Speedy Stuart is in ‘the best nick of his life’
STRAINING to be unleashed? It certainly sounds like it. And little wonder, given what Stuart Hogg has missed since misfortune befell him four long months ago.
It was Saturday, June 10, that the Glasgow Warriors full-back last took to the field of play. That fateful day brought a premature end to his tour of New Zealand with the Lions.
Tipped to be the starting No 15 for the Tests, Hogg collided with Irish team-mate Conor Murray’s elbow in a warm-up match against the Crusaders.
A facial fracture left him on a flight home. On his return to Scotland, he had an operation on an underlying shoulder issue and has been on the sidelines ever since. Watching. Waiting.
Now, he is back. And, to listen to Warriors head coach Dave Rennie, he is stronger, faster and more dangerous than ever.
Indeed, Hogg’s blistering pace in training wouldn’t shame Olympic legend Usain Bolt. And it was his sheer speed in a fitness test two days ago that convinced Rennie to include him in his starting XV to take on Leinster today in their crucial European Champions Cup clash at Scotstoun.
‘Hoggy’s broken the Glasgow club record for straight-out speed,’ revealed Rennie. ‘On Thursday, he ran 36.8km/hour. That’s the top speed he hit, which is massive, just over 10 metres per second.
‘We’ve been able to really personalise his return to play and a lot of that is about getting him more powerful and explosive and leaner and faster. Hoggy has always been quick. He’s quicker than he’s ever been.
‘He’s got himself into the best nick of his life. Since his operation, he has dropped a lot of weight so he is a lot leaner.’
It’ll be the first time since he took the reins at Warriors that Rennie has had Hogg at his disposal. And there was no disguising the New Zealander’s delight at being able to select the Scotland full-back.
‘He is pretty handy, isn’t he?’ said Rennie. ‘He has been voted best player in the Six Nations for the past two years. He has a massive kicking game, he’s electric on the field and he’s really demanding. He’ll put pressure on other guys to perform well.
‘It’s gold to have him back in. Of course he will be a bit rusty in places but he is an experienced quality player who can make a difference.’
Hogg has been champing at the bit for a return to action after missing all seven games since his operation. He had wanted to play in the away loss to Exeter Chiefs but Rennie didn’t think he was ready.
The head coach was thinking about utilising him on the bench against Leinster — until Hogg convinced him otherwise.
‘He showed us in training he is ready and comfortable with starting and so are we,’ said Rennie. ‘Hoggy is very infectious, a ball of energy.
‘We thought of starting Ruaridh Jackson again against Leinster and bringing Hoggy off the bench. However, Ruaridh has played eight games of 80 minutes, when you take in the two-preseason games, so he deserves a bit of a breather.’ Leinster are just as delighted to welcome back their own star man after captain Johnny Sexton missed the home win over Montpellier with a dead leg. Rennie knows the Lions fly-half is the man who makes them tick and has told his players to be on him from the first kick. ‘He’s very experienced and has been a great player for Ireland for many years and for Leinster,’ he said. ‘He is a massive influence on their side and we’re aware of that. We’re going to have to put him under a bit of heat and hopefully unsettle his and their rhythm.’ It will be a fascinating head to head between Sexton and Finn Russell who had a mixedbag of a performance in the loss to Exeter. He set up Tommy Seymour’s try with a superb cross kick and put over a conversion and a penalty. The Scotland standoff’s handling was way below par, however, and now there is real pressure on him today to up his game. Rennie also identified the scrum as another area where improvement, with the loss of hooker Fraser Brown through injury a blow. Now, the raw front row of Jamie Bhatti, George Turner and Zander Fagerson will go up against Cian Healy, Tadhg Furlong and Seán Cronin. ‘The consistency of our scrum has been the issue for us,’ said Rennie. ‘Our first scrum against Exeter we were quite dominant, but then we got put under pressure so we know we have to be at our best in that area against Leinster.’