NFL can help me become even better, claims Gray

Scotland lock looking to America and Tour de France for inspiration after injury

Jonny Gray spent his late summer months having Stuart Hogg run rings around him – but the intention is that it will make him a more rounded player.

After an almost relentless start to his career, the 23-year-old had his longest spell on the sidelines to date as he rehabbed wrist surgery, at the same time Hogg was recovering from his fractured cheekbone and shoulder operation.

Naturally they rehabbed together, and even though their skillsets are completely different, there was a method to Gray’s never-ending journey to better himself. “Speed,” was Jonny’s reasoning. “You have got a guy like Hoggy flying ahead of you, it’s hard to keep up, but it’s good.

“We did lots of defending one on one and with a guy of his stepping abilities it certainly sharpens you up. When I was attacking him he was telling me things to try. I wouldn’t normally get that time so it was good to work with someone of his quality.”

Gray admitted that when faced with a lengthy lay-off he at first “didn’t know quite what to do”, so used was he to the training grind he relishes from day to day.

But he decided to take on board the comments of some observers – including his former Scotland team mate Jim Hamilton – that he needed to add more to his game as well as his relentless industry in tackling and carrying.

“Rather than getting straight back to training, the people at Glasgow and here at Scotland said it was an opportunity to work on things I don’t normally look at, so we had a look at different sports, notably the NFL and the Tour de France.”

How do those relate to rugby? Well, in terms of the NFL they were looking at how the huge defensive linemen in that sport can still be so explosive and quick off the mark over short distances, and in the Tour de France Jonny examined elements of nutrition, endurance and recovery.

“It was just little things that you don’t get a chance to experiment with normally, and it was great to sit down with the coaches and plan it out,” he added.

“It was a lot of fun doing a lot of skills, stuff like hand-eye coordinations, and across the board you see the depth of training people do in other sports and the time they set aside for things.”

He respects what Hamilton said about him, that he needed to add elements to his game if he was to join the upper echelon of second rows occupied by those who went on the Lions Tour ahead of him.

“I respect Jim a lot, he is very honest, and when I first came into Scotland I looked up to him and he took me under his wing,” he continued.

“I always want to get better and I know I have a long way to go. Watching guys like (Courtney) Lawes, (Maro) Itoje and (George) Kruis helps and in the summer I really got a chance to look at my game and I will keep pushing on.”

The game against Samoa is the first chance to put right the Fiji defeat in their last outing, which still smarts.

“It was a huge disappointment, particularly after the Australia game,” admitted Gray.

“We’ve addressed that and moved on.” Twitter: @C_sscott

Picture: SNS Group. Jonny Gray is on the way back for Glasgow and Scotland after the longest lay-off of his career. The lock has looked at the NFL and Tour de France for inspiration as he continues his rehabilitation.