Haskell: I had to have my head stapled before facing the Blues
Freak collision left flanker ‘dazed’ before Lions debut England man can boost his Test claims in Dunedin
James Haskell has revealed that he required four staples to a head wound after a freak collision with a team-mate during the warm-up ahead of his debut for the British and Irish Lions in the defeat by the Blues.
Haskell (below) admitted he was shocked when Lions team doctor Eanna Falvey had to use a stapler to treat the cut after a team-mate had accidentally “dropped an elbow” on top of his head before the kick-off of the 2216 defeat at Eden Park on Wednesday.
“I was a bit upset,” revealed Haskell. “I needed four staples in my head – actual staples before the game had even started. When the doc said he was going to staple my head I thought it was just a euphemism for stitching it. But no, he actually got a stapler out to staple my head, so that was a bit of a shock to the system.
“I was slightly dazed, but very excited to start the game, and it was a kind of a dream come true for me, really. In pro sport, there’s so much quick turnaround that you don’t get a chance to reflect, about performance, about moving forward, but I think once this tour is over, if I play anymore or whatever role I have in it, it would be nice to sit back on holiday and think that I am a Lion now. “I haven’t been that nervous before a game for a long time, I thought most things I’d kind of got my head round, so I didn’t really feel those kind of nerves, but for most of the day I was quite nervous and excited in equal measure. “I thought when I walked into the changing room and I saw my shirt hanging up there and my name that this was real, and it was very exciting to get out on the field. New Zealand is a very intense place to go and play anywhere, it doesn’t matter where you play, if you’re playing for the Lions it always has that certain smell, certain atmosphere about it.” Haskell’s injury did not prevent him from delivering an impressive display in the defeat against the Blues, with his ball-carrying, in particular, standing out, and the England flanker will get a chance to advance his claims for a place in the Test squad against the Highlanders in Dunedin on Tuesday. Beyond his ambitions to make the most of every opportunity on the 10-match tour, the 32-year-old fielded an extra responsibility to the Lions cause given his late call-up into the squad as an injury replacement for Billy Vunipola, who was forced to withdraw with a knee injury.
“You’re never satisfied but it’s a massive occasion in anyone’s life and I got in through the back door at Billy’s expense so I tried my best for him last night, really to dedicate my performance, trying to play as best as I can for him at home because, if it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be out here. I just tried to take the opportunity to enjoy it,” Haskell said.
His commitment is such that he has asked his girlfriend, Chloe Madeley, not to join him at any stage on the tour.
“My missus isn’t coming out because I want to spend six weeks getting to know these guys and having a once-ina-lifetime experience in a beautiful country where everyone’s rugby mad,” he said. “I really want to soak it up and enjoy it, because that’s what the Lions is all about.”