“When I look back, my first year out of school was playing club footy in Colts and to this day it’s still probably the most enjoyable Rugby I’ve played, and you have fun doing it in this environment.”

Those words are from the mouth of Wallabies scrum half Will Genia as he readies himself to come off the bench for GPS in their game against Souths in Queensland Premier Rugby on Saturday.

After gaining dispensation to play from his current Japanese club the Kintetsu Liners, Genia is relishing the chance to be back around the Queensland Premier Rugby scene.

“I feel really privileged to have the opportunity to play on Saturday and I can’t wait,” he said.

“It’s kind of a full circle, I’m back here towards the back end of my footy career now and I’m really excited to strap them on with my little brother (Nigel) as well.”

Genia has been training at Yoku Road since the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of his season in Japan, with fellow former Reds and Wallabies Samu Kerevi and Quade Cooper also joining him at Jeeps.

The 32-year-old has thrown himself into life at the club, running extra sessions for the GPS scrumhalves and mentoring the next generation at Yoku Road.

“I’ve been training with the boys for the past six weeks, they’ve been so welcoming allowing me to play some actual footy as opposed to just doing straight line running and things like that,” Genia said.

“The talent here is incredible. The coach has done an exceptional job making sure that guys are fit and in good condition to play a good brand of Rugby and obviously doing a lot of work on their skills too.

“For me, coming down here I feel like I’m learning a lot as well, so it’s been hugely beneficial for me.”

He represented Queensland U16s, schoolboys and U19s and played Colts Rugby for Jeeps before graduating to the senior ranks with the Reds in 2007.

From there it was 110 Tests for the Wallabies and 137 games of Super Rugby.

Genia will come off the bench on Saturday afternoon, with his younger brother Nigel occupying the starting number-nine jersey as the pair aim to combine on the field.

“It’s a massive positive that I’ve been able to spend some time training, not just with the boys but with my brother too and hopefully I get the opportunity to get out there on the weekend,” he said.

“Who knows, maybe they’ll put me on at fullback or something so I can share the field with him.”

WORDS: QRU

IMAGE: BRENDAN HERTEL / QRU