Greg Inglis has asked fans to give him time to return to his best form ahead of his debut this season with Warrington Wolves.
Inglis, who is often referred to by his initials GI, is one of the greats of his generation. But now he is returning to the field almost two years after hanging up his boots.
Even though he is now aged 34, he arrives with big expectations.
But he says it will require patience from Warrington supporters before they see him at his best.
“I’m just asking fans and supporters to be patient because I won’t be at my best for five or six rounds and that’s just me being completely honest,” said Inglis.
“It’s just getting kilometres in the legs and getting used to week in, week out footy again.
“It’s not just about the weekends but what goes on between them, like performing at training so you can perform better in the games.”
Inglis insists, at this stage at least, that he is only planning to play through his one-year deal with the club.
“So far it’s pretty much closed doors,” he said.
“I’ve got my own business that I started up and launched last year, so that’s pretty much been my main priority until I got over here. I’m tapping into New South Wales schools on mental health and my struggles. But saying that, I’ve still got ten months here and we may re-assess. We’ll go back through the same process and talk to the people who are important.”
Inglis spoke with more certainty about the prospect of both an NRL and State of Origin return.
“The NRL door is completely closed,” he said.
“If I did go back to the NRL, it would be in a coaching capacity.
“I had been going into businesses and talking about mental health and my experiences. I would maybe go and do something like that if the opportunity came up.
“I left the representative arena on good terms, and I do not want to go back and ruin it. I already had a call last year to go back and play and I said no.”
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