Treatment Table: Fans Fund Shepherd’s Treatment (Gemma Shepherd)

When Charlton Athletic’s prolific scorer Gemma Shepherd was diagnosed with a torn hip labrum, her first thought was not the time out but how she would pay the 5,000 pounds the repair would cost. An art technician in a secondary school by day, she did not want her family to shoulder what she calls a massive financial burden, so she set up a crowdfunding page and was bowled over when donations reached the target in three weeks. The orthopaedic surgeon told her the injury had been sustained some time earlier and misdiagnosed as quad strains, the result of overuse and wear. Four months on, recovery has been on schedule and she is happy to be playing again.