Maguire looking forward to long-awaited Packer return

Wests Tigers Coach Michael Maguire says he's looking forward to seeing the return of veteran forward Russell Packer when he plays his first game back from injury tonight against the Canberra Raiders.

The 176-game Packer hasn't featured for Wests Tigers since the early rounds of 2019, and battled a foot injury that required additional surgery earlier this pre-season in a bid to get him back on the field for Maguire's side.

Having overcome that injury, Packer's inclusion on the bench for tonight's clash against Canberra has the Premiership-winning Coach excited for what's ahead.

"He's got his body in a really good position," Maguire said about the 30-year-old.

"It's the first time that I've seen since I've been here that he's done back-to-back sessions and train with the team, and he's going to be a great addition for us.

"I'm really pleased for Russell.

"He's had to go away and get a number of operations and get his body back in to shape and I'm looking forward to him utilising that now.

"He's going to bring leadership on the field. We've got a strong forward pack there that he's going to be able to come in to and help add his experiences to that group."