Jack is raring to go again after lockdown and new baby girl gave him a fresh perspective on life
JACK NOWELL went into lockdown with one daughter and no chance of playing in the Six Nations.
When rugby returns this weekend, he will be a father of two with sights firmly set on England’s rescheduled championship decider in Italy in October.
The coronavirus pandemic has been brutal in its treatment of so many, with lives taken and jobs lost.
For Nowell (below), the five-month hiatus has been kinder, gifting him an opportunity to rebuild his battered body and welcome second daughter Zimi into the world.
But the plight of others has left its mark on Exeter’s England star, providing him with a new perspective on life. And the 27-year old Cornishman believes he and his Premiership-topping club will reap the benefits.
“Before this crisis I would get myself worked up about being injured or not playing very well,” said a player whose 36 caps have come at a cost of eight operations.
“But these past few months have shown us that rugby is very, very small in terms of what’s been going on. You realise there’s a lot more out there, a big world away from rugby. I’ve been lucky, I’ve had another child and I’ve got my body right.
“It’s been great not being so sore on a Monday and Tuesday after playing that you can’t go in a gym, lift or train properly.
“But I can’t imagine what it’s been like for those parents cooped up in multi-storey buildings in cities with kids not allowed outside. This period has reminded me how fortunate I am and not to take it for granted.
“I’m fit, we’re raring to go at Chiefs and I intend to make the best of it.”
Nowell’s body came to a grinding halt shortly before the world did. Having missed England’s World Cup warm-up matches due to a burst appendix, he played only once in Japan before his hamstring went.
He returned home was quickly back under knife.
But just when it seemed ankle surgery had cost him his Six Nations chance the pandemic struck, buying him precious recovery time. Nowell said: “This and the is by far the best number of years.”
Nowell proved the point by undergoing a rigorous fitness test with his sponsor Red Bull which, true to his family’s seafaring traditions, involved dragging a 70kg anchor and flipping three lifeboats on a Cornish beach (above).
Next up a game against Leicester on Saturday as Chiefs pick up from where they left off in March in their quest to again become English champions. Watch Jack’s full training video at www.redbull.com/jack-nowellnever-quit
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