Double comebacks look like being on the cards for Fraser
Fraser Brown makes a timely comeback for Glasgow this afternoon, after more than three months out with a neck injury – and all being well could make his return for Scotland, too, by the end of the week.
The Warriors hooker, who suffered the injury in the Autumn Nations Cup defeat by Ireland at the start of December, has already been doing some training with the national squad as his return to action approaches.
Playing against the Dragons in the PRO14 today then France in Paris on Friday night is a tight turnaround. But, while he insisted that he was not presuming a call-up would come automatically, Brown is confident he can cope with the demands of those two games if required.
“I’d have to get picked of course!” said Brown when asked if he would be ready for a Six Nations return.
“As far as I’m concerned, I’m fit to go, otherwise I wouldn’t be playing on Sunday. I’m good to go and I’m just focused on playing well, getting a good performance and a win under my belt.
“I’ve done four-day turnarounds before in both World Cups I’ve been to. I’ve done five-day turnarounds with Glasgow as well, Sunday to Friday.
“It’s not something you’re accustomed to every single week, but it’s something that players have done before, and we’ve got the best strength and conditioning coaches in position.
“It’s tough. In an ideal world, it’s not a situation that Glasgow players, Scotland players or French players would find themselves in. But this year is very different, for obvious reasons.”
Brown’s inclusion in the squad to face France will depend on how well Gregor Townsend (inset) feels Dave Cherry and George Turner fared at hooker against the Italians yesterday.
But the national coach, who worked with Brown at Glasgow, has already given an indication of how highly he rates the 31-year-old by drafting him into the training squad in the build-up to the Ireland match.
“Glasgow had a Friday game, so their last meaningful training session was on the Wednesday,” Brown explained.
“With players going back to the clubs down south, I was with Scotland Friday and Saturday, so I could do a bit more training, tick some contact boxes, and so they could have some extra numbers.”
The Warriors’ hopes of finishing third in Conference A and claiming an automatic Champions Cup place were dashed on Friday night when Ospreys beat Leinster in Dublin to ensure that they could not be caught.
However, a fourth-place finish might still be good enough to get into European rugby’s premier competition, and with the fifth-placed Dragons just four points behind them going into today’s match at the Principality Stadium, Brown and his teammates still have a lot to play for.