Ryan Elias: Scarlets and Wales hooker feeling good after ‘difficult period’

“I sat down and built a plan on how I was going to do that, which is basically how I perform, what I was putting out on the pitch, then rebuild myself back off it as well,” Elias explained.

“It was good. It’s nice to be over that bit of a lull, tough period.

“But I think it’s important to have those periods to enjoy the good times, and hopefully there are some good times to come over the next couple of seasons.”

Elias’ most recent injury was a bicep issue picked up in pre-season last summer which ruled him out of Wales’ autumn internationals.

But having returned to fitness, he was included in Steve Tandy’s first Six Nations squad and featured as a replacement in Wales’ final four games of the tournament.

Elias hopes to be included once more on when Tandy names his squad on Monday for the inaugural Nations Championship in July, but the first target is to try to ensure Scarlets finish a difficult season on a high note.