Itsa国际传媒檚 been the story of the week in the Canadian Football League.

Nathan Rourke is back after being out of the B.C. Lions lineup since injuring his right foot in a game against the Saskatchewan Roughriders in Regina on Aug. 19. After the subsequent surgery, most thought Rourke was done for the year but hesa国际传媒檚 defied the odds and will play in the Lions regular season finale in Winnipeg this weekend.

Rourkesa国际传媒檚 return to action against the Blue Bombers on Friday night will be an appetizer for Lions fans who hope a three-course meal will follow with the entrees being the Western Semi-Final, the Western Final and the Grey Cup game.

For Rourke, itsa国际传媒檚 been a long road back with plenty of ups and downs. sa国际传媒淚 remained optimistic but that didnsa国际传媒檛 make any it easier. There were definitely times where I didnsa国际传媒檛 even want to think about football,sa国际传媒� said the 24-year-old native of Victoria.

Going through rehab is a tough time both physically and mentally. As most athletes would attest, the physical work is gruelling and yousa国际传媒檙e usually isolated doing it sa国际传媒� which causes a feeling of disconnect from the team. For Rourke, it was the small victories on such days that kept him motivated.

sa国际传媒淚 just wanted to make sure it felt like a productive day. Itsa国际传媒檚 tough early on when you donsa国际传媒檛 see any progress but it gets easier when you start seeing that the incision wound is closing up a little bit more and yousa国际传媒檙e able to do something without pain. Those little victories were fun. Sometimes when you donsa国际传媒檛 see that on a day-to-day basis it can be quite challenging when yousa国际传媒檙e isolated from the team and not at the facility,sa国际传媒� said Rourke, who despite missing half a season is still the Lionssa国际传媒� nominee for Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Canadian awards.

According to Rourke, the lowest point during the recovery process occurred during the last week of September. sa国际传媒淲e had a setback at one point where the doctors werensa国际传媒檛 happy with the incision wound closing and they were worried about it getting infected, so I had to stay home instead of going to practice the week of the Ottawa game,sa国际传媒� he explained.

At that point, Rourke had to prioritize recovery over football. He missed practices and meetings sa国际传媒� and if you know anything about Rourke sa国际传媒� you know how much that pained him as hesa国际传媒檚 a preparation junkie. But in typical Rourke fashion, he made sure he was up to speed on opponents who the Lions might face when he returned.

The turning point in the rehab process according to Rourke was when the incision started to close and the chances of infection were reduced.

sa国际传媒淭hat allowed me to do some more things and I really started to make strides in my rehab. I started walking around and I eventually got out of the walking boot around six weeks after the surgery. I started to enjoy things a little more,sa国际传媒� said Rourke.

Rourke feels confident that the mental part of the game wonsa国际传媒檛 be an issue for him when he returns but, like any athlete returning from a serious injury, itsa国际传媒檚 how he will respond physically in game conditions.

Most doctors will give you a blunt response when you ask them about getting back to 100% after surgery. The standard reply is sa国际传媒測ousa国际传媒檒l never be back to 100%sa国际传媒� and when that story was relayed to Rourke, he got a good chuckle.

sa国际传媒淒octors told me that as well but I donsa国际传媒檛 believe them for a second. Itsa国际传媒檚 hard to give a percentage of where Isa国际传媒檓 at but thatsa国际传媒檚 why we are going through this week just to feel where that is. Itsa国际传媒檚 certainly not 100% but I feel pretty good considering,sa国际传媒� stated Rourke.

Rourke said hesa国际传媒檚 sa国际传媒渟trangely calmsa国际传媒� when describing on how hesa国际传媒檚 feeling prior to the Winnipeg game. Itsa国际传媒檚 the polar opposite for Lions fans who are hoping a healthy Rourke can lead them to a post-season run.

Veteran B.C. sports personality Bob sa国际传媒渢he Mojsa国际传媒� Marjanovich writes twice weekly for Black Press Media. And check out his weekly podcast every Monday at or your local Black Press Media website.