Ben Currie ready to be a leader at Warrington Wolves

For years, the second rower has been touted as a future England international and he finally realised that potential by playing a key role for his country at the Rugby League World Cup.

Currie featured in all six of England’s games, including the defeat to Australia in the final, and says he has returned to the Wire a better player.

However, perhaps worryingly for Wolves’ rivals, Currie believes his best is yet to come.

“I don’t feel like a kid anymore. Even last year, I still felt like a bit of a youngster,” he said.

“Some of the boys will still say I’m only young and I am compared to a few of the lads.

“Looking around, there’s guys younger than me coming through now.

“I’ve now played in some of the biggest games in the world, so I feel like I’ve got experience to pass on to the likes of Luis Johnson coming through.

“I never wanted to be the player who was expected to play for England but never did, whether it was through injuries or form.

“I’m happy to have ticked that box off now and I think it will kickstart my career with Wolves.

“I still think I can get a lot better. I don’t think I’ve reached my full potential yet so I’m looking forward to doing that.”

Some observers and Wolves supporters have tipped Currie to be a potential captain of the club in years to come.

While stressing the captaincy is not his immediate target, he says he will try to be more of a voice in the dressing room in 2018.

“It’s not something I set as a target, but if it comes, it comes. We’ve got some great leaders around this team,” he said.

“Although only one person will have the tag of captain, it doesn’t mean he’s the only leader on the field.

“You have to have a big group of leaders to be successful because you always need that pick-me-up, whether that’s in training or in a game.

“If it comes from a younger lad, sometimes it can be better so that’s what I’ll try to do.”

Currie’s first target is sure to be staying on the field after his 2017 campaign was almost wiped out due to a serious knee injury.

He suffered the blow in a Super 8s clash against Wigan in September 2016 and did not return until July, but lasted just two games before he suffered a recurrence of the injury.

Currie did return until the end of the season and made two further appearances before a surprise inclusion in England’s World Cup squad.

The 23-year-old admits he had taken playing for granted but that his injuries have put things into perspective.

“Last year showed me how much I missed it,” he said.

“I just wanted to get out there and play so it was hard to watch, especially with how we performed in the league.

“I’d never really missed a game through injury before the knee, so you almost take it for granted.

“You find yourself skipping things in rehab because you’re adamant you’re not an injury-prone player and you don’t need to do it.

“When you pick up an injury, you know you have to maintain things a bit better.

“You can’t just rely on your body, you have to protect it as much as you can.”