Quade Cooper has confirmed he has recovered from injury and is ready to help the Queensland Reds salvage something from their disastrous Super Rugby season.

Cooper is set to return from his fractured collarbone next weekend, when the embattled Reds face South Africa’s struggling Lions at Suncorp Stadium.

“For me, I’ve been preparing for this day for a long time,” Cooper said.

“I think the group of guys we have is a great group and I’m just looking forward to joining them and trying to contribute around the edges.”

The Wallabies’ five-eighth suffered the injury in January, throwing Queensland’s backline plans into disarray on the eve of their Super Rugby campaign.

Karmichael Hunt, James O’Connor and Nick Frisby were all shuffled into the vacant No.10 jersey to varying degrees of success over the season’s first five rounds, but the Reds have looked at sea without Cooper’s presence.

The 26-year-old will be joined by at least six other players returning from injury, including O’Connor, Greg Holmes, Samu Kerevi and Beau Robinson, while Hunt’s suspension for cocaine charges expires the Monday after the Lions clash.

“My very first game starting (for the Reds) was against the Lions in 2007,” Cooper said.

“For me, this is a very important game, one I’m very excited about and, in terms of the bigger picture, being able to get out there and gain some game time will hopefully put myself in a good position later in the year with the World Cup looming.”

Cooper said it had been hard watching an injury-crippled Queensland slump to a 1-4 start to the season from the sidelines.

“The team’s performance hasn’t been our best,” he said.

“We’re very disappointed with the way we’ve been playing.

“It’s been difficult for the guys having so many guys out with injuries but I feel like all the guys who had the opportunity have been able to gain some very valuable experience by being out there in some tough situations, which will put us in a good situation moving forward.

“The good thing with a lot of guys coming back from injury is that it creates good competition.

“Guys being able to make themselves available to play doesn’t mean they’re going to be walk-up starts for the next game.”