Fit-again Fagerson says bad break came at ‘pretty good time’

There is never a good time to get injured but when Matt Fagerson broke his arm in Glasgow Warriors’ last game of the season at least he had time on his side.

The Scotland No 8 underwent an operation to repair the damage and then spent the summer recuperating and rehabbing.

The hard work paid off and Fagerson made his return to the Warriors side as a substitute in Saturday’s narrow win over the Lions at Scotstoun.

He was then named on Wednesday in the Scotland squad for the two-day training camp ahead of the autumn Tests.

A return to the national side was one the goals that drove him on during the summer days spent working on his fitness. Fagerson played some of his best rugby during this year’s Six Nations, most notably in the win over England at Twickenham.

“I think it was just really good to get a run of games where I could express myself in a Scotland jersey,” he said. “Since my first cap [v USA in 2018], it has been about two years since I’ve managed to do that without injury or selection getting in the way.

“So, it was just really good to develop that relationship with the coaches and work with them on improving my game every week whilst playing. It was a real confidence thing for me and it helped a lot during the Six Nations, and I just can’t wait to get a taste of it again.”

While Fagerson spent more of his summer holiday in Scotstoun than he would have liked, he is grateful to the Glasgow staff for helping his recovery from the broken forearm he sustained in the win over Leinster in June.

“From a playing point of view, it was probably the best time to get injured because I’ve only missed two games at the beginning of this season. But from a player’s point of view it’s quite frustrating. The boys have been having six-week holidays and I’ve been having an operation and a week in a sling, then straight back in,” he said.

“But it was really easy to knuckle down. The strength and conditioning guys have been brilliant with me, and the physios as well. So it was probably a pretty good time to get injured.”