With players such as Sonny Bill Williams and George Burgess readying themselves for their eagerly anticipated debuts next weekend, there has perhaps never been a bigger buzz surrounding Super League. That will be music to the ears of the sport’s followers but nobody may be quite as happy about the focus on those big names as Luther Burrell.
By his own admission 2019 was a difficult year for him. His high-profile code switch from Northampton to Warrington last July meant, inevitably, there was plenty of pressure to adjust at once to a game he had not played since turning out for Huddersfield Giants U15s. He is now 32. “I knew it would be tough and it’s been by no means an easy slog,” he says.
Burrell failed to make any sort of discernible impact on the Wolves’ season, playing three times, when Steve Price rotated his squad in pursuit of a league and cup double that ultimately failed to materialise. For Burrell, the opportunity to jump straight into a new life at Warrington and make the most of his league switch eventually took its toll.
“It was difficult because I’d racked up a number of games for Northampton and I’d been quite fortunate not to miss too many games with injury,” he says.
“By law you’re supposed to have five weeks off after a union season but I was switching codes, so it didn’t matter to me. I just wanted to get the ball rolling and not be five weeks behind in the middle of a season. It was non-stop for around 18 months really and it was a big slog.”
With many deeming Burrell’s switch a failure, there is no shortage of motivation from the former England international – he won 15 caps at centre, the final one in 2016 – to prove them wrong. Having lost a significant amount of weight, fine-tuned his fitness to the best level of his career and catching the eye of Warrington’s coaching staff in pre-season, he is well on the way.
Warrington insiders say Burrell has been one of the standout performers in pre-season and he is firmly in the mix to face Wigan on Thursday. It has been a long journey and one that many thought would be easier given his league upbringing, but Burrell is feeling confident.
“I’ve done so much running in pre-season, I’ll be ready for the next London Marathon,” he says, joking. “I didn’t really have too much expectation for myself last year. It was always going to be challenging, as I was getting dropped into it midway through a year. But I’ll be stronger now for the challenges of last year.”
One thing that has not changed despite everything is Burrell’s ambition. Warrington are again among the favourites to challenge for the league title, which they have not won since 1955. And, with a World Cup less than two years away, the chance of becoming a dual-code international is another incentive.
“That’s what I came into the game for, things like that,” he says. “It’s why we play the game and what we do. I’m a bit of a rugby nerd and I’ve studied all the games I played last year. Honestly, I’m miles ahead now compared to where I was then, I know that much. I don’t want to say I was disappointed but I’d like to think I can offer more now for sure.”
One thing Burrell hopes he will not have to contend with, though, is the spotlight. “I won’t have as much pressure as some other guys coming into the competition this season and that suits me perfectly,” he says. “I can just go about my business quietly and try and establish myself as a rugby league player.
“There are lads miles ahead of me but nobody is the complete rugby league player. What people also have to understand is that, with league and union progressing so much in the last decade, guys like Jason Robinson simply crossing over and cracking it, those days are long gone. I’m still in transition but I do feel that I’ve given myself the best shot possible.”
If he fulfils those promises and rediscovers the form that made him a success at Northampton, it is not beyond possibility that he may have grabbed the spotlight back from the high-profile imports by the end of this season.
