Emmett bounces back from injury to frontline

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A BACK injury which left Nick Emmett unable to walk threatened his career after he had finally established himself as a top-line first grader.

Initial fears were that Emmett would miss the rest of this season.

He revealed he suffered slipped discs and pinched nerves in his lower back, following the Dragons' round 11 loss to the Raiders, and couldn't walk for a week.

"When you hurt your back like that and you're stuck in bed for a week it's a little scary,'' said Emmett, who for 10 years had been in and around senior squads.

"It's a lonely place. I couldn't walk for three days ... couldn't even go to the bathroom.''

Almost a decade ago, Emmett, 28, missed a large part of the season while playing lower grades at Parramatta.

He eventually bounced back to make his first-grade debut five years later for the Broncos in 2006.

This season his 13-game tally is the most first-grade football he has played in one season.

"I'd finally got a permanent gig in the team,'' Emmett said.

"I wasn't trying to think too much about it because it was getting me down.''

Emmett returned for the Dragons against the Sharks in round 15 and has played the past three matches including St George Illawarra's top-of-the-table 12-8 loss against Penrith at Jubilee Oval on Monday night.

"It was pretty physical,'' Emmett said.

"We frustrated ourselves a little bit.''

Off-contract at the end of this season, Emmett said he hoped to remain at the Dragons after making the successful transition from centre to the forward pack.

"People think centre and backrower isn't too different but it's a steep learning curve,'' he said.

"I'd love to stay.

"I've spoken to Wayne [coach Bennett] and he is keen to keep me so it's just a matter of sorting something out.

"I wouldn't want to go anywhere else.''