Cockerill’s exit left James feeling a bit in limbo over move
As a professional sportsman who is making an off-season switch between clubs, the last thing you want to hear is that the coach at the team you are joining has suddenly left the building.
You have made the commitment based on what that person has told you about where they see you fitting into their plans for the future – then, all of a sudden, those plans have evaporated.=
That’s exactly the situation Scotland centre James Lang found himself in last month when news filtered through to him of Richard Cockerill’s abrupt departure from Edinburgh.
Born and brought up just a few miles away from the Stoop, home ground of Harlequins, Lang had first played for the English side as a schoolboy, so it had been a tough decision for the 26-year-old to leave last year’s Premiership champions to move north in pursuit of more regular gametime with Edinburgh.
But he believed it was necessary to take his game to the next level and hopefully boost his international prospects.
It was Cockerill who sold him the vision of being part of the Edinburgh squad this coming season – so Lang was understandably anxious to find out what the Englishman’s departure meant for him.
After all, professional rugby has a long history of promising rugby careers going stale because a player doesn’t tick the right boxes for a new coach.
“I won’t lie, there were a couple of days when I was in limbo,” Lang admitted. “I didn’t know who was coming in and I was a little bit agitated.
“Actually, it was panic stations,” he added, after thinking it through a bit more. “You sign for a club, for a coach, and then that coach leaves and then what if the next coach comes in and you are not part of his plans, or he doesn’t like you?
“That all went through my mind.”
Fortunately for Lang, it was announced only a few days later that Mike Blair had taken over the job – and he has some positive history with the former Scotland assistant coach.
“I got on well with Mike in camp with Scotland, so I dropped him a message straight away, and after that
I was buzzing to get started with the team,” he smiled.
“Under his coaching style, the team and myself will really thrive.”
Lang arrived in Edinburgh a fortnight ago and dived straight into pre-season training. While he can also play stand-off and full-back, he says his focus is on making the inside-centre slot his own.
“That is where I see myself and where I see myself progressing for the future as well,” he insisted. “I’m just focusing on getting up to speed, blowing away the cobwebs and getting stuck in.”
The squad head off to Largs tomorrow for a week-long training camp.