Stuart Bannigan may be dealing with the first long-term injury lay-off of his career, but one thing that is certain at Partick Thistle, is that he won’t have to deal with it alone.

His teammate, Christie Elliott, is a man who unfortunately knows all too well how lonely a life it can be for a professional footballer when they can’t take part in training and games.

There is no substitute for the camaraderie of the training pitch or the match-day buzz, but Elliot revealed that he and the other Thistle players are rallying around their stricken midfielder.

“I’ve spoken to Stuart and obviously he was really disappointed when he first got told what the injury was,” Elliott said.

“It was something he obviously didn’t expect, but I’ve told him just to try to stay positive, try to keep himself active, and he knows that we’ve got a good group of lads.

“It makes you who you are at the end of the day. You’ve got to be strong, you’ve got to be positive, and you don’t take the days for granted where you are training now no matter how hard it is.

“Everyone has each other’s back and we try to keep the injured lads sane. It can be a lonely place when you’re out, but at this club everyone stays involved with each other.

“If someone sees you are having an off-day, they are always there to try to cheer you up or whatever, so it’s a good club to be at if you are unfortunate enough to be injured.

“It’s not a nice place mentally for any person to be of course when you’re out for a long time, but this club of all clubs is really good in terms of both the treatment you get and the lads and the gaffer making the effort to keep you involved.

“It’s all about taking each day as it comes and staying as positive as you can.”

Elliott himself is fighting his way back to full fitness from a groin injury picked up back in April, and he continued his rehabilitation by playing the full game for Thistle’s development side against Dundee United on Tuesday night.

After making the bench for Saturday’s first-team match at Pittodrie, he hopes it is another step in the right direction towards a return to first-team action.

“It’s been a long time since I played 90 minutes so it was great to get that under my belt,” he said.

“I played for an hour the week before and played the full game on Tuesday night, and everything went well and my groin is feeling perfect today.

“Hopefully with a few more games I can push my way back into the first-team.

“In training you can feel as fit as anything, but coming into a game it’s more about your sharpness, and I can feel that coming back now.

“I’m 100% now and I just want to keep working hard so that when my opportunity comes, I can take my chance.

“It all depends on what the gaffer is thinking, but I’m ready now and it’s just a matter of time now.”