INSIDE TOWNSEND’S PRIDE IS TINGED WITH SLICE OF REGRET
MORE than four years after fearing he may have to quit rugby because of a serious groin injury, Rory Sutherland is now celebrating his selection for the Lions tour of South Africa. At his lowest ebb he was bed-bound for a month, struggling to wash and dress himself, and suffering with mental health issues. Having made his Scotland debut in 2016 prior to that serious injury, Sutherland didn’t play for his country again until last year. And he hasn’t looked back since. No wonder the prop forward admitted he was shaking with excitement yesterday on hearing he had been selected by Warren Gatland. ‘I wondered if I’d ever play rugby again,’ said Sutherland. ‘It’s been a tough couple of years, coming off the back of a big injury and scraping the barrel for five or ten minutes with Edinburgh, then eventually getting opportunities to play for my country again. ‘I was asked to watch the Lions squad being announced with the Edinburgh team but I didn’t want to, I wanted to watch it on my own, so I watched in the car park. I had seen it being talked about a lot in the media of a possible Lions call-up, which was nice, but to hear it finally being announced is amazing, pretty overwhelming. ‘I’m absolutely over the moon and can’t wait to get stuck in.’ The 27-year-old is confident he will be ready to take his seat on the plane and played down fears he may have to withdraw at a later date due to a shoulder injury from which he’s currently recovering. ‘I fell and dislocated it against France in the Six Nations,’ he added. ‘When I turned over on to my back, I popped it back in myself. I’ve been X-rayed and I hadn’t done any damage to the bone, there was just a little bit of rotator cuff damage and a little bit of damage to other bits of my shoulder but nothing major, so it was the best possible outcome. ‘I got away with it. Really lucky. And things are going well now with the rehab, so it’s looking good. ‘After the second shoulder scan, Doctor James Robson reassured me that it was achievable for me to go on the tour if everything goes to plan. I think we’re going to target (my first game) four or five weeks from now.’
He will take his seat on the flight alongside childhood pal Stuart Hogg. ‘I would probably have been at Gala when Hoggy went with the Lions in 2013,’ he said. ‘We played mini rugby together and then he kept at it and I got a trade and now we have met up again at the top level, which is amazing.’ Zander Fagerson, who is on the other side of the Scotland scrum, thought he’d blown his chance of Lions selection after his sending-off against Wales in the Six Nations. The tighthead prop experienced a mix of pride and utter surprise when he found out he had been picked. ‘I didn’t think I had a shout after the red card,’ he said. ‘It really was an honour and a privilege to be called up today and thinking I had blown it just makes it all even more special.’ Scotland centre Chris Harris described his call-up as ‘bizarre’ after he heard the news at his club Gloucester, saying: ‘I am delighted and wasn’t expecting it. It is just crazy. It was a strange one finding out then having to do some training. Being picked for the Lions is the biggest thing you can achieve « in rugby.’
FALkIRk have issued an apology to supporters for this season’s failures and have promised sweeping changes as they prioritise the appointment of a new head coach. The Bairns suffered a calamitous collapse to miss out on even a promotion play-off place, despite approaching the final six games of the campaign with a three-point lead at the top of League One. In a letter to fans, chairman Gary Deans insists he stands by the decision to sack co-managers Lee Miller and David McCracken with four games remaining but has claimed interim boss Gary Holt was left with ‘an almost impossible short-term task’ due to mounting injuries.