THE Newcastle Knights' forgotten man - towering winger Edrick Lee - might not be lost to the club after all.
Lee has not played for almost 12 months after breaking a bone in his foot last January, and the Knights were expected to release the out-of-contract 29-year-old, amid concerns about his unfortunate run of injuries.
As well as his fractured foot, Lee has also broken his left arm twice and been restricted to just 25 games in his three seasons with Newcastle.
But after attracting little interest from rival clubs, Lee has been offered a chance to train with Newcastle during the pre-season and prove that he is still physically capable of playing at NRL level.
If his body holds up, Lee could yet be an inspired signing for the Knights.
In his last game before breaking his foot, Lee scored a try on debut to help Queensland win the 2020 State of Origin decider.
Over a 116-game NRL career, he has scored 59 tries for Canberra, Cronulla and the Knights and there is little doubt Newcastle missed his physical presence on the left edge last season.
At 1.96 metres and 100 kilograms, Lee is not only a superb finisher but also capable of putting his team on the front foot with strong carries on kick-returns.
Teammate Hymel Hunt refers to him as the "guardian angel" of Newcastle's backline.
In Lee's absence, Hunt, Enari Tuala, Starford Toa and English import Dominic Young all spent time on the flank last season.
Lee was planning a return to the playing field mid-season but suffered a setback that meant he did not play a game in 2021.
He has returned to light training and the Knights' high-performance staff are taking every precaution to ensure he does not suffer a recurrence.
"It's just a waiting game," Newcastle recruitment manager Clint Zammit told the Herald. "He's back in training so we just need to see how he handles that.
"Hopefully it goes well, but we'll be largely guided by the medical advice."
If Lee can convince the powers-that-be he is worthy of a contract, the likely departure of Mitchell Pearce could free up room under the salary cap.
Pearce has formally requested a release to join French Super League outfit Catalans Dragons, but negotiations are understood to be continuing over a possible transfer fee.
AAP reports: Senior Canberra players have given their blessing to controversial ex-Canterbury forward Adam Elliott joining the Raiders for the 2022 NRL season.
The second-rower's one-year deal was officially announced by Canberra on Tuesday.
Elliott had the final two years of his Bulldogs contract teminated after a series of off-field incidents.
