Most of us look forward to a bit of sunshine at this time of year - Raphe Brown perhaps more than most.

Maidstone defender Brown was back on the bench at Eastleigh last weekend after a year out with an ankle injury.

After various attempts to fix the problem, the former Herne Bay man underwent surgery in October.

He’s back in business but looking forward to seeing the back of cold mornings as he steps up his return.

“I have to do more to get the ankle going - the weather determines that,” said Brown.

“I can be really stiff some mornings.

“Once I get going I’m all right, it’s just first thing in the morning I have to do a bit more now.

“I guess that’s what happens when you have surgery in such a small area of the body, which lacks blood flow.”

Brown was enjoying an excellent season last year, impressing at both left-back and centre-half.

He was playing in pain, however, and finally had to step out of the side, missing the National South title run-in.

The 23-year-old eventually required surgery, which included shaving the ankle bone and reattaching the ligament.

It’s been a long road to recovery but he got his rewards when George Elokobi included him in the squad at Eastleigh, where a 4-0 win sent Maidstone through to the FA Trophy Quarter-Finals.

“It feels really good to be back,” said Brown. “It’s been a long time coming. It’s taken a bit longer than I thought but I’ve been working hard behind the scenes to get back to this moment.

“I actually had the injury all last season and played through it.

“I think I had three different MRIs and some ultrasounds and they finally found the issue.

“We’d tried so many things and nothing was quite working but we got to the bottom of it in the end.

“There wasn’t a game last season when I wasn’t in pain.

“That was the annoying thing. We were doing so well and I was doing well but these things happen.

“I’ve never had anything like this before. It’s all new to me and it’s not nice being out of the team but this is what builds character.

“I’m raring to go again and get playing. It’s been a long-term one but I’m back now.

“I’m training as normal and doing all I can. I played for the under-23s and scored and I got called up today, which I was chuffed about.

“I couldn’t get on but the boys won, which is the main thing.

“The plan was to have a few more 23s games but injuries pushed me forward to the first team.

“It may be that I have to play a few more 23s games just for my overall fitness, but if I’d been called on today I think I’d have been able to do a job.

“This was my first time travelling away with the team this year, so it’s really good.

“Just waking up, to get on a coach, are the little things you miss.”