When Josh Sims raced the length of the pitch to provide the assist that sent Southampton to Wembley in 2017 it was widely assumed to be the start of a great career, not the pinnacle.
That game was the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final in which the Saints travelled to Anfield with a slim 1-0 lead courtesy of a Nathan Redmond strike in the first leg.
With Virgil Van Dijk missing the clash at his future home stadium through injury, it was a real underdog tale as Jack Stephens came into the side to partner Maya Yoshida in defence. Liverpool expectedly had the majority of the ball – with their 72% possession the kind of figure Southampton fans have become accustomed to seeing from their side under Russell Martin this season – but only managed to register three shots on target due to the dogged defending of Claude Puel’s side.
In the 81st minute, Puel turned to his bench and brought on 19-year-old Sims. Ten minutes later, in the 91st minute, Southampton cleared a corner to Sims on the edge of their own box. The turbo-charged youngster proceeded to remarkably run the length of the Anfield pitch before slipping in Shane Long who sealed a Wembley final against Manchester United.
What happened to Josh Sims?
Southampton ultimately lost 3-2 to United in the final in devastating fashion as Manolo Gabbiadini was wrongly denied a hat-trick; his third goal clearly onside but in a pre-VAR era the goal was ruled out.
For Sims, though, the semi-final assist was to be the beginning of a tumultuous few years. Shortly after that famous assist, Sims suffered a knee injury which kept him out for a period of nine months and struggled to ever get himself back into the team at Southampton, with a high manager turnover not helping his cause.
A trio of loan spells followed, with Sims spending time at Reading, New York Red Bulls and Doncaster Rovers before eventually being released by Southampton at the end of the 2020/21 season.
After a promising start whilst on loan at Doncaster, Sims picked up a hamstring injury which saw him return to his parent club for treatment and this is where the issues really started.
Sims, reflecting on the period to The Athletic in an article from November 2021 explained that: “At the start of January, my hamstring was all done and I was fit enough to go back to Doncaster. I had signed all the paperwork and then had a call from the doctor at Southampton. I thought they were calling just to send me on my way, but they told me I had tested positive (for Covid-19). I didn’t have any symptoms, but back then you had to self-isolate for two weeks.
“Throughout the two weeks, I didn’t have any symptoms. I thought it was a false positive. I went back to Doncaster after a couple of weeks, but I never felt the same.”
Despite the lack of symptoms experienced at the time, Sims felt lethargic and, after sustaining a glute injury, a loss of appetite and weight loss led to a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis. Current Southampton midfielder Flynn Downes has also struggled with bowel issues this season which have seen him miss games on more than one occasion.
Things would get worse still, though, as the medication Sims took to deal with his bowel issues caused myocarditis – a heart condition – that led to months where the winger could not even leave his bed, let alone consider returning to a football pitch.
However, despite his heart issues and being out of the game from May 2021, Sims has recovered well and in February 2022 managed to resume his professional football career, albeit whilst taking medication for his myocarditis.
Ross County handed Sims a return to football
Scottish Premier League side Ross County were the club that took a chance on Sims, now 26, as he secured a return to the game.
He is still at the club, having played 56 times since his return, scoring four goals and providing one assist in all competitions.
Whilst it may not be the dizzying heights of providing the assist en route to a Wembley final, the fact Sims is playing in Scotland’s top flight after an incredibly challenging few years in which he believed he may never play football again is a huge feat in itself.
County are struggling this season, currently occupying the relegation play-off spot. They are just one point below St Johnstone above them though, and will hope to leapfrog their relegation rivals to secure another season in the SPL.
Having started seven league games this season but been subbed on 14 times, Sims will hope to play a bigger part in his club’s battle for survival between now and the end of the season.