Matty Lees believes that he is stepping up a level this year as he looks forward to at least three more seasons at St Helens – and an England spot at the World Cup in the autumn.
The club confirmed last week that the prop has signed a new deal which will see him remain with the reigning Super League champions until at least 2025, with the option for a further season.
There had been speculation that Lees, who has amassed 95 appearances to date for Saints, was wanted in the NRL but the 24-year-old has made the decision to commit long-term to the club where he came through the Academy.
“You’re always going to get offers from elsewhere but when you’re at St Helens there’s only one way to go,” Lees told League Express.
“I’m really happy with my decision and looking forward to the next few years.”
Lees is particularly pleased to have signed a lengthy contract, having known from past experience how fragile things can be in the game.
In 2019 he missed the closing stages of the season, including two major finals and a likely Great Britain call-up, with a nightmare injury.
“Touch wood I won’t get injured again but I had a pretty serious injury in 2019, I ruptured my bowel and it really made me think towards the future.
“Then I broke my ankle last year so I haven’t been the luckiest of players so far.
“It was always in the back of my mind that my next deal needed to be a long deal and something I could really rip into and prove what I can do.”
Lees has been focused this season on establishing himself as a starting prop, with all 13 of his appearances so far coming from the outset.
“It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster with injuries and trying to get consistency with my injuries and game time,” added Lees.
“This year I’ve spoken with Kristian (Woolf, head coach) and he said it was a really good year for me to prove myself as a starting frontrower.
“The last couple of years I’ve been there or thereabouts but not really consistently starting.
“This is the first year where I’ve started pretty much every game I’ve been involved in, so hopefully that brings on my experience.”
Lees hopes his performances so far this year for the Super League leaders have been enough to finally earn an England debut.
Capped by the Knights in 2018, Lees is still waiting for a first full call-up but he has been part of Shaun Wane’s training squad so far this year.
The opportunity could come in just a few weeks with England facing the All Stars on 18 June, but the main focus is on a home World Cup at the end of the season.
“Hopefully I’ll have a chance to prove myself in that game,” said Lees.
“At the end of the year you’ve got the World Cup and hopefully I’ll put myself in the mix for that. That’s my next goal.”
For now club matters take priority, with Saints resuming from the break for the Challenge Cup final with a trip to Toulouse Olympique on Saturday.
The Stade Ernest Wallon was the scene of one of only two Super League defeats so far this year for Saints, and perhaps the surprise result of the season, when Toulouse won by two points in March.
Lees believes a win there would be the ideal way to start the second half of the campaign as he eyes the League Leaders’ Shield and another Grand Final appearance.
“We’ve spoken about it a lot recently, that we really need to go after this second half of the season now, really kick on and take things to another level again,” he said.
“I think we’ve got a point to prove against (Toulouse). We messed that game up so we need to get this one right.
“It’ll be a really big two points if we can get them and stamp our mark on them over there.”
Lees was not the only Saints player to sign a new contract last week, with Jack Welsby adding a year to his previous deal by committing until 2025.
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