HOOKER Shaun Lunt has returned to the Giants full of enthusiasm after his time with England.

The 23-year-old Cumbrian was drafted into the national squad on Monday morning ahead of Saturday’s Gillette Fusion Test against France at Leigh.

Lunt received the call in the wake of injury scares to several players.

But with Leeds’ Kevin Sinfield and St Helens’ James Roby winning their fitness battles, Lunt has been told his services won’t be required this weekend.

Instead, he will play for the Giants at St Helens tomorrow night, and admits his time away with England has done him a power of good.

“It’s been awesome for me this week!” he said.

“I’ve grown up watching players like Jamie Peacock, Adrian Morley and Kevin Sinfield, so to find myself training alongside them for England has been quite surreal at times.

“Although I won’t be playing I’ve enjoyed the experience and tried to get as much out of it as I can.

“It’s good to be recognised, but I’ve always stressed my main goal is to play consistently well for the Giants.

“If you achieve that for your club then you give yourself the chance to be selected for England.

“Now I’ve had a sniff of what it’s like this week, the tour to Australia for the Four Nations at the end of the season is definitely at the back of my mind.”

Lunt was back training with the Giants today, but will rejoin the England camp straight after the Giants v Saints game and remain with the national squad until Sunday morning.

“Shaun won’t play for England this Saturday but we are delighted to have him with us as part of the group,” explained England coach Steve McNamara.

“He’s learning a lot from the experience and is contributing a lot to the squad.

“We don’t want to prevent him from playing in a Super League fixture and feel this arrangement is best for Shaun, Huddersfield and England.”