It wasn’t Ben Barba vintage 2012, but the Canterbury fullback was back doing what he does best on Good Friday.
In his first game of 2013 after being stood down by the Bulldogs to clean up his off-field life, there was Barba on the ANZ Stadium turf stepping, weaving, dancing around defenders – and most importantly for Canterbury – scoring tries.
While his four-pointer in the dying stages wasn’t enough to save his side from a 17-12 loss to South Sydney, it was a glimpse of what the Dally M player is capable of.
“It gave us a bit of a lift, obviously first game back you wouldn’t expect miracles of Benny but he had some good touches there and had a couple of half breaks here and there,” teammate Josh Morris said.
“He’ll be better for the run this week.”
Barba was stood down on the eve of the NRL season, with alcohol and gambling among the vices which had seen his life spiral out of control.
Barba was banned from talking to the media after the game, the only insight into his thoughts coming via a brief on-ground interview with the broadcasters.
“It was (a tough month) and I’d like to thank all the fans out there that gave me my privacy and allowed me to fix my problems,” he said.
“I’m glad to be back and hopefully I can play some good football and put a smile on some people’s faces.”
Coach Des Hasler has done his best in the weeks leading up to Barba’s return to play down his potential impact.
But it was clear the Bulldogs wanted to get him involved, with Josh Reynolds throwing a long pass from the kick-off to ensure the superstar No.1 had the first run of the game.
His try also ensured he had the final say, but like the team, Hasler admits the best is yet to come, with his side’s 1-3 start the complete opposite to last year’s 3-1 opening to a season in which they claimed the minor premiership.
“He was good,” Hasler said of Barba.
“It will take him a little while.
“Both him and Frank (Pritchard). Take them a while once they get a few games under their belt.”