AS Sam Burgess’ extended contract with Warrington Wolves is confirmed, the timing certainly feels poignant.

For it was on this day one year ago that the club was at its lowest ebb for a while, with Daryl Powell sacked amid a nightmare run of defeats, the last of which was a humiliating hammering at rock-bottom Wakefield Trinity.

It was an afternoon that had an “end of days” feel from the very start – given how the players performed that day and what Powell said in his press conference immediately afterwards, you knew there was no coming back.

And the heat from supporters was not solely reserved for the coach – the players got plenty, as did the club’s decision-makers. They had backed their man in a big way, and it had backfired spectacularly.

They knew their next move was going to be watched very closely as patience wore thin – and what a move it has turned out to be.

Fast forward 12 months and things could not be more different.

The team are top of Super League having beaten neighbours St Helens and Wigan – something that proved impossible during the Powell era – away from home in back-to-back weeks, and the bond between squad and fans has been very much restored.

As much as the man himself will play his own role down, that transformation has been led by one man – Samuel Burgess.

He has helped to unlock a level within this group of players that not many supporters believed existed.

Take Matt Dufty for example – maligned as another failed overseas import at the end of last year but now, he looks five times the player and is a leading contender for the Steve Prescott MBE Man of Steel award.

Recruitment has been minimal – of the 17 that played in the Wakefield debacle, 10 were in the side that beat Wigan on Friday with two more in Stefan Ratchford and Joe Philbin still key squad members albeit currently injured – but successful.

Sam Powell has brought leadership on and off the field, Rodrick Tai gets better by the week, Zane Musgrove has been solid and Luke Yates is on the fast route to becoming a fan favourite after just two games. We wait with a keen interest to see if John Bateman’s impact will be similar.

Together, the squad plays in the image of its head coach – never taking a backward step and emptying the tank each and every week.

While it sounds simple, that basic prerequisite has been called into question way too many times over the past couple of years before this one but now, not once can their effort be doubted. At the end of the day, that is all people can really ask for.

As a result, fans have got behind them and it feels like something special is building.

Will it end in glory? One chance has already fallen by the wayside with the Challenge Cup Final defeat in June and there will be those who – rightly or wrongly – will remain unconvinced until the ever-elusive Super League title is won, but what can be said for certain is that Burgess has put them on the right path.

We all know it’s not forever – at some stage, Burgess will fulfil what appears to be his destiny and return to Australia to coach in the NRL – but the current trajectory suggests he will do so with the club in much better shape than when he arrived.

And he will have done it with a dignity, integrity and approachability that has impressed people far and wide – rumours of a return to South Sydney were immediately shut down, with Burgess determined to repay the faith Warrington have shown in him.

Deciding to extend his stay is perhaps the clearest example of that yet. Now let’s carry on enjoying the ride!