![Calcutta Cup win the highlight of my career](https://cdn.magzter.com/1351005036/1716671842/articles/VzPy-BoOf1716800282617/CALCUTTA-CUP-WIN-THE-HIGHLIGHT-OF-MY-CAREER.jpg)
Alex is a good friend of mine from our London Irish days and he’d let me use his flat when I signed for Harlequins at the last minute after being released by London Irish. Needless to say, it came as a very pleasant surprise to hear from Gregor, especially as I had thought any chance of playing for my country had gone as I was 27 at the time. He had been in touch with me a few times before but on those occasions the phone call to tell me I was being considered was always followed by another call to say I hadn’t got in.
Playing in the Calcutta Cup win at Twickenham in 2021 is without doubt the highlight of my career. I’d been to the crazy 38-all game a couple of years before as a fan and had been on the beers all day. I remember looking down at the pitch seeing some of the lads playing for Scotland, that I’d played age-group stuff with, thinking wistfully to myself that it could have been me if I’d maybe have worked harder. So, when I actually got to play there two years later I allowed myself a moment afterwards to look up to the empty grandstand where I had been sat with my mates in 2019, to let it all sink in.
It was all I’d ever dreamed of as a kid, running around with a ball in hand, dropping goals and pretending to beat England. I think if it wasn’t for that period when I played for Scotland, and won the Premiership with Harlequins, I would have found it a lot harder to process what I am going through now – the onset of retirement.
This story is from the May 26, 2024 edition of The Rugby Paper.
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This story is from the May 26, 2024 edition of The Rugby Paper.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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