Newcastle Knights winger Edrick Lee is the player fans hope to see more of in 2022

But here is the smile Newcastle fans will be hoping they see plenty more of in 2022.

Towering winger Edrick Lee never fired a shot last season. A broken bone in his foot suffered during his first pre-season training session after playing for Queensland in Origin not only kept him on the sideline, but seriously threatened to end his career.

The break refused to heal on it's own and Lee was initially warned off having surgery because there were fears an operation may cause irreparable damage to nerves around the fracture.

A worse-case scenario was Lee could have the surgery but risk never being able to walk properly again.

That was the dire prognosis that left one of the Knights most popular players shattered and the club bending over backwards to protect and shield him from any media speculation surrounding his future.

It left Knights fans frustrated at the lack of information coming out of the club about his well-being but at the time, it was all about protecting big Eddy's mental health.

Thankfully, after months of uncertainty, Lee found a surgeon who reassured him about the prospects of a successful surgery and he underwent the operation.

Now, he is back on the training paddock and it's so far, so good. The Knights have put him on a train and trial contract and prior to Christmas, he was back running straight lines at pace and every now and again, flashing that trademark smile of his. The hope is he completely comes out the other side and proves himself over the next couple of months. If he does, he will earn himself a new top 30 deal.

One of his biggest supporters, coach Adam O'Brien, is hoping for the best.

"He's been training well and the surgeon seems to be happy with him," O'Brien told us. "My number one hope and what I'd love to see is Edrick playing footy for us again. I know he and the medical staff are doing everything they possibly can and at the moment, everyone is quite content and happy with where he is tracking after a lot of hard work to get him back on the training paddock.

"He's basically just been running straight lines at this stage and not a hell of a lot more but we've got eight weeks after Christmas where we can start to push him.

"We'll keep plodding away with him and give him every chance to get back and I'm really comfortable with that approach and how we have been handling him. I can see him progressing and his speed is right up there again. We've got plenty of time with him."

O'Brien says he has "enormous admiration" for the lanky winger after what he's been through.

"I just marvel at Edrick's resilience," he said. "Most people don't know the half of what he has been through.

"Aside from everything else, he has a lot of responsibilities with his extended family and there has been some tragedy there that he has faced. So to deal with the last 12 months the way he has is a great credit to himself.

"For him to keep coming in with a smile on his face despite what he's been through and add so much joy and humour to the group already since we have been back is a testament to his great character. I can't wait to see him come out the other side at McDonald Jones. That would be fantastic for everyone."

The Knights will re-start pre-season training on Monday but for most, it will be like they have never been away.

The players have been training on their own since breaking up a few days early for Christmas due to COVID with everyone logging daily into an app that tracks their kms, speed and where they have been running. But so intense has been the competition between squad members, high performance boss Hayden Knowles was forced to step in on at least two occasions to order them to have a couple of days of rest.

So the Newcastle Jets are looking to bolster their squad and bring in a player to replace the departed Kosta Petratos. Wonder if former Jets and Adelaide defender Taylor Regan, who has just returned home after a playing stint in Malaysia, is in coach Arthur Papas' plans?

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