When you describe the year Walsall’s Sam Mantom has endured it sounds like the plot of a Hollywood movie.

Last season’s player of the year suffered a serious knee injury in the summer of 2014. Since then a series of setbacks and exploratory operations have kept him sidelined for 10 months and left the Stourbridge schemer, at times, wondering when he might finally return to the field of play.

However, on the eve of the biggest game in Walsall’s history - the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy Final - and their first ever Wembley appearance, Sam is back fighting fit and raring to go.

The only thing missing from the script is for Mantom to curl in an injury-time winner on Sunday, although don’t think that fact has passed him by.

“It crosses your mind,” he laughed, “When you get fans coming up to you and telling you they’ve had a dream that you got the winner in the 91^st minute for Walsall to win the cup then it sounds a bit like a fairy tale.

“I said all along I just wanted to be involved in it but now I’ve played two games and my fitness is right up there and there’s a possibility I can step out on the pitch.

“To be out for nine or 10 months was hell and it would be seriously unbelievable to walk out with the team.

“If I can just set foot out there it will make my year.”

It has been 11 games and seven long weeks since a 0-0 draw at home to Preston secured Walsall’s first visit to the national stadium in their 127-year history.

Sam admits he made the best use of that time as the thought of Wembley drove him on to get fit.

“When I was in the gym with John Whitney we used the motivation of Wembley massively,” he added.

“Everyone else would have gone home and I was working on my fitness and strength, trying to get back to that level where I could return to training again.”

This is not the first time Sam has had to respond to a set-back in his career.

As a youngster Mantom joined the ranks of West Bromwich Albion.  However, he failed to make the grade at the Premier League outfit and, after a handful of League Cup outings, he moved on.

However, the Midlands-born midfielder says he looks back fondly on his time with the Baggies and says it was a man who knows Wembley that played a pivotal role in his development.

“I felt my best time there was when I was with Roy Hodgson, he was excellent,” he recalled.

“Every day I was training with the first team and training with Premier League players. You can’t help but learn from that situation.

“I travelled to pretty much every away game with the squad so I was always involved even if I wasn’t quite making the bench.

“The fact that he always had me travelling meant I was in his mind and given he’s the current England boss I look back at that as a huge compliment.”

Going into Sunday’s final, Walsall sit 15^th in League One and must face the division’s runaway leaders Bristol City in the showpiece Wembley final.

But Mantom says the Saddlers have nothing to fear having already beaten second-placed Preston in the previous round of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy.

“On our day we know we can put any team to the sword,” he said.

“Obviously Bristol haven’t lost in a few games and are walking the league. But this is a one off game and a totally different environment for everyone.

“We feel that we can beat them and come away with the trophy.”