Before last weekend, a lot had happened since Jay Baker had previously laced up his rugby boots.
Well, it would be a strange old world if that were not the case.
It had been 1,108 days, after all.
A long wait between drinks if ever there was one.
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Firstly for Baker there were bush fires in Australia to contend with, stopping him playing rugby. Then came the pandemic, and after that a major knee injury in pre-season training in 2021 with Aberavon which left him facing a long-haul recovery.
But the wing returned last Saturday and marked the occasion with a try for Aberavon in their 33-18 Indigo Welsh Premiership win over Pontypridd at Sardis Road, a success that holds their lead at the top of the table.
His score saw him collect an offload and weave past the last line of defence. It underlined that the man who in 2016 followed the likes of Alun Wyn Jones (2006), Taulupe Faletau (2010) and Tomos Williams (2015) by winning the Principality Premiership Newcomer of the Year award could still do it: could still turn chances into tries as if born to do so.
“He did well considering it was his first game back,” said Aberavon’s head coach Jason Hyatt.
“For his try, he had some work to do. But he’s a class player and he did what was needed. We are going to ease him back up the gears at the right pace. He’s had a bad injury and we want to look after him.”
The wonder is Baker hasn’t broken through at professional level.
Not only does he score plenty of tries, he also scores spectacular tries, with the wing’s running from deep thrilling the Aberavon crowd during his first stint with the club.
He also proved a hit during a stay in Australia, where the local press reported he had ‘stormed onto the scene’ with Manly Marlins. You can read more about his exploits Down Under here.
During his time on the sidelines he has appeared on MTV in the reality TV series Geordie Shore, though he is more keen to talk about his rugby when WalesOnline catch up with him.
“I’m just glad to be playing again,” he said.
“It’s been a long old time and I did miss it a lot.
“I wouldn’t have thought three years ago that pretty much at the height of my career I’d have to take such a long time out. But there were bush fires in the area where I lived in Australia, meaning we couldn’t play, then came Covid and then the injury.
“Of course I wondered what it would be like when I eventually returned.
“But it went well on Saturday. The boys set in place a really good platform and it was nice to pick up a try but more importantly it was good to be part of a winning team.”
Baker said it was pleasing to be back playing with the Wizards again.
“They’re a great club,” he added.
“Even when I was in Australia, people like from the club like Jason Hyatt and Andrew Vaughan John kept in contact, checking I was OK and wanting to know how I was doing.
“Stuff like that goes a long way.
“And there’s a good atmosphere in the squad as well, with some great boys.
“Now I want to get more rugby under my belt again. It’s been a long time.”
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