Jamal Fogarty has numbness in his "T-rex arm" and a tingling sensation sparked by every spiral pass - but he returns to the Canberra Raiders adamant a finals dream still alive.
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The Raiders have fallen to 11th on the NRL ladder and have lost six of their past nine games since losing Fogarty to a ruptured biceps in April.
But the halfback's return to face the New Zealand Warriors at Canberra Stadium on Friday night could inspire a Raiders revival in the race to the finals, with the Green Machine just two points outside the eight.
The Raiders have a meagre 30 per cent win record in games played without Fogarty over the past two seasons. The ledger tips in Canberra's favour when their chief playmaker has been on the park.
Wind back another year and the Raiders had started with a 5-6 record while Fogarty was sidelined with a knee injury, before going 10-5 and reaching the semi-final stage following his return.
The 30-year-old's return will ease pressure on 19-year-old five-eighth Ethan Strange and fullback Kaeo Weekes, whose shift to the back will allow him to stay in the starting side alongside Fogarty.
Fogarty admits there were "dark days" during his rehabilitation period - but it was back-rower Zac Hosking who pulled him out while he recovered from a shoulder injury.
It is fitting the pair will return alongside Hudson Young in a massive boost to a Canberra outfit looking to snap a four-game losing streak.
"I've still got a little bit of numbness in my forearm," Fogarty said.
"It's more the spiral rotation of the passing - I can do the normal passing - it's just rolling that wrist is a bit of a funny sensation. The last couple of weeks, it's definitely gotten better.
"We've just got to keep throwing punches, we can't sit back and wait for anyone else to step up and do it.
"We've got to do things together. There is a bit of pressure on us, but if we can do things together, work hard for one another and hang in there with our discipline, I think we're going to be a good chance.
"As individuals, if we have a bit of pride in our own jumper, result should look after itself.
"It's been tough the last couple of weeks, every home game we've had we've either been blown out of the water or we've had a loss.
"I think there's always been the belief. I think it's more a concentration thing once we get a little bit fatigued."
Hosking says his looming return to the NRL feels "a bit like Christmas" after initially fearing he may not play again this season when he dislocated his shoulder.
The 27-year-old was one of the competition's form back-rowers before succumbing to the first major injury of his career - a "pretty horrible" dislocation which he struggled to get back into place.
Off-season surgery could still be on the cards but Hosking is confident he will not take a backward step against a Warriors outfit desperate to stay in touch with the top eight.
"It was a weird first few weeks of the rehab where I was in limbo about whether I was going to be able to play again this year or not," Hosking said.
"The diagnosis got put on hold because of the amount of swelling in it.
"We'll reassess at the end of the year, re-scan and see whether I'll have surgery at the end of the year or not.
"The first few contact sessions I had back, I was a bit apprehensive stepping into contact, but now I've got a lot in the bag and I'm ready to go."
The Warriors are without Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad (calf) and Marcelo Montoya (groin), while Mitch Barnett and Kurt Capewell were named to back up from Wednesday's State of Origin decider.
Caden Helmers
Caden Helmers is a sports writer for The Canberra Times.
Caden Helmers is a sports writer for The Canberra Times.
