‘It is high stakes’ – Scotland star fighting for his career at Rugby World Cup

Scotland loosehead prop Rory Sutherland is hopeful that a recall to his country’s starting line-up for Sunday’s Rugby World Cup clash with Tonga will help him in his “stressful” search for a new club.

Despite being good enough to be elevated to the XV of the world’s fifth highest-ranked team at the global showpiece, Sutherland has still been unable to land himself a contract at club level.

The 31-year-old was on the books of Ulster on a short-term contract last season but his deal was not extended, largely due to the imminent arrival of Springbok front-row Steven Kitshoff at the Northern Irish-based outfit after the World Cup.

Determined to grab his opportunity

And Sutherland is determined to make the most of the opportunity at Test level in a bid to showcase himself to any potential suitors.

“It is a massive opportunity for me this week,” he said after being selected in place of Edinburgh’s Pierre Schoeman, who drops to the bench.

“It is high stakes for me at the minute, but it’s about coping with that pressure day to day, and making sure I channel it into the right things, which means putting out a good performance this weekend.”

When asked if his uncertainty at club level was stressful, Sutherland replied: “Absolutely. There is always a bit of pressure around that but like everything else – other adversities I’ve overcome during my career – you have to learn to park it, put it to the back of your mind, take things day by day, week by week, and focus on what is important in the here and now.

“For me, that’s playing against Tonga this weekend.”

Sutherland, who was part of the British and Irish Lions squad on their tour to South Africa in 2021, is set to make only his second start in 19 months for Scotland.

He faced the prospect of early retirement in his mid-20s but got his rugby career back on track after recovering from a horrific groin injury that left him in a wheelchair and sidelined for 14 months.

His resurgence suffered a setback, however, when he left Edinburgh to join Worcester Warriors after the 2021 Lions tour, only for the Premiership outfit to go into administration following financial implosion.

That left Sutherland in limbo before a temporary move to Ulster that at least allowed him a platform to secure his place in Scotland’s World Cup squad.

He is still annoyed by what happened at Worcester as it has caused his family, who had settled well in England, so much disruption over the past 12 months.

“It’s been tough personally,” he said of the recent turbulence at club level. “It’s been hard on my family, my wife and my kids. What happened at Worcester was a horrible shame and it was very hard for all the players.

“To leave Worcester and go to Ireland, leaving the wife and kids behind, was a very tough decision for me to make but it’s worked out now. Those eight months were tough but I got the opportunity to go out there and play good rugby for a very good side and I really enjoyed it.

“I think that’s helped me maintain my rugby and stay at this level. It’s been a tough few months but we’re through the other side and we’re at the World Cup now so I’ll try and leave that behind and look forward.”

Although Sutherland’s CV stands up to scrutiny, he feels the availability of players in rugby is currently outweighing demand.

“Going back to Worcester and the likes of Wasps folding, it has flooded the market with players,” he said when asked why he feels no club has signed him yet.

“And me going to Ulster and then not being able to continue there (as the Irish Rugby Football Union only allow one overseas player per position at each club) has not really helped.

Salary cap also plays its part

“It also comes down to the salary cap because if people are not looking for a loosehead then they are not going to bring one in as an extra.

“We’re really hopeful that we’ll find a contract, but we’ll just have to sit tight and wait and hopefully something comes along.”

Getting the opportunity to feature at a World Cup is going a long way to offsetting Sutherland’s worries about where his next pay cheque is coming from.

“It is something I have always wanted to do,” he said. “In 2015, when I first turned professional, (former Scotland head coach) Vern Cotter called me out for the latter stages of the World Cup, and I warmed up as 24th or 25th man but I missed out there, so I’m really happy and grateful to be here.”

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