This should have been a triumphant 10 months in the rugby life of George North, one in which a Lions tour had been pencilled in for the big man and with it a potential Test place against world champions South Africa.
A date for Wales against New Zealand on eve-of-Halloween should also have offered him a stage, while there could have been opportunities to maintain his momentum with the Ospreys in the Heineken Champions Cup and in the United Rugby Championship.
Instead, he’s been engaged in a brutally tough fight to recover from injury, having smashed his right knee playing for the Ospreys against Cardiff last April. That afternoon, all his rugby hopes for the best part of a year took a direct hit.
How Wales have missed him.
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They have handed the No. 13 jersey to five different players over nine Tests since.
Some have done well enough, others less so. But no-one has boasted the 6ft 4in, 17st 2lb North's blend of uncompromising power and telling pace.
What was also noticeable about North before his injury was a sense of on-pitch maturity befitting a 100-cap player. There was no panicking in defence when the pressure came on, with North instead using anticipation to head off opposition attacks.
As the late, great footballer Johan Cruyff used to say: “Before I make a mistake, I don’t make that mistake.” Before North made hasty defensive reads or such like in the early part of last year, he avoided making such reads.
In attack, he caused problems from outside centre, while he also proved adept at winning turnovers for both Wales and the Ospreys. In short, he was playing some of the best rugby of his career prior to the events of April 24, 2021.
The good news is that he’s ready to resume playing again, with his return lined up for the Ospreys’ United Rugby Championship game with Zebre on March 6.
But let no-one try to convince him his time on the sidelines has been a stroll in the park.
It hasn't been. Quite the reverse.
“There’s no beating around the bush — it’s been the hardest injury I’ve had to overcome,” he says.
“I’ve been very fortunate over the years in that I haven’t had too many bumps but this one I’ve found particularly difficult.
“Along the way, everyone was reminding me of that old saying about two steps forward, one step back. You’re feeling good, you push on, then you have a reaction and you go back a bit before you go forward again.
“Mentally, it’s been really hard.
“Watching rugby as a fan is great, but a player wants to be out there competing. Playing rugby is my bread and butter and players are creatures of habit. I want to be on the pitch and missing out on the Lions tour was heartbreaking.
“To miss the autumn series in front of fans wasn't easy and sitting out the Six Nations is even harder.”
Speaking from the Principality Stadium, he continues: “Those are the games and tournaments I spent 12 years of my career trying to play in as well as competing around the world for my club and country.”
Fortunately, help has been on hand in terms of the injured players group he, Dan Lydiate and Dewi Lake formed at the Ospreys. It is no more now, with the the two forwards back in action and North about to put his boots back on again.
The various medics and conditioners he has worked with have also been a huge source of support and guidance, but maybe the firmest shoulder of all to lean on during such troubled times has belonged to his wife, two-time world cycling sprint champion, Becky.
“It's been tough, but my wife is an unsung superhero, especially with the two boys now,” says North, the proud father of young sons Jac and Tomi.
“Mentally, it’s been great to have the boys there to distract me a little bit by having normal life to get on with.
“It’s been a long old road. I’m just looking forward to getting back out there and playing again.”
It’s still not clear if North will play any part in the Guinness Six Nations.
After the Zebre game in Swansea, the Ospreys don’t play again until March 25, against the Lions in South Africa.
There is no chance for North to have a second regional game to potentially challenge for a Wales place against Italy on March 19.
“It’s unfortunate how the fixtures have fallen with the breaks in the URC, otherwise I would have been hoping to have featured earlier,” says North, who believes he has got himself “in great shape to be playing rugby”.
There is an acknowledgement, though, that instantly adapting to the intensity of the Test game after so long out would test anyone, particularly with just one club match to get back up to speed.
And caution remains the watchword, understandably so after such a lengthy spell on the sidelines. “My big focus is to play this first game and come out of it in one piece and get back into some rugby, which is something I’m very excited about," says North.
Does he feel he’ll play a part in the remainder of the tournament?
“The honest answer is I don’t know,” he says.
“Speaking to the camp, I was very insistent that I wanted to play some rugby first. For me, it’s been a case of getting my body and mind right for Zebre and then and wait and see. There’s a break after the Zebre game. I’m not sure what will happen.”
Another call he and his coaches are going to have to make is over his role.
He was playing at outside centre for Wales and on the wing for the Ospreys before his injury. Which position does he enjoy more?
“I don’t really have a preference,” he says.
“I’ve spent the majority of my career on the wing. It depends who you ask, but I think it’s gone all right.
“I played a lot of my age-grade stuff in the centre as well so I feel happy there, too.
“I kind of feel to really compete at international level [as a centre] you have to have consistent games there. That’s something that will potentially develop with the Ospreys, but at the moment I just want to get back playing — get back on the wing, find my feet, find my lungs, which is a big part of it, then what will be will be.
“Whether I play 13 in a Welsh jersey or an Ospreys jersey, I feel comfortable. When the time comes and I need to play outside centre in one game, I’m more than happy to step up. If it’s on the wing this week, I’m happy again.
“For me, it’s certainly an aspect of my game that I really want to push on now, adding more of a 13 role into my game, but, to be honest, I just want to get back playing.”
North featured in winning Welsh sides against England at Twickenham in 2012 and 2015, never-to-be-forgotten occasions, with the first seeing Wales clinch a Triple Crown and the second seeing them score a win that put the hosts on the road to an early exit from the World Cup they were hosting.
“I have good memories of Twickenham,” says North, looking ahead to Saturday’s Six Nations game in London.
“I was very young in 2012, box-fresh on the scene.
“We won the Triple Crown that day and everything that could have happened, happened — cards, penalties, decisions left, right and centre. But at the end of the day that’s why you play rugby. You play to be part of those games, to have the honour of putting on the jersey and taking that field.
“To have that experience when I was young, with the squad I had around me then, was mind blowing and still puts a smile on my face.
“Three years later in 2015 was another great day at the office, with it being the World Cup and the amount of injuries we had.
"Any time you beat England, whether it’s home or away, is a good day.
“That said, Twickenham is a difficult place to go and it’ll be tough for the boys this weekend. It’s a big step up and there are many things to work on. To go there the boys will have had to put in a good few weeks of work. Luckily, we’ve had that fallow week for the players to put another week in. Now, it’s about having the ability to push on and chase this championship down.”
Whatever happens, North is emerging out of the rugby darkness and into the light again.
It’s said the value of a player can be gauged by how much he’s missed when he’s not around.
Wales have missed North hugely and so have the Ospreys.
It will be good to see him back.
George North was speaking on behalf of Guinness, alongside teammates Justin Tipuric and Dan Lydiate. Guinness is working with its partners to make sure rugby is inclusive and welcoming for everyone. To find out more visit www.guinness.com/neversettle #neversettle
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