season in the EFL disrupted by injury.

Fortunately on this occasion, Burke recovered quickly and immediately switched his focus to the new season.

“Got down to work” - Burke on ankle recovery

“It was just about getting a good week to 10 days of rest for me personally,” Burke, who captained Walsall in the second half of their pre-season opener at Leamington, revealed.

“Given the ankle, I went to see the physio and it wasn’t as bad as we first thought.

“Luckily, it was strapped. I saw him, gave it the rest it needed and just got down to work.”

The 23-year-old was still able to showcase his quality upon arriving from non-league Chester last summer and finished with two goals in 22 league appearances.

“I hold myself to a high standard, I wanted to do better”

That is something Burke is proud of, but he wants more heading into his second season at Bescot.

“I didn’t have the season that I wanted to have. I hold myself to a high standard and I wanted to do better,” he continued.

“I’m still really happy with 20 odd appearances in the Football League but I want more. I want to win more and I want to finish better in the league.

“That doesn’t just happen in pre-season, that happens in the off-season.

“I’ve been putting in the work and a lot of the lads have. You could see on the first day that we weren’t pulling anyone along, which is really good.”

A knee injury brought about his longest spell on the sidelines when he was out of action for nearly four months between early October and mid January.

That is something which grappled with Burke because he has previously spoken in length about how he takes pride in making himself available.

Quest to stay fit (and achieve promotion)

And that is exactly what he wants to do under new head coach Lee Grant.

He added: “I just want to stay fit and show the gaffer that I can be available.

“I really do [take pride in staying fit] and it hurt me. I’d like to hope the lads would back me that I put in the work and it wasn’t quite going for me [last season].

“I just couldn’t quite get it right. So for me, it’s about being available this season and being ready when I’m called upon.”

As for the collective ambition, Burke made clear that the goal is once again to achieve promotion.

“It has to be aiming for the play-offs and to get promoted, whether that’s automatic or play-offs, it doesn’t matter,” he concluded.

“We just need to strive for that and believe that we can do it, because I really believe that we can.”