Scots blow as Lamont ruled out for up to four months

Published on Thursday 11 December 2008 21:51

RORY Lamont has vowed to "do everything in my power" to recover from a serious ankle injury and still play a part in Scotland's RBS Six Nations Championship.

The 26-year-old full-back ruptured ligaments in Sale's Heineken Cup win over Montauban and underwent a complicated operation on Wednesday night to repair the damage. Sale stated he would be out of action for up to four months. Scotland's Six Nations campaign concludes on 21 March, away to England, around 16 weeks from now.

Lamont, however, admitted the surgeon had told him he could be back within 14 weeks if everything went to plan with his recovery and after spending most of this year in rehabilitation from a smashed face he is not enthusiastic about another extended stay on the sidelines.

"I am absolutely gutted," he said, "and I have felt terrible this week, but I'm determined that I'll come back stronger from this. Sadly, it's not the first serious injury I've had in the game now and so I know I can come back and play as well as ever, and that's got to be my focus again this time.

"It's a nightmare with the time because I was desperate to be part of the Six Nations. But I'm not ruling anything out. I still want to make that, maybe the last game at least, and I still want to push myself forward for the Lions.

"I know the odds are against me now, but I won't give up. I'll have games with Sale in March and April hopefully, before they name the squad, and if we're still in the Heineken Cup and Guinness Premiership running I'll have big games to show what I can do.

"It will be tough, but I'm not giving up on anything."

Lamont missed most of this year after suffering five breaks in his eye socket, cheekbone and jaw in a clash with Iain Balshaw in the Calcutta Cup, and he also had a knee operation while recovering from that. But he returned to action at the start of the season and was quickly reproducing the form which made him a stand-out in Scotland's World Cup campaign. A minor niggle kept him out of Scotland's opening Bank of Scotland Corporate Autumn Test with New Zealand, but he returned to the full-back berth against South Africa and Canada, scoring in the latter Test win in Aberdeen.

He admitted yesterday he could not believe it when his first game back in the Heineken Cup produced more pain.

"When it happened there was a sharp pain and it ran up my shin, and I worried I'd broken something. I didn't say much at the time because I hoped it was not bad, and then there was still this excruciating pain on Saturday morning and I went to hospital and scans showed ruptured ligaments.

"It was unbelievable. I have ripped a ligament close to the foot but also one between the tibia and fibula, and the more they investigated the more serious it seemed to become. Apparently, if I put any pressure on the leg the bones were splaying apart because the ligament wasn't there to hold them, so I had no stability.

"Part of the operation was to put a nylon wire around the bones and that will, apparently, let the ligaments heal, but we're looking at 14 weeks at best. That would get me back during the Six Nations, though, and then who knows?"

It is an undoubted blow for Scotland coach Frank Hadden, whose bold new style of play was enlivened by the presence of Lamont in the counter-attack. However, it may also make selection easier as the goal-kicking frailties of the team when Chris Paterson is not on the pitch were magnified in the Test with South Africa, where four kicks at goal were missed as the team lost by just four points.

Paterson is Edinburgh's first choice full-back at present and, with Lamont unavailable, should cement the Scotland berth, which allows Hadden the opportunity to choose from out-and-out wingers on the flanks in the likes of Sean Lamont, Thom Evans, Nikki Walker and Simon Webster.

However, Rory's brother Sean, who returns this weekend from the hamstring injury he suffered against New Zealand, admitted there was little that was positive in the news. He added: "Obviously, I really feel for my brother. I've played in 36 Test matches and he's played in 19 now, but I think we've only been on the pitch four or five times together with me spending last year out with a serious knee injury.

"But also from a team-mate's point of view, we're playing a game now that's about quick counter-attacking and scoring tries and Rory is an exciting counter-attacker to have in your team and, while we've got good strength in depth, he'll definitely be missed by Scotland."