Locke unlikely to make Salford debut this week
Salford Red Devils are unlikely to throw new signing Kevin Locke straight into Super League action this weekend at Huddersfield.
The Kiwi international full-back has finally arrived in the UK after overcoming bureacratic procedures associated with obtaining a UK visa.
He trained with Salford for the first time this week, but the long flight from New Zealand has left him with some jet lag, and he reportedly felt unwell during his first training session.
Nevertheless, Red Devils coach Iestyn Harris is sure that the livewire full-back will make a real impact once he has acclimatised to his new surroundings.
“Even with the advances in aircraft technology, it is not always as simple as throwing an athlete straight on to a field and, like every player, he will need time to bed himself in and familiarise himself with the way we do things,” Harris wrote, in his column for the Manchester Evening News.
“Make no mistake about it, Kevin is one of the fastest players in the game today and he is a threat from anywhere on the field.
“He is a player people will want to come and see play.
“As to when he will make his debut, we will assess him over the coming days to see how much his round-the-world flight has taken out of him.”
Locke has won eight caps for the Kiwis, but found his opportunities at New Zealand Warriors limited this season.
England star Sam Tomkins offered stiff competition for the full-back slot, while Locke has also struggled with injury at the start of the campaign.
Now he is looking forward to getting settled into life at Salford.
“It has been a bit of a frustrating couple of months but I’m I’m enjoying being here,” Locke said.
“I’ve got to see how I feel yet. I haven’t played for four weeks and you’ve got to take the travelling into consideration.
“Training today was a lot different to what I’m used to back in the NRL, but it was still good to be out there running around.”
Salford owner Dr Marwan Koukash is also well aware that Locke, despite his talent, will take time to adjust to life in the North of England.
“Kevin has very big part to play for us as we build and grow as a club,” he said.
“It can take a time for an overseas player to settle. I have chatted about this with Iestyn. He knows some players can hit the ground running while others need a few training sessions in which to settle.”
