OLIVER Risser is not going to let the thought of a Paolo Di Canio pre-season spoil his summer break.

The Namibian played a prominent part in Swindon’s rise to the top of League Two this term, making 40 appearances in his first season in English football.

The rigours of Di Canio’s training methods have been widely reported throughout the campaign, and Town’s Italian boss will no doubt put his players through stringent physical tests when they return for pre-season in early July.

Risser is fully aware of what lies ahead, but revealed he may have been through worse during his career.

“The pre-season has been tough but it was not like it was a shock for me because I’m used to quite hard training,” he told the Advertiser.

“In Norway (Risser spent two seasons with Manglerud Star and Lyn) we trained in pre-season for three months and we had a lot of running with our team-mates so it was a tough spell really.

“So I wasn’t that surprised but it just helped us this year to get a good result like we did.”

The 31-year-old has planned a family break during his time off, with Spain or Portugal the likely destinations.

With one eye on the future and the challenge of life in League One, however, Risser is not going to let himself go over the summer.

“I’m going to have a rest but you can’t do nothing so you have to be responsible to your body, we’re professionals,” he said.

“Everybody does it their own way but I’m going to work a bit. Everybody has his limits and knows what his body feels like and what is needed for his body to recover.”