SHEFFIELD EAGLES prop Masi Matongo has his sights on a trip to Barrow on Sunday as he plots a return to the Championship fray.
The Zimbabwe-born, Hull-raised powerhouse last played on May 4, when he took a nasty knock to the head during the 32-20 defeat at former club Bradford.
That was the 29-year-old’s ninth Eagles outing – after he missed the entire 2024 campaign in order to get a nagging shoulder problem sorted out once and for all.
Matongo, who came through the ranks at Hull FC and made 58 first-team appearances between 2015 and leaving the club after the 2021 campaign, was enjoying a run of regular outings before his setback.
And the man who spent 2022 at York and 2023 at Bradford is keen to make up for lost time and rejoin the bid to get Craig Lingard’s Sheffield up the table.
“I don’t remember too much about the incident itself, but I’ve watched it back on the video,” he said.
“Doing that felt a bit strange, but it was just one of those things, a head-to-head collision, and obviously I’ve had to be patient and make sure everything is okay with the recovery.
“The doctor is happy with my progression, while not having a game at the weekend (due to the finals day) has given me a bit of additional time, and the Barrow match is my target.”
Matongo added: “I missed a lot of the 2023 season at Bradford due to my shoulder injury, and decided to take a year out to get it properly sorted so I could be playing at 100 percent rather than 60 or 70.
“I’d been feeling good, so to have to miss matches has been disappointing, but it’s part and parcel of this game, and there are plenty of games left his season.
“We’re still gelling as a team under Linners, there’s plenty of improvement in us, and I want to play my part.”