CHRISTIAN Roberts acknowledges that finishing above Bristol City will at least provide a crumb of comfort at the end of a campaign he will always look back on as 'the lost season'.

The Welshman readily admits he cannot wait to banish 2004-5, forget football for a month and simply start afresh.

A brush with death in a car crash, a hernia operation and a loss of form and goals have conspired to frustrate his fortunes this year. And the fact he cannot play against Bristol City tomorrow is the final insult.

He is prevented from taking part in the derby clash due to a clause insisted upon by the Ashton Gate outfit as part of the deal which brought him to the County Ground in October 2004.

It looked so different when the 25-year-old bagged the winning goal on his debut against Oldham Athletic and contributed to victories over the likes of Hull City and Sheffield Wednesday.

However, a car crash, ironically on the day of Town's LDV Vans Trophy win over Bristol City in late November, a match he could have played in, triggered a miserable run of luck.

A hernia operation early in the New Year kept him sidelined for a further period and he confesses that things haven't been the same since.

Whether playing wide on the right or in the attacking role he had against Walsall on Saturday, there hasn't been much joy for Roberts.

He said: "I'll give my all to the end as I'm a professional footballer but if I'm being totally honest then I can't wait for this year to be over, a lost year if you like.With everything that's happened to me, I just want to get away for a month and recharge the batteries.

"Again, I have to be honest and say that I'm not playing well at the moment and I'm struggling to find what was there before all the problems I've had.

"I've friends in Jamaica so I might just get away and forget football for a while."

However, that doesn't mean Roberts is packing his suitcase just yet. He knows there are five games remaining and he wants to finish as high as possible.

He is just frustrated that he won't be involved tomorrow. He said: "I've already said that I thought it was a petty clause and I stand by that. Still, I wanted the deal to go through so what can you do?"

Victory tomorrow would give Town a hat-trick of triumphs over City this season and Roberts knows what that would mean to the supporters. Brian Tinnion has had far more to spend than Andy King and yet still City have failed to deliver.

Roberts said: "I know the fans here would love to finish above Bristol. They might have had more to spend but that doesn't always guarantee success. It's about the unit you have. Just look at Real Madrid this year!"