Unexpected shutdown has aided Huddersfield Giants’ Ashton Golding’s quick recovery

The full-back was looking forward to making his mark in Super League again after joining from Leeds Rhinos in the off-season only to rupture a tendon behind his knee in the friendly against Wakefield Trinity.

That saw him miss the start of the campaign and he feared being sidelined for up to five months of action.

However, the coronavirus saw rugby league abruptly halted last month with Huddersfield’s last match being the Challenge Cup loss to Toronto Wolfpack on March 11. Nobody expects the sport to resume before June at the earliest and Jamaica international Golding is making the most of his time in isolation.

“I was way ahead in my recovery anyway,” he explained.

“The doctor said 16 to 20 weeks but I think I’d have been back in 12; I’d targeted the rearranged Leeds game on April 28th. But this just gives me a little bit more time to make sure everything’s fine-tuned and fully firing properly again.”

Huddersfield won four of their opening five Super League games before the shutdown and will be further augmented by Golding’s return. On his fitness battle, he added; “Obviously, having to train on my own means it’s affected the rehab’ as none of us have access to the physios.

“It’s all based on the programmes we were given before and then building it ourselves. But I’d like to think I’m quite diligent; I know what my body needs and when I need to go for it I put the effort in.

“And then take a step back when that’s needed, too. The hardest part of training in isolation is the motivation factor – not knowing when you’ll be back playing – so that can creep in.

“It’s having that discipline to be able to stick to a schedule and a routine. Rugby league players are creatures of routine and habit; we need to be told what to do and when to do it and we haven’t got that now.

“It’s a very difficult situation so we just have to manage our time well and I’m doing that.”

Golding, 23, came through the academy at hometown Leeds and initially looked one of Super League’s most exciting prospects.

However, he lost his place in the Rhinos side to another talented young full-back Jack Walker and spent most of last season on loan at Featherstone Rovers in the Championship.

He was ready to make up for lost time after joining Huddersfield on a three-year deal last autumn. Golding said: “If anyone asks me I always like to say I am a Super League player.

“But if you go through the records I haven’t played it for over a year now. I’ve just got to go back, get a few games under my belt and cement what I feel I am.

“Hopefully that’s enough for myself. Whether other people agree or disagree, that’s the beauty of social media and opinions. I’m not going to win everybody over. I never have and I’ll never will. But it won’t make me lose sleep at night.

“What will make me happy is just helping the Giants boys out. We’d started the year well and I can’t wait to get involved.”

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