Darren Albert has been described as the fastest finisher in Australian rugby league by St Helens coach Ian Millward.

But the former Newcastle Knights winger, who has been timed at around 10.8 seconds for the 100m, says there is more to his game than pure speed.

"You cannot expect to stay in the first grade if you've only got one skill," said the 25-year-old Australian.

"So over the years you develop every aspect of your game as far as you can - anything from your tackling skills, to your evasive skills, to your chasing people down."

That said, he is bowled over by Millward's assessment and anxious to prove his worth for the Saints after ending his eight-year association with the Knights.

"That's a fair rap, especially with the quality of players going around," said Albert.

"It is certainly a part of my game that I've got great pride in and I've scored a lot of tries by being able to put the ball over the line."

One of his tries stands out in particular. That came in the dying seconds of the 1997 NRL Grand Final and gave Newcastle a last-gasp victory over Manly.

"I've been playing since I was six years old and you always wish you were out there in a Grand Final," said Albert.

"I did not feel like I wanted to come up against the Knights again because I'd spent so many years there and been through so many things there," said Albert.

"So the logical choice was to come to England and see how things went."

Albert spoke to a couple of clubs but was persuaded to join St Helens.

The influence of a couple of former Newcastle team-mates had something to do with his final decision.

"I knew Peter Shiels and David Fairleigh were over here, so I got a bit of background from them," said Albert.

"I'd also seen how much success Saints had enjoyed, so I thought it as going to be a good club to come to."