Thomas Young has revealed how he “got himself into a hole” during an injury-ravaged spell that coincided with Rugby World Cup disappointment.
The dynamic flanker has just returned after nine months out and a series of setbacks.
He figured once for Wales during the Six Nations, but his multiple injuries made it hard for him to put together a challenge for a World Cup place and the 27-year-old failed to make either the training squad or the 31-strong panel that travelled to Japan.
That said, he doesn’t use his various orthopaedic issues as excuses for not being involved in the global tournament, telling Coventry Live he would have been fit to answer the call if it had come.
“Yeah it was [physically possible],” he said.
“Until that squad gets announced it was everyone's goal to get selected for their country and especially the World Cup. That was something I wanted to do and I never shied away from that.
“It didn't come around.”
There may have been a window into the set-up when Young was fit, but his various ailments appeared to charge at him one after another and didn’t help his cause one bit, particularly as he was trying to win a place in arguably the most competitive area of the squad.
He made a favourable impression when making his Six Nations debut in March, topping Wales’ tackle count with 15 and proving a lively presence with ball in hand. There was a rush out of defence that Italy exploited to score a try, but, overall, Young could be pleased with his effort.
But luck then deserted him, with a hip injury arriving in March, followed by foot and ankle problems that left his World Cup bid in trouble.
A calf injury extended his stay on the sidelines, leaving him on edge and, he says, difficult to work with.
“I kind of got myself into a hole I had to find my way out of,” he said.
“The physio team and the S&C team worked really hard with me; I was getting frustrated with everything.
“I don't think I was the easiest to work with. I got so close to being out there and I seemed to break down again. I wasn't the easiest person to work with for about a month.”
He continued: “I was getting so close then I'd have a bad day, I'd get so close again and I just felt I was going two steps forward and one step back. I had a four-week period when everyone could see I was a little bit frustrated and on edge.
“I just had to get my head down and work hard. It was one of those things where we couldn't put a time frame on it, because it was all day by day, how I was reacting to different things.”
But Young made his return for Wasps a fortnight or so ago against Edinburgh and followed up with a start in the reverse fixture last weekend. He also has added responsibility as the club’s co-captain this term.
Based in England, he is up against it given how selection has worked in Wales.
And he could have a major decision to make when his contract expires at the end of the season with the openside nowhere near the 60 caps required for an exiled player to figure for Wales.
All he can do in the meantime is keep performing at the top of his game and hope the cards will start falling his way again.
The mobile and athletic former Cardiff Blues player commands huge respect throughout English rugby. He will know there is only so much he can do to influence Wales selection, but if he plays as he can at least he will give Wayne Pivac a decision to make.
