Manu eyes return after cancer battle

Cancer stricken former Highlanders captain Nasi Manu has revealed he has not given up on his dream of appearing at this year’s Rugby World Cup with Tonga.

Manu, who now plies his trade with Kieran Crowley’s Benetton Treviso club, has recently had surgery and gone through a treatment of chemotherapy after being diagnosed with testicular cancer late last year in Italy.

The three-test Tonga international told the UK’s Rugby World magazine his treatment had thus far proved successful, that he hopes to return to the field soon for his club and that the World Cup in Japan remains very much on his radar.

‘‘I really feel like a new man now,’’ Manu told the magazine. ‘‘I am happy to hurt. I’m training, doing cardio, and it feels good to get back to some normality. I think for a little bit, I took things for granted. Now I know how important it is I make the most of this opportunity.’’

The former Canterbury loose forward, who played a big part in the Highlanders’ Super Rugby title run in 2015, told Rugby World he had been through a lot since the initial cancer diagnosis just prior to Treviso’s first match of the Pro14 season.

‘‘Going through cancer and chemo has been a great sort of awakening for what I really want and my rugby goals, my life goals. I sort of narrowed down what’s important to me,’’ he said.

Naturally, his first focus is on getting back on the field with his club, which he says he is getting closer to.

‘‘I can almost taste it – to run opposition in training against the first-team guys, while the season is still there.

‘‘I’m trying not to get emotional about it now, because it’s becoming more and more of a reality to do what I love again.’’

Manu has a key medical check in June to get through, but he has not lost sight on his main rugby goal for 2019 either.

‘‘It’s always been a dream to compete on the world stage, to play in a World Cup,’’ he told Rugby World. ‘‘The dream is still alive to maybe achieve that this year.

‘‘My first goal is to be available this season for Benetton. Then the dream is to make the World Cup squad.’’