Contrite Eel Lussick delighted to be back

A contrite Darcy Lussick insists he’s not a malicious player and his four-game suspension for a high shot on Sydney Roosters enforcer Jared Waerea-Hargreaves during Parramatta’s NRL defeat last month was fair.

Lussick was fortunate to stay on the field when he poleaxed the Kiwi prop in the 56-4 defeat at Allianz Stadium and praised his former Manly teammate for the manner in which he reacted.

He also said sitting on the sidelines watching his team’s rejuvenation following that humiliation had been hard.

“They haven’t missed me too much – three wins and a narrow loss,” Lussick said.

“We played junior footy at Manly and I went up to him after the game and said sorry.

“The way Jared handled it was a massive credit to him. I didn’t go out to hurt him and he didn’t go down. It shows the kind of player he is.

“It was a bit unfortunate. I got him a bit high, it was poor technique on my part and I can’t complain.

“I’ve had plenty of time on my hands to work on my technique over the last four weeks.”

Lussick returns to action for Easter Monday’s mouth-watering clash with local rivals Wests Tigers.

Like the Eels, the joint-venture have defied the critics with a fine start to the season, also winning their past three games.

Representative props Aaron Woods and Keith Galloway have been key factors in the recent run and Lussick is expecting a huge test in the front row.

“They’ve been playing well and it will be a tough test in the forwards,” he said.

“But I can’t wait to play. It’s been hard watching on from the sides.”

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