SOUTHEND United defender Luke Prosser insists he is ready to help the Shrimpers rediscover their best form during the remainder of the season.

The centre-back returned to action for Blues’ reserves in a 1-0 win at Ipswich Town on Tuesday afternoon following six weeks on the sidelines with a calf problem.

And Prosser is keen to make up for lost time.

“It’s been a really frustrating time for me personally and it’s never nice having to watch from the sidelines and not be able to do anything,” said the 25-year-old.

“But hopefully I can come back in, pick up the level I was playing at before the injury quite quickly and help the team push on for the final nine games.”

The Shrimpers failed to win any of the 10 matches Prosser missed while out of action and they now find themselves sitting eighth in the standings, just outside the play-off positions.

However, Prosser is still hopeful of a successful conclusion to the campaign.

And he is thrilled to finally be back in action.

“It was really good to be involved against for the Bury game on Saturday, even though I didn’t play, and then to get 60 minutes against Ipswich was really good.

“I was feeling a little bit tired but that’s going to be the case after a few weeks out.

“But it was a good test for everyone and nice to get the win.

“They were a very experienced side and I was up against Ebanks-Blake, so it was a good test for me and I’m glad I came through it.

“These behind-closed-doors games have been crucial throughout the season for the lads, and I was really pleased to play in the game and get the minutes under my belt.”

Prosser will now be looking to take that form in to the first team.

But, with Jakub Sokolik and John Egan both impressing against Bury, Prosser knows he may well have to wait for his next change.

“We’ve gone from having one fit defender to suddenly having four and Adam Thompson is also getting closer to coming back so it’s going to be hard to get in the team,” admitted Prosser. “On Saturday we weren’t at our best going forward but defensively we looked really solid and never looked like conceding.

“It was Jakub’s first game and he came through it really well, while John has looked excellent since he came in.

“The main thing now is the manager has got options again and it would be great if I could be back involved against Bristol Rovers.”