Right up until the opening whistle of his return match, Ash Wood didn’t think he would ever play rugby again.

The odds had been stacked heavily against the 22-year-old West Bowling star, who had feared he would be permanently disabled after suffering a huge stroke only a year ago.

At first he was unable to even walk or talk, making the prospect of a playing return seem improbable.

But Ash has made incredible progress on the arduous road to recovery and now has four games under his belt since his comeback for West Bowling A.

He said: “At times I didn’t think I’d get back playing again. I was thinking that quite a lot.

“When it first happened I thought that and all the way up to my first game back, I never believed it would happen. I had been back training but it didn’t feel quite the same as before.

“When it first happened, I didn’t understand. I wasn’t too sure what a stroke was and a lot of stuff was going through my head.

“I heard one third of people die and another third end up disabled. I thought I would end up with a disability, so I just felt down.

“It’s not the end of the world, you just have to keep motivated, but it takes time to get over. It won’t happen overnight.”

The trauma occurred after Ash ruptured the carotid artery in the back of his neck, causing him to collapse at his home in Low Moor last March.

Initially progress was slow and, as recently as November, a return to action appeared nothing more than a dream for the young centre.

But after visiting neurology specialist Dr John Bamford, he began to make significant ground and also returned to his job as an engineer.

Ash said: “The first couple of weeks were hardest, when I couldn’t walk and talk and I thought I was never going to get through it. But my family, my girlfriend Amii and my friends kept me upbeat and the doctors helped.

“It’s great playing again. Work and everything is back to normal and now rugby as well.”

A bit of trepidation could have been expected on his return to the field of play but Ash decided there was no point in holding back.

“When I was catching the ball and trying to run, I didn’t feel quite right at first,” he said.

“But that was only because I hadn’t played for a while. I’m still not quite there but it’s just about building it up every week.

“The first game, I didn’t really make any tackles but the next couple, I have started doing it a bit more and taking the ball in.

“My first game, they kicked to us first and one of our guys took it in and I ended up at acting half. I thought I could either pass the ball or just go for it, so I decided to run it in.”

The stroke came just as Ash was preparing for potential final appearances in both the Jack Senior Memorial Cup and the Bradford Cup.

It was also a period when he had hit a rich vein of personal form and Ash is determined to make up for those setbacks.

He said: “I don’t really set goals. I just take each game as it comes and try to notice improvements in myself.

“When it first happened, it was just after the semi-final of the Bradford Cup and I was at a decent point personally, so I was really gutted because I missed the final.

“Now I want to make up for the lost time, keep improving and reach those games again in the future.”

Proud father Derek believes his son’s recovery is testament to his patience and incredible determination.

He said: “What’s good is that he is making sure he can walk before he runs.

“He’s been playing rugby since he was eight years old and was playing well before the stroke.

“Rugby’s a big part of his life and it was determination to get himself back playing that made the difference. He’s never been one for sitting on his backside.

“He’s getting there eventually. It will take time but he’s made really impressive progress.”