Sonny Bill Williams admits his return to rugby league has been "tough", but he's determined to change those fortunes as he awaits the restart of the English Super League season.
The 34-year-old, who helped the All Blacks win bronze at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan, surprised the sporting world when he signed a two year deal with the Toronto Wolfpack, reportedly worth $10m.
But Toronto's debut season in the top flight has been disastrous as they are rooted to the bottom of the standings, after failing to win in six attempts before the season was suspended due to the coronavirus.
Williams is still recovering from knee surgery which has taken longer due to the UK's strict guidelines but he's hopeful of being fully fit when the season resumes. No date has been set, but officials are targeting a mid-August resumption.
But from a team and personal point of view, Williams is positive things will improve when it's time to get back out on the field.
"It's been tough," Williams told Sky Sports UK. "Obviously from a team point of view, we haven't been playing the type of footy that we'd aspire to play.
"I know I can play a lot better than I've been playing, but at the same time, when you're losing by 40 points each week and you're making 30 to 40 tackles, it's hard to get off how you want to play.
"But my mindset hasn't changed, I've just got to keep doing the hard work. If I concentrate and put my mindset into doing the little things that you probably can't see on the TV, like the defensive points and working hard and pushing for my team-mates, the pretty stuff will come afterwards.
"Hopefully we can start getting a few wins on the trot and then some of that magic can come out.
"But at this stage, that's the self-assessment I'd give myself: I'm working hard but I haven't been able to do the stuff that I know I can do.
"I just have to have Sabr, as we say as Muslims - which means patience and to keep working hard."
Even though it's been tough, Williams says he's enjoying life in the UK.
The Wolfpack are a Canadian team, but they must play their opening fixtures in England due to the availability of their Lamport Stadium home in Toronto.
Williams is currently in lockdown with his wife and four kids in Manchester, where the Wolfpack's UK base is located.
"I've really enjoyed it. The competition, the grind of it, and I felt like we were kind of just starting to hit our straps.
"Obviously with this break, it's unprecedented times that we're in and it didn't come at a great time for us. In saying that it gave us time to rebuild and look at what we were doing wrong.
"I hope we can learn our lessons, keep growing and move forward."
