Friend sets sights on April comeback

Gold Coast Titans hooker Nathan Friend is aiming to return to action in April after undergoing shoulder surgery in the off-season.

The 29-year-old sustained the injury during the Titans 2010 campaign but opted to continue playing until the end of the year.

Friend is certain to miss the start of the 2011 season but is hopeful that his spell on the sidelines will not be a lengthy one.

“It’ll be around April some time. In early March I’ll see the specialist and we’ll have a scan and know more from there,’’ he told NRL.com.

“I am only aided by how I feel and it feels pretty good at the moment so I can only push it as far as it tells me.

“I have to wait for all the screws to take and the bones to heal so that’s why we’ll have a scan and if it has healed then who knows, we could be back a little earlier.’’

The hard working Friend has not missed a match since 2008 and consistently makes more than 40 tackles in a game.

His absence will create a selection headache for Titans coach John Cartwright. Potential replacements include Riley Brown, Kayne Lawton and youngster Matt Srama.