Injured winger Aaron Doran has expressed his gratitude to all who have helped him move closer to paying for his knee surgery.
The now out-of-contract Caley Thistle star told the Press and Journal this week that the Inverness club he’s served for 14 years had twice cancelled a knee operation, leaving him in limbo.
He is due to go under the knife next Wednesday and his former ICT team-mate Shane Sutherland, who suffered a ruptured ACL (anterior crucial ligament) spearheaded a gofundme page to initially part-pay for Doran’s treatment.
By Thursday morning the donations had reached £8,730 – far exceeding the £5,000 target.
A range of former Caley Jags players and fellow footballers, including Scotland and Rangers defender John Souttar, pitched into the cause as did ex-ICT manager Billy Dodds.
‘I can’t thank you enough’ – Doran
The Irishman, a Scottish Cup winner in 2015, took to social media to explain his gratitude.
He said: “I would just like to thank everyone for the messages and support the last couple of days.
“I just wanted to shed a little light on everything that has been happening the last seven or eight weeks in the interview and did not expect the response to be this crazy.
“The kindness to the fund my good team-mate Shane Sutherland has set up for me from my team-mates, fellow pros, former managers and coaches and, of course, the fans has been truly overwhelming. I can’t thank you enough.
“I can’t believe the amount of generosity shown towards me. I’m looking forward to getting my knee sorted and getting back to a bit of normality now. Thanks again.”
Sutherland ‘amazed’ by response
Sutherland, who has been out of the game since injuring his knee in the Premiership play-off semi-final at Arbroath in 2022, was equally grateful to everyone for helping Doran.
He said: “Truly unbelievable the amount raised.
“Only started to help with the cost – now it’s not far from covering the whole surgery cost. The kindness is something I’ve never seen. It’s amazing. ‘Thank you’ isn’t enough, but thank you to everyone so far.”
Sutherland confirmed should the tally exceed the costs of the medics’ bill, any excess cash will go to charity.