Alex is a good friend of mine from our London Irish days and he’d let me use his flat when I signed for Harlequins at the last minute after being released by London Irish. Needless to say, it came as a very pleasant surprise to hear from Gregor, especially as I had thought any chance of playing for my country had gone as I was 27 at the time. He had been in touch with me a few times before but on those occasions the phone call to tell me I was being considered was always followed by another call to say I hadn’t got in.
Playing in the Calcutta Cup win at Twickenham in 2021 is without doubt the highlight of my career. I’d been to the crazy 38-all game a couple of years before as a fan and had been on the beers all day. I remember looking down at the pitch seeing some of the lads playing for Scotland, that I’d played age-group stuff with, thinking wistfully to myself that it could have been me if I’d maybe have worked harder. So, when I actually got to play there two years later I allowed myself a moment afterwards to look up to the empty grandstand where I had been sat with my mates in 2019, to let it all sink in.
It was all I’d ever dreamed of as a kid, running around with a ball in hand, dropping goals and pretending to beat England. I think if it wasn’t for that period when I played for Scotland, and won the Premiership with Harlequins, I would have found it a lot harder to process what I am going through now – the onset of retirement.
Denne historien er fra May 26, 2024-utgaven av The Rugby Paper.
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Denne historien er fra May 26, 2024-utgaven av The Rugby Paper.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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England can find a little bit of cheer
SO HERE we are on the final day of England’s autumn international series with all of us hoping and expecting Steve Borthwick’s team to win today after three weeks of bitter disappointment.
Stop messing with Marcus - Campese
DAVID Campese believes England are going backwards under Steve Borthwick, who is ‘messing around’ with talisman Marcus Smith.
Being a Lion was the highlight of my career
I PLAYED 19 games and scored 219 points for the Lions, on the tours to South Africa in 1968 and New Zealand in 1971, but I never played in a Test and that was fair enough.
Cook's crew not fazed as they eye tilt at top half
THERE appear to be few signs of second season syndrome at Westcombe Park as captain Nick Cook reveals the group aren’t even contemplating the threat of relegation and are instead targeting a top-half finish.
Forwards pack a punch for the Reds
OLD Redcliffians produced a proud defensive effort to take a bonus-point win.
Tom 'Ailes' the achievements of inspirational skipper Riley
SEDGLEY Park No. 8 Tom Ailes says his team relish the competitive nature of National One and is confident the Tigers can rectify their rocky start to the season in weeks to come.
Strachan confident Ampthill will be firing again soon
FRASER Strachan is determined to put Ampthill’s leaky defensive showings behind them and gain some much needed confidence in the run up to Christmas.
It's a whole new ball game for Rigg
WILL Rigg’s ambition was to become a professional cricketer but it is the oval ball rather than The Oval that is his driver now.
Scarratt leads the way for Lightning
LOUGHBOROUGH won a wet and windy East Midlands Derby after having the bonus point in the bag by half-time.
Becconsall: We need to release pressure
WILL Becconsall says Exeter are not spooked by the threat of relegation as they look to turn around their Premiership campaign after starting with six straight defeats.
