Fagerson leaves darkness behind after toughest year

10 hours ago7 min read

For Zander Fagerson, the 232-day stretch without a game felt less like an off-season and more like an unending tunnel, a period he openly describes as the darkest of his rugby life. The return of the Scottish tighthead prop in the 56-0 victory over Tonga was not merely a comeback; it was a resurrection, a testament to the human spirit's capacity to endure repeated setbacks and emerge, not just intact, but with a renewed sense of purpose.The 29-year-old warrior, one of Scotland's great indispensables, had his 2025 campaign derailed in a brutal sequence of misfortunes that would test the resolve of any elite athlete. It began with a promising Six Nations, where no tighthead had logged more minutes, positioning Fagerson as a genuine contender for the British and Irish Lions tour to Australia.But a calf tear in April with Glasgow Warriors was the first domino to fall, a seemingly minor injury that spiraled into a second, and then a third tear, a cruel cycle of recovery and re-injury that saw him named to the Scotland tour squad for New Zealand and the Lions party, only to withdraw from both. Just as he was mentally overcoming the profound disappointment of missing a second Lions tour—a dream that 'ate him up' when the first Test rolled around—a freak knee injury while lifting weights in the gym, an exercise he had performed all summer, sent him crashing back to square one.This fourth injury in mere months was, by his own admission, 'the worst time in my career, 100%. ' The psychological toll was immense, a 'mental rollercoaster' so severe that his wife, Yasmine, had to sit him down for a serious chat, telling him, 'You've been pretty dark for a while.' To escape the gloom, Fagerson embarked on an ambitious month-long family trip to Asia with his wife, four children—including one-year-old twins—and extended family, creating 'memories for a lifetime' across Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. This journey was a necessary mental reset, a chance to reclaim the person behind the player.Yet, the path back was solitary and grueling; he revealed he couldn't train fully with the squad until three weeks prior to the Tonga match, spending morbid days in the facility with only physios for company while his teammates were on holiday or tour. His triumphant return was therefore layered with profound emotion.The 76-cap veteran spoke with the wide-eyed gratitude of a debutant, his focus not on his own performance, which he admitted was 'a bit rusty,' but on the relief of his family, who no longer had to 'sit through something else going wrong. ' He saw them during the anthems and 'got a little bit of a wobble,' a raw moment that underscored this was more than a game—it was a celebration of resilience for everyone who had supported him. Now, with his 'cup full' and a gentle, humorous nudge from his wife that his 'ironing skills and dishwasher skills are garbage,' Fagerson is ready to resume his day job, his spirit steeled by adversity and his appreciation for the sport he missed so dearly deepened immeasurably.

#featured

#Zander Fagerson

#Scotland rugby

#injury comeback

#Glasgow Warriors

#British and Irish Lions

#rugby union

#player interview

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