Liam Napier

LIKE A backhanded compliment, being ejected from the Crusaders provided the catalyst for Sean Maitland’s unlikely career move.

There’s more than a touch of irony that after Zac Guildford’s troubles the Crusaders are scratching around for quality outside backs.

Last year, the red- andblacks delisted Maitland, pushing him out the door and on the road to retrace his Scottish lineage, through his grandparents.

‘‘I had one year on my contract and I was surprised that [ Crusaders coach] Todd [ Blackadder] delisted me,’’ Maitland told the Sunday Star- Times from his new home in Glasgow, where he is committed for the next three years.

‘‘That’s just the way it goes. That’s footy. I had a mixed 2012 with a few injuries and form. In the back of my mind I was always thinking about heading overseas. It just made my decision quite easy.’’

At just 24, it was a defining decision, nonetheless.

Growing up in Tokoroa and attending Hamilton Boys’ High School, the former New Zealand Maori and age-group flyer – this bloke has serious pace – had one dream; to be an All Black. Singing Flower of Scotland at Murrayfield didn’t feature in future plans.

‘‘ I would never have thought that as a young boy. I had always supported Waikato my whole life,’’ he reflected.

A conversation with Sean Lineen, the Auckland- born