I was diagnosed with the illness right before the 1995 World Cup.

It’s been a long road back to health and fitness for me. I am just glad to have been given the opportunity to do what I love most.

I was only operating at about 80% of my capacity.

When I was playing I felt tired all the time. My recovery period was a lot longer than the other players. They’d be ok after an hour – I’d have to stay in bed till the next session.

Towards the end of 2003 it was hard to get through training – and the darkest point was when a doctor told me there was a possibility I could end up in a wheelchair.

I thought about dying whenever I got bad news about other people.

It’s a really exciting time to be involved in Welsh rugby.

I was this guy who’d been racing around down there, on that field in 1999, running straight over people, scoring tries, winning games, having fun. And I ended up so sick I couldn’t even run past a little baby.

I was on dialysis for 18 months before the transplant, so it was important I tried to look ahead to days like my comeback this Saturday. You need those big goals to drive you on.

I am very excited to be here in Wales and look forward to putting on the Cardiff Blues shirt.

I was diagnosed with the illness right before the 1995 World Cup.

How do I take a step? How do I lift my foot off the ground, move it through the air a little bit and then bring it down? I had to teach myself to walk again.

The biggest thing for me is just to get out on that field. Just to do that will be incredible.

It was like falling off a building and suddenly, bang, you hit the bottom. The first time it happened was on an ordinary day at home. I was taking down some curtains. I took one step, turned around, took another step and then I fell and hit my head hard on the rowing machine.