CONNOR Wrench may be two months late for Valentine’s Day – but he is feeling the love again.
A love that evaporated as injury woes got on top of him and saw him retire at the age of 23.
But one that was rekindled as he worked managing building sites.
Wrench walked away from Warrington after it all got too much for him, especially after suffering two serious knee ligament injuries.
Now he is back playing at Huddersfield after nine months away, he has revealed just how he rediscovered just why he wanted to be a rugby league player.
He said: “I think the injuries are probably an easy get out. Obviously, I’ve done two ACLs, but it was more a mental thing. It was just me, personally.
“I probably just fell in love with the game a little bit, so I went and did my qualifications for managing building sites and worked for my dad’s company.
“But I probably didn’t realise what I had until it was gone.
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“It took me that time to figure it out. Now I’ve got a different look on it, how much I want it and what it actually means to me, I’m in a better place to take it on the field and make the most of it.
“I’ve learned a lot. I’ve probably experienced a lot and I think from where I was nine months ago to now, I’m in a much better place now to tackle the rest of my career.
“I realised what I’ve missed and what I want to do now going forward, and I’m happy to do it here at Huddersfield.”
Wrench made an immediate impact by scoring a try as the Giants stunned Wigan 34-16 to get their first win of the season last Saturday.
Now to follow that up against York today after that new mental approach saw him take his time in getting back after signing.
Centre Wrench added: “I don’t think I’d be in this position mentally if I’d have stayed.
“I’m happy that I went away and come back having refreshed myself. It’s probably having a bit of time by myself, a lot of reflection and a bit of thinking time that helped.
“I’ve played rugby since I was eight-years-old and I’d been at Warrington since I was 14. Without realising, I needed a little bit of a break, a step away, a reset.
“That time away has just made me realise the privileges of what I had, but having done what I’ve done – step away and come back – I’m really excited for what we can do.”
