Hull KR are hoping the addition of strength conditioner Brice Johnson to their backroom staff can stop them suffering from a catalogue of injuries.
During his two seasons at Craven Park, coach Craig Sandercock has yet to field his strongest side because of injuries to key players.
But the Robins' board have increased the club's off-field budget to bring in the Australian in a bid to buck that trend.
Johnson, who will work alongside Billy Mallinson and Paul Hatton, has been tasked with the role of nurturing players who have recovered from injury back to full match fitness.
The 43-year-old former professional sprinter arrives in east Hull with an impressive CV of work back in his native homeland.
Having won the Australian Beach Sprint Relay title seven times, the keen surfer was inducted into the Life Saving Hall of Fame in 2011.
Last year, he was the performance director at Wyong Roos rugby league side after spending the previous two years at Sydney Roosters as their physical performance coach.
Having worked with each other before at Newcastle Knights, Johnson has been brought in by Sandercock to focus on getting players who are back to full fitness ready for the rigours of Super League.
Johnson's first job will be to make sure Travis Burns and Greg Eden are fit to start the season's opener against Leeds at Craven Park on Sunday, February 16.
Having signed a one-year deal with the Robins, he will accompany the squad on their warm-weather training camp to Tenerife just before Christmas.
It will be the third successive year Rovers have made the trip to the Canary Islands and they will be hoping Johnson is not in high demand as the new season draws ever closer.
