Kotoni Staggs is on track for a big 2023 campaign after undergoing shoulder surgery in the off-season.
The star centre carried a torn labrum for a majority of last season after injuring himself on debut for NSW in State of Origin.
“I tore my labrum in Origin 1, I didn’t know much about it, I didn’t get scans until after the season and the scans showed that it was torn,” Staggs said.
“I had to go in and get surgery and get it fixed up, it was good to get it done in the off-season so I could be right for this year.
“It was sore after I did it, I just didn’t want to let my teammates down. I knew we were having a good season and winning some games, we were a good chance for finals so I didn’t want to get surgery midway through the season and miss the end of the year and let the boys down.”
The 24-year-old’s recovery has been closely monitored in the off-season by Broncos high performance staff.
“The body is feeling really good at that moment, I’ve come back and had the physio looking after me and they’ve done a great job,” he said.
“The surgery takes my mind off something I was worrying about last year, I can focus on myself now and not the niggles in my shoulder.
“I can focus on the way I am playing and also prepping my body and getting all the recovery I should be getting.
“I’m on track to play in the trial matches this year and I should be right for Round 1. It’s gotten a lot better over the time.”
Staggs dons a red bib at Red Hill training, meaning he’s not yet allowed to be in full contact, but he is hopeful to discard the last remnants of his injury in the next few days.
“I should be out of the red bib in a week or two, just depending on how I go in our wrestle sessions this week,” he said.