Secret ingredient behind Guerra's successful return

Two things eased any concerns Knights back-rower Aidan Guerra had about playing on his left ankle again after dislocating and fracturing it less than 12 weeks ago.

He made a return to football in Newcastle's Canterbury Cup team a fortnight ago, followed by 27 minutes for the NRL side in the 24-20 loss to the Warriors last weekend.

The two elements for his confidence in the joint is (a) the amount of metal surgeons implanted and (b) bone broth made by a friend of the family.

"To worry about it breaking again with a titanium plate and 10 screws in it, you're probably worrying about the wrong sort of stuff," Guerra told NRL.com.

"No real concerns because through the rehab process everything went smoothly and it just seemed like every day we added something new, the ankle felt better and better."

But the return to reserve grade had one hiccup.

"I didn't last long - I got a head knock in the second set," Guerra said.

Still he's made a fairly miraculous recovery in 10 weeks after television shots of him in agony after a tackle during the round-five home game against Manly. Guerra was ferried off McDonald Jones Stadium on a medicab with a green whistle in his mouth, for pain management.

As well as the excellent Knights medical staff swinging into action, Guerra has a friend with expert knowledge of homeopathic remedies.

"No secrets but I drank a bit of bone broth every day. A good friend of mine is right into the nature side of things so she sent down a couple of litres for me every month. I was just so keen to get out there again."

The one side-effect he wasn't looking forward to was the lungs.

"I always seem to find that element very interesting no matter how long you've been playing league, or how long you prepare for a game … the lungs burn."

All that means he was blowing hard but he stuck at it.

The metal plate and screws will stay inside his foot, as long as Guerra suffers no pain from their presence.

"It's optional. I can leave them in there as long I don't get any pain. I'm pretty happy now with how it's all feeling."

Keeping the muscles in his left leg in reasonable condition also didn't prove too daunting.

"The way the surgeon was speaking I thought I'd be in a cast for while. But they had me in a boot so pretty much from the day I went home, I could get my leg out and keep a range of motion there.

"Once I got that range of motion back I could concentrate on the muscles because we always had confidence in the ankle [stability]."

The 31-year-old former Queensland and Test forward wasn't sure how well he was going to heal as it been 10 years or so since his last major injury.

"It's been so long, that when it happened I decided I'd attack with a good mentality. So when I started rehab I was dialled in to getting back on the field."

All went well in his return so he'll be back for the Bulldogs on Friday night.

"Soon enough was never soon enough. I just wanted to be out there," he said.

"I watched the boys do so well [six in a row] made me just want to get on board the train and see if I could contribute to the success of the club."