By Martin Morgan

LONG-SERVING Whitehaven skipper Aaron Lester has confirmed that the forthcoming season will be his last at the Recreation Ground before he retires.

The former Auckland Warriors hooker, who has been granted a testimonial this year, with fellow Kiwis Leroy Joe and David Fatialofa, will see out the final year of his contract and then bring down the curtain on his playing career.

“I’m 34 in May and I started playing at this level or above at 16½ or 17 and I have been really fortunate,” Lester said.

“I have had five operations over my time, but I class myself as quite lucky.

“People watch this game because it is physical, and it takes it out of your body. I will be quite happy when I’m finished. You get to 33 and your body has had enough.

“There is social rugby, but there is a reason why there are no over-35s rugby league teams.

“When I finish it won’t be because of the training, as I love it. But after 10 years, travelling to away games is a bugbear.

“If there is one thing I dislike at this stage of my career it’s the travelling.”

He expects young players such as Graeme Mattinson, Derry Eilbeck and Scott McAvoy to continue to improve this year, and he is hoping that Spencer Miller sustains the impressive form he showed last term on returning from a long-running eye injury.

In common with many team-mates, Lester does not see the failure to sign new players in the off-season as a major problem.

“It’s strange this year as it’s not like last year when we had four or five new people coming in,” he added.

“We won’t need time for new players to get used to the rest of the team or a new coach. It should be good.

“Castleford are always going to be up there, plus one or two others, but it’s hard to say. Players are switching between clubs depending on whoever is offering a little more money.

“Widnes still have Super League ideas, the structure for Super League and the advantage of their location. It has never been a level playing field.”

Understandably, Lester is happy that team-mate Joe has been granted a testimonial, despite not playing 10 unbroken seasons at the Recreation Ground.

He played one year at Hull KR after being reluctantly released by Haven due to new restrictions on overseas imports. But he returned to West Cumbria the following season.

Lester said: “The club didn’t want to let Leroy go at the time, but they could cover his position a little better than others.

“He’s a very under-rated player, playing in a position where you get a lot of notice. He has been around for a long time and teams know his strengths.

“If he has a quiet game it’s not necessarily because he has played poorly. He had a good season last year and for me he was one of our better players.”

Meanwhile, Great Britain amateur international Craig McAvoy is training with Haven after catching the eye of coach Dave Rotheram in action for Hensingham.

“People told me he was a stand-out player, and when I saw him he franked those reports,” said Rotheram, who stressed that McAvoy had not signed for Haven.

“He has good skills and can play anywhere in the back-line. He’s having a look at us to see how he likes it. We are putting him under no pressure.”

McAvoy took almost a year out of the game after breaking a bone in his ankle and suffering a dislocation playing for Great Britain BARLA Under-23s in late 2005.

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