Shaun Johnson’s right elbow mightn’t be 100 per cent, but the star halfback is confident it will stand up to the rigours of the Warriors’ opening NRL match against Parramatta in Sydney on Saturday night.
Johnson, 22, has made an earlier than expected return after hyperextending the joint in the Warriors’ win over Brisbane in a trial in Dunedin on February 23.
Johnson said he did all the contact work during training on Wednesday.
“Passing is another big thing and that seemed to go alright,” he said.
“From Monday’s field session to today’s field session, I’m feeling a lot more confident about it.”
Having got the all-clear, he was buoyed by being able to be on deck at the start of the season under new coach Matthew Elliott.
He admitted that, with the Warriors having a new hooker in Elijah Taylor and a new five-eighth in Thomas Leuluai, it was less than ideal that he was unable to train last week.
But he was still able to watch the pair in practice while also getting plenty of information from Elliott.
“We get along off the field and we’re always talking about things. I have every confidence that what we have is going to work.”
Taylor, usually a back-rower, has been given the No.9 jersey as replacement for the injured Nathan Friend, while Leuluai has returned after eight years in the English Super League to the club where he made his NRL debut.