Warriors prop Jacob Lillyman will make his long-awaited return to the NRL after being given the all-clear to take the field against Brisbane in Auckland on Saturday night.

The Queensland State of Origin representative has been sidelined since tearing the bicep off the tendon in his right arm in a trial match against Gold Coast in early February.

He saw his surgeon on Wednesday and was declared fit to play again.

“It’s been a long time coming,” he said.

“It’s great to be back in the mix and back amongst the boys again.”

Lillyman, who wasn’t in the Warriors’ team list released on Tuesday, is likely to come off the bench against the Broncos.

He knows it will take him at least a couple of games to work up his match fitness.

“It’s going to be very tough – there’s no getting around that,” he said.

“I’m going to have to push through a bit of pain, but that’s just part and parcel of what you have to do when you come back from injury.”

The 28-year-old has played six Origin matches, getting a recall for the Maroons last year after a three-year absence.

He said the possibility of getting back in the frame for selection during this season’s series hadn’t entered his head.

“That’s probably raising the bar a little too high at the moment,” he said, adding that his focus was on simply playing well for the Warriors.

Coach Brian McClennan said Lillyman’s experience – which includes 124 NRL appearances, 62 of them for the Warriors – would boost the confidence of those around him.

He also believed it would improve on-field communication, especially with another seasoned campaigner, lock Micheal Luck, also yet to play his first match of the year because of wrist surgery.

“As a rule, we’re a fairly quiet team,” McClennan said.

“We’re getting better with our communication, but Jacob, and particularly Micheal Luck, they really up the ante on that and, as in anything in life, communication links people together.”