POOLE Town’s Jake Smeeton has revealed his frustration over the chest problem which has kept him out of action.

The former Dorchester Town defender has missed Dolphins’ past seven games in all competitions after sustained the injury in training.

His most recent appearance for Dolphins came in the 2-0 FA Cup second qualifying round triumph at Southern League West outfit Salisbury in mid-September.

Smeeton is set to receive a further assessment later this month and insists not being able to take to the field for Tom Killick’s men has been difficult.

Explaining the injury further, he told the Daily Echo: “It was believed I had torn a muscle in my chest. I recently saw a doctor and he said I could also have dislodged some cartilage.

“I have a lump at the side of my chest which has not gone down and it’s about seven weeks since I did it.

“At the moment we are looking into potential scans. It’s just a case of finding out what the full extent of the damage is.

“It’s frustrating because day to day I don’t feel too bad but, in terms of running and the physical aspects of the game, it is something which would put a lot more strain through that area.”

Asked how the injury had been initially sustained, Smeeton replied: “It was in training. I went up for a header and Tony Lee stepped across.

“I toppled over him and just landed on my shoulder and head – it was that impact that did the damage.

“The most frustrating thing for me is not being able to train or play.”

Poole have lost just once in their past six games in National South and recorded a resounding 4-0 victory over Eastbourne Borough last time out.

But Smeeton admitted his temporary role as a spectator had not been easy to deal with.

“I am probably one of the worst ones for it. I hate watching,” he added. “I am not a big fan of watching rather than playing but it’s something I have had to put up with for a few weeks.

“I have tried to watch as much as possible. For a couple of weeks I was in a sling so didn’t go.

“If we perform better it is a lot easier for me to watch sometimes. When it is not going our way I just get more frustrated and wound up.

“In the past couple of games we seemed to have turned it around a bit.

"Performances have improved a lot, in my opinion.

“Hopefully, that can be a starting block for us to get going.”

Poole are set to host second-place Braintree Town at the Black Gold Stadium on Saturday (3pm).

Braintree have failed to win in two of their past three league games but they eased past Bognor Regis 2-0 last time out.

Level on 31 points with league leaders Dartford, Braintree trail their rivals by virtue of goal difference.