91Èȱ¬

St Helens prop Agnatius Paasi says he is close to a full return to fitness having battled back from serious knee and ankle injuries sustained last season.

The 32-year-old tore his ankle ligaments and injured his medial collateral ligament (MCL) and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in Saints' Challenge Cup semi-final defeat by Leigh Leopards in 2023.

He has made two brief appearances off the bench for Saints this season, in their win against Catalans in May and their emphatic victory at London Broncos on Sunday.

"It'll take me another few games to get back to normality," the Tongan told 91Èȱ¬ Radio Merseyside.

"I've just got to throw myself out there and get through the game OK and get on with it each week."

A row ensued over Paasi's injury, which came following a John Asiata tackle in Leigh's semi-final victory in July 2023.

Alex Walmsley also suffered an MCL injury in the same game, from a separate Asiata tackle, that ruled him out for much of the remainder of the 2023 campaign.

The incidents led St Helens boss Paul Wellens to accuse the Rugby Football League of failing to protect players after the game.

Leigh head coach Adrian Lam later claimed that Asiata had "no intention to ever hurt anyone" in the aftermath of the tie.

Paasi has had a long road to recovery, but received a standing ovation from St Helens supporters when he finally took to the field again against Catalans - 10 months after his injury nightmare began.

"The standing ovation when I came on was something special and it's something dear to my heart," he continued.

"The St Helens fans are the best fans I could ever play for and it brought a tear to my eye.

"Luckily enough I've got a good support system, I'd got my family at home and the club were really supportive.

"Obviously it's in the back of your mind with the injury. [But] every time I hop onto training, or in a game, I don't really think about it. I just go out there and do my job."