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Delap keen to repay Stoke

Image: Delap: Wants to repay Stoke after club stuck by him

Stoke midfielder Rory Delap hopes to repay the club further after they supported him through difficult times.

Potters midfielder prepares for FA Cup semi-final

Stoke midfielder Rory Delap hopes to repay the club further after they supported him through difficult times. The 34-year-old Potters long-throw specialist broke his leg during his first home game for Stoke back in 2006 while on loan, but manager Tony Pulis opted to hand him a permanent contract despite his fitness problems. Delap is preparing for Sunday's FA Cup semi-final meeting with Bolton at Wembley and hopes he can keep pushing the club forward. He told the Daily Mail: "On my debut, against Sunderland would you believe, I broke my leg in two places. I would have understood perfectly if they had said, 'OK, go back to Sunderland and work on your fitness, and we'll see what happens after that'. "Instead, Tony, the chairman and chief executive came to see me in hospital and said, 'We've given you our word, and we are going to keep it'. What a lift that gave me. It certainly helped the healing process. "I hope I have repaid them, and not just with the long throw." Delap has become well known for his throw-ins during his time at the Britannia Stadium but he insists their success is not just down to him.

Brave

"It's one thing being able to throw the ball into the heart of the area, but you need players who are good enough and brave enough for it to work," he added. "The likes of Robert Huth, Ryan Shawcross, Ricardo Fuller and Kenwyne Jones, all big, strong, brave lads who don't mind piling into a packed area to get a head on it. "They have to time their runs just right, but we hardly do any practice. Maybe one or two goes at it on a Friday, when we are going through set-plays, but that's about it. "It has paid dividends, but I so nearly didn't become a Stoke player. I came here on loan from Sunderland, and it was agreed it would become permanent. But it was just a handshake, nothing more." He continued: "I don't think any player would get in a Premier League team just because he can throw the ball a long way. "David Beckham's delivery from set-pieces was exceptional, but he brought other qualities to that Manchester United team that helped make them so successful. "I'd like to think I've done a half-decent job with the ball at my feet down the years, but if people want to remember me for my long throw, that's fine. It's better than not being remembered at all."

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