Zak Hardaker expressed his delight and relief after making a try-scoring first appearance for Wigan in their 28-18 pre-season friendly victory at Salford.
The former England full-back, who has completed a 14-month ban for cocaine use, also kicked four out of five conversions on his first appearance since September 2017.
"I really enjoyed it," Hardaker told the Wigan club website.
"It's been a long up and down road to get to where I am today but I've been training really hard since I joined Wigan and just to get the jersey on and play 80 minutes today, with family, friends and Wigan fans cheering me on was really good and I'm really happy.
"I was a bit nervous and apprehensive before the game about certain stuff, but that has all been put to bed and now I'm happy.
"It was always going to be a box-ticker, just to get out there, just to play rugby. I was quite giddy on the bus here, inside I was really excited.
"Now I've got two weeks to go back and work on some things that I could probably improve on from there. I know it's a friendly but I do criticise myself quite a lot."
A fine try on his first appearance for @WiganWarriorsRL for @zakhardaker1 🙌
— Wigan Warriors 🍒⚪️ (@WiganWarriorsRL) January 20, 2019
See the highlights, the full match replay and video reaction from today's friendly win over @SalfordDevils on @WiganWarriorsTV https://t.co/o6XE96Ll3w pic.twitter.com/1QUYlZUMcu
Among the 2,190 crowd was a host of Hardaker's close family and friends.
"I think they are just as pleased today for me as I am for myself," added the former Leeds and Castleford player.
"They've supported me through all of the tough times and hopefully I can take them on the good times now."
