Iain Thornley reflects on his return to the Wigan Warriors first team following injury battle

The 31-year-old went over for a brace in the 14-10 defeat to Hull FC at the MKM Stadium.

Prior to Thursday night, Thornley’s last Super League outing had been last June, with a knee injury keeping him out of action for an extended period.

“It’s been a long road,” he said.

“I really appreciate the club and the physio department for sticking by me.

“I felt really good out there against Hull and that’s down to them.

“They’ve done a terrific job of getting me back to fitness.

“We did a number of drills that really tested my injury, so when you get through that you know you can get through a game.

“With the type of injury I had, it takes a while to come back from it, but I’ve got there now- and it felt like me again.

“It was nice to go over the line.

“I didn’t have to do too much, but it’s good to be on the end of it.

“My lungs were screaming when I made a break, but it’s part and parcel of it and I’ve got to make sure I’m ready to do it again.

“Going on loan and playing with the reserves gave me a bit of match fitness because I could only do 60 minutes in my first game.

“You can’t do that in a Super League game as you can’t waste the sub, so to get those minutes was really important.

“It’s all up to me now, I need to stay on top of things and keep my rehab going to keep myself fit in order to put myself in the window for Matty (Peet).”

Despite Thornley’s two tries against Tony Smith’s side, it was not enough for the Warriors to claim the win.

“It was a game we felt we could get two points- and we tried our best to, but it’s a tough place to come,” he added.

“It’s disappointing but we will learn and move on.

“When you make mistakes with your execution, they are easy to look at and improve on.

“There are some areas we are proud of so we can take confidence from them and tweak the little things.

“We’ve had a lot of boys involved with England and a few got a rest, but it’s not an excuse.

“We’ve got a big turnaround now with a decent recovery to get ready for Leeds.

“I’ll be doing my best to keep my spot and get the opportunity.”