A three-time Blowes Clothing Cup winning captain, the seriously classy outside back is the owner of more game-winning conversions or penalty goals than most players can dream of and has guided Emus through one of its most successful eras, the club's top grade side appearing in each of the last six grand finals.

Seemingly, any hurdle in front of the 39-year-old is one he can clear with ease.

But his latest challenge has been his greatest.

After playing in round one at Forbes, Staniforth has been absent from Emus' undefeated run through the rest of the opening round of the 2020 Blowes Clothing Cup after being diagnosed with testicular cancer for a second time.

On Saturday, Staniforth will make a return to Pete Bromley's First XV after being cleared to play following his recovery from a successful procedure that put a halt to the spread of the cancer, something that wouldn't have been possible if it wasn't detected in its early stages.

The importance of early detection and awareness is a message Staniforth is hoping to advocate this time around, with testicular cancer the third-biggest killer among the 17-40 age group.

"When I was 21, the cancer went to stage two and I had to have chemotherapy," Staniforth said.

"In hindsight, I regret disappearing and not really telling anyone what was going on. It's a bit of a taboo topic for young men and we need to be able to talk about it.

"I was lucky this time that it was detected extremely early and I had the help of some amazing doctors in town."

Staniforth's on surveillance for the next five years and will tell you he's "not out of the woods" just yet but the small cloud hovering over him won't go close to stopping him from returning to Endeavour Oval for Emus' round six clash, which just so happens to be against Forbes again.

"There's no reason I can't play rugby," he said, his family, wife Gabrielle and two kids, Mila and Felix, a huge support throughout his most recent battle.

"I'm feeling good physically and I'm ready to play after my third pre-season."

While he hasn't been able to participate on the field, Staniforth's been there for the greens' undefeated start to the season, a run that's largely attributable to the depth at the club.

"We aren't a one-man team and we're able to move on pretty easily when players are out," he added.

"The forwards have obviously reinstated their dominance as well and our ball movement has gotten a lot better as well."

Staniforth knows this weekend's opponent will be a desperate one.

The winless Platypi are looking to edge closer to the top four and almost did so in round five when they fell to Kangaroos by the smallest of margins in Dubbo.

"They had a shot to win the game last week and unfortunately for them, they missed it," he said looking at Forbes' 31-29 loss in their last start.

"But they're going to bring a lot to the table this weekend."

Saturday's clash is scheduled to be played on a heavy surface at Endeavour Oval with the ground's main over all-but underwater, giving the sizeable roster at Forbes an advantage, according to Staniforth.

"That's going to suit them," he said.

"The conditions are going to make it hard for anyone to win by a big margin ... it's going to be close."