JON Meades said his Oxford United debut was worth the wait after ending 12 months on the sidelines this week.

The midfielder signed last summer, but an ankle injury picked up in the final game of pre-season ruled him out for the entire 2013-14 campaign.

It finally came to an end on Tuesday, when the 22-year-old played 90 minutes in the 2-1 win at Bristol City.

Despite cramping up near the end, Meades, who is in line to play at Mansfield tomorrow, was overjoyed.

“It’s amazing, you do think sometimes ‘is it ever going to come?’,” he said.

“Going into it I did have a couple of emotions swirling about, but when you're out there on the pitch everything goes out the window.

“It makes it all worthwhile with all the rehab over the whole year.

“You have a lot of downs, but the highs make up for it and this is obviously one of them.”

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