HOGG ON THE MEND
STUART HOGG is set to hand Scotland a boost ahead of the Six Nations by returning to action in the next fortnight.
The 25-year-old has been on the sidelines since a hip injury forced him out of the clash with Australia in late November.
It was the latest setback for Hogg after a tough 2017. The Glasgow Warriors man was forced home early from the British & Irish Lions summer tour to New Zealand after suffering a facial injury and then had surgery on his shoulder.
He returned to action for his club against Leinster in October and was on top form as Scotland ran New Zealand close before the hip issue.
Hogg said: “Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I’ll be ready to rock and roll again.
“It has been a challenging year.
“It was great to be on my second Lions tour but injury put a stop to that and so far I have only played four games of rugby in 2017/18.
“I managed to get a seven centimetre tear around the hip area, I did it in the midweek leading up to the Australia game.
“I was running full pelt indoors at Oriam to score a try then had to stop quickly and I pulled it.
“Then in the warm-up for the game I kicked the ball and it felt like somebody had stabbed me in the hip. So it was a bit frustrating because I had just come back from a long-term shoulder injury and was starting to get a bit of form.
“Now I’m itching to get going again.”