Zak Hardaker ready to begin new Leeds chapter after health scare

Zak Hardaker believes stress may have caused his recent seizure but insists he is fully recovered and ready to begin his second stint with Leeds this weekend.

The 30-year-old England international re-joined the Rhinos as a free agent following his release by Wigan, and was set to face Hull KR a fortnight ago until he collapsed in the street while out walking with his 18-month-old son, Abel, near his Pontefract home.

Hardaker has since come through a stringent and extensive return-to-play protocol, and new Leeds coach Rohan Smith has said he will be selected for Sunday’s Super League game at Salford providing he gets the final all-clear from the club’s medical staff.

“I’ve been to see the neurologist and been to see about my heart,” Hardaker said at his first press conference on zoom since his signing. “I’m really good. The doctor said I’m pretty fit.

“They do think the fit or seizure happened from the impact of me falling down on the pavement. If I’d landed on grass would it be different? I don’t know.

“It’s just one of those things. I think you can maybe put it down to stress. I have had a lot going on for the last three or four weeks regarding Wigan, then coming home.

“I think I’ve been a bit all over the shop and not been 100 per cent healthy. But all the tests have come back really positive. They found a brain to begin with so that was a start.

It’s just one of those things. I think you can maybe put it down to stress-

“I had a couple of scans, the MRI being the main one where they could delve in and see the four different parts of the brain.

“I’ve just done the stages of training and loading. I’m pretty good. I’ve come out the other side.”

Hardaker spoke of his concern for his son at the time of his fall and says