Ryan Papenhuyzen will make his highly anticipated return to football, in what will be 384 days since he suffered his knee injury in Round 18, 2022.
The Melbourne Storm fullback will play for the Sunshine Coast Falcons in the Q Cup on Saturday at Sunshine Coast Stadium.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet so I’m sort of just going through the training week and trying to prepare like it’s a normal game,” Papenhuyzen said.
In Due Time
While it’s been a long journey, Papenhuyzen said he sees this as another milestone to achieving his goals.
“It’s just been a while between drinks. It’s had its ups and downs and setbacks, and it’s probably taken a little bit longer than expected but at the same time I’m happy I did that.
It’s been long enough now that I feel ready, and I guess that’s the main thing about long-term rehab is that resistance to being ready.
Ryan Papenhuyzen
“There are so many people to thank, and I’ll probably save that for another day, but I think it’s a big milestone and I need to celebrate the small wins along the way, and this is another one of them.
“It’s a big step to be back after such a significant injury. I want to be playing NRL, so I have a little bit to go to achieve the goals I want – I’ve just got to keep doing the work.”
Storm General Manager Football, Frank Ponissi said it was an exciting milestone for Papenhuyzen and the club.
“It’s been a long time since he’s played football, so it was really important for us to ensure we left no stone unturned in his recovery,” Ponissi said.
He’s been on quite the journey since the initial injury and then after suffering a setback earlier this year, but to his credit he has shown a lot of resilience and determination to get to this point and we’re really proud of that.
Frank Ponissi General Manager Football, Melbourne Storm
“It’s a testament to Paps [Ryan] and the team of medical and football staff behind him that has got him back on the field.”
