'One of my last chances': ACL pain driving Cam's comeback quest
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The pain of missing last year's finals campaign is driving Sharks captain Cameron McInnes as he eyes a May return from an ACL injury.
The lock suffered the injury in Round 24 last season, forcing him to watch the Sharks charge to the preliminary finals from the sidelines.
It was the second-straight year Cronulla had fallen one game short of the grand final and the focus this summer has been on taking the next step at the business end of the season.
At 31 years old, McInnes recognises he has limited opportunities left to chase a maiden premiership and he's eager to spearhead Cronulla's campaign in a make-or-break year for the club.
Rise and grind: The hard work of Cam McInnes
"The recovery is going well," McInnes told NRL.com. "It's tracking as it should be. I'm back to what they call athletic-style training, rather than trying to get myself to that spot, so it's a good position to be in.
"It was tough missing the finals from a personal standpoint but from the collective it was really rewarding. We went through the middle of the year where we were trying so hard and it just wasn't happening.
"To push through the other side and see how well the boys played, from a collective standpoint it was good to see."
The ACL tear was the second of McInnes' career, having also suffered the injury at training prior to the 2021 season.
That brought an early end to his time at the Dragons and he made an instant impact after joining the Sharks in 2022. The move came with a positional switch, with McInnes shifting from hooker to lock.
Mac Attack is back
The club has been steadily building throughout the past four years and 2026 shapes as their best chance of winning a premiership since the 2016 title a decade ago.
McInnes was a wide-eyed Rabbitohs rookie sitting in the stands when South Sydney claimed a breakthrough premiership in in 2014, but that remains the closest he's come to Provan-Summons Trophy throughout his career.
It's something he's desperate to change before he hangs up the boots.
"This group of players, we've been very fortunate to have a fair crack at it with each other," McInnes said. "We've had a lot of growth along the way and a lot of learnings. A couple of guys have left but the core's stayed together.
"With the way the cap works and guys getting older, it can only last so long so this year is a huge opportunity for us.
"The club will have many more chances ahead. As long as Fitzy and this younger group of players are here, they'll be competing every year. But for the older guys and I'm one of them, it's probably one of my last chances."
McInnes is one of 14 Sharks off contract at the end of the year, with club officials aware it will be difficult to retain all of them.
Already centres Chris Vea’ila (Bears) and Mawene Hiroti (Titans) have signed with rival teams, however Cronulla received a major boost when Jesse Colquhoun agreed to a four-year extension.
Jesse Colquhoun Try
Colquhoun is viewed as McInnes' long-term replacement and impressed in the skipper's place at the back end of last season.
McInnes, however, has no intentions of hanging up the boots any time soon and is motivated by the challenge of continually improving while emerging players are nipping at his heels.
"Someone else might tell me otherwise, but I don't envision this being close to my last year," McInnes said. "I'm feeling really good.
"I've spoken to some of the older guys and they've known mentally when it's time. The hunger to improve isn't there, they're happy to keep playing but they just don't have a desire to improve. The other one is they can't handle the training and the time away from your family.
"I don't love missing things with the kids but they love what I do, so that point's alright. Then on the other point, people might think I'm crazy but I only started playing this position five years ago. I still feel like I've got so much growth in me. From a training standpoint, I'm loving it, so that's how I look at the next few years in my career."
Rugby league returns when the Witzer Pre-Season Challenge kicks off on February 7. Catch all the action live on Fox Sports and Kayo.
