You couldn’t blame Karmichael Hunt for wanting it to be Sunday already.

The successful code-hopping pioneer has been starved of senior footy for far too long, with a toe injury, gastro, concussion and a mild staph infection conspiring against Hunt in his efforts to reclaim his place as a first-choice midfielder in the AFL.

But now the former Queensland Origin star is fighting fit and in peak form, with his recent performances in the NEAFL demanding a place in Guy McKenna’s 22.

In an exclusive interview with SUNS TV, Hunt said he couldn’t be happier to finally be making his return to the promised land.

“Pretty excited to get the call up,” he said.

“It’s been a tough year for myself, bit of bad luck and misfortune injury-wise, but I’ve been lucky enough to be out there for the last couple of weeks and put in some good performances in the NEAFL.

“Hopefully I can continue that for the SUNS this weekend.”

Confident the worst of his injury woes are behind him, Hunt is looking forward to hopefully making an impact with the senior team.

“I feel ready; ready as I’ll ever be. I’ve been able to put two solid weeks together… I’ve had some good run in my legs for the last month and a bit, so I’m looking forward to getting out and playing on the weekend.

“I haven’t had a game in the AFL for a while; missed most of last year with hamstring tendonitis and obviously had some bad luck this year.

“No doubt it will be a filling out process for me this year but looking forward to the challenge and playing with the boys again.”

Hunt couldn’t have picked a more challenging round to stake his AFL comeback, with Gold Coast to meet a red-hot Sydney team at Metricon Stadium this Sunday.

“They’re in great form. It's no secret they’ve got a super-talented forward line with some really big boys but their midfield is just as good as anyone else,” Hunt said.

“It’s going to be a tough ask but I think if nothing else we can expect effort from everyone on the field and expect to compete, and the result will hopefully be in our hands.

“It is going to be a great test for us and we look forward to the challenge.”