When Te Maire Martin was forced to put his rugby league career on hold in 2019, after suffering a brain bleed while he was with the North Queensland Cowboys, he thought that might be it.

But after being cleared to resume playing, he was able to work his way back to the NRL in 2022, joining the Brisbane Broncos and calling Suncorp Stadium home.

12 months after finishing his stint with the Broncos, the 27-year-old will return to that venue on Saturday night wearing the No 6 jersey for the Warriors, looking to secure a spot in the grand final at the end of a season that has thrown up its own obstacles.

Specifically, a broken leg, suffered in round seven against the Newcastle Knights. The injury was initially expected to keep him out for two months, but ended up sidelining him for five, with his return to action only coming in the final round of the regular season.

“When I finished up [in 2019], I didn’t think I was going to play NRL at all, to be honest,” Martin said this week. “To get back to playing NRL, firstly, was huge and now being able to get back into this team and being in this sort of position, it’s pretty unreal.”

Martin’s return this year came at the perfect time, as his replacement, Luke Metcalf, suffered a hamstring injury as the Warriors beat the St George Illawarra Dragons in round 26.

The Tokoroa product slotted back into their lineup while several key figures were rested for their round 27 match against the Dolphins – a 30-8 loss at Suncorp.

He was hoping he would have Shaun Johnson back alongside him at halfback when the finals began the following week, but that wasn’t to be as they went down 32-6 to the Penrith Panthers in their qualifying final two weeks ago.

The Warriors’ first-choice halves were finally reunited for the first time since early April last Saturday, as they rode the support of a 26,083-strong crowd at Go Media Stadium Mt Smart to put the Knights away with a 40-10 semifinal win.

“It’s been a fast year, but a long year,” Martin said. “It’s hard to explain.” AP

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