WARMING TO THE TASK
Switching codes works well for Edinburgh ace Johnstone
EDINBURGH centre James Johnstone will swap the sunkissed playing fields of Dubai for the rain-swept pitches of Cork tomorrow — and he couldn’t be happier.
While his former team-mates in the Scotland Sevens squad play in the Gulf State in the opening leg of the HSBC World Series, he will be taking part in the Guinness Pro14 clash with Munster.
After seven years playing the shortened form of the game, Johnstone was urged to make the switch to the 15-a-side game last season by Richard Cockerill and has since become a vital part of the capital side.
Even the prospect of taking out his thermal vest this weekend rather than the sunscreen, doesn’t bother the man who has become a vital part of Cockerill’s plans.
‘I’m not the biggest fan of cold weather so I’d always look forward to the Dubai leg of the sevens,’ smiled Johnstone.
‘It’s quite an exciting time for those guys going to Dubai and then Cape Town after that.
‘I loved playing in Dubai but the best sevens tournament for me would probably be Hong Kong. That’s up there with Cape Town but they are all really good. I’m a lot more challenged playing 15s and I’m enjoying it. I feel like I’m getting a lot out of it. I’ve just been focusing on what I’ve got here.’
Johnstone started playing mini rugby in his home town of Dumfries and, after spells at Watsonians, Currie and Scotland Under-20s, became a key man in the sevens squad.
He was perfectly happy travelling the world to the likes of Las Vegas and Sydney and thought his chance of playing regular 15s rugby had passed.
But after training with Edinburgh in the summer of 2017 and impressing in preseason games, Cockerill offered him a chance to stay.
Sevens coach John Dalziel didn’t want him to go but Johnstone felt it was too good an opportunity to pass up.
Now in his second season at the club, he has become a crucial member of the team, especially with fellow centre Mark Bennett on the long-term injury list and Matt Scott set to miss the Munster match with a head knock.
‘I was happy being a sevens player and we were doing quite well,’ said Johnstone. ‘I was in a good place but this opportunity came up out of the blue and I’m happy it did.
‘I didn’t think I would get the chance to play 15s after playing sevens for so long but when Cockers gave me the chance last year I jumped at it.’