The legendary golfer Gary Player once reckoned: “The harder you work, the luckier you get.”
It’s a fair point.
But Welsh crosscoder Regan Grace could be forgiven for rolling his eyes on hearing the line.
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Injured as he prepared to exit rugby league for a move back to union, the 26-year-old wing who can fashion tries out of nothing had tirelessly applied himself to the job of recovering from the ruptured Achilles tendon he suffered in his final game of 13-a-side, for St Helens against Salford last July.
He did everything by the book as he tried to get himself back in shape to start playing for new club Racing 92 and even challenge for Wales and potentially play at the World Cup.
But fate, it has been said, is like a strange, unpopular restaurant filled with odd little waiters who bring you things you never asked for and don't always like.
On Valentine’s Day this year, it brought Grace more damage to the same Achilles tendon. Fate doesn’t care about plans, comebacks or ambitions. It operates to its own laws, for good or ill. When it turns against a sports person, the results can be beyond cruel.
“You just have to deal with it,” said Grace, reflecting on his misfortunes.
“I was six months into my rehab and had been excited about the prospect of getting started with Racing.
“Then I was out jogging and my Achiiles just went. I didn’t know what was going on at first because I’d been back running again for a couple of months and hadn’t had any problems. I thought I’d just tripped over something, but it had gone again. Same leg, same problem. Perhaps something had gone wrong with the healing part of it.
“It was just a bad thing to happen.
“I was gutted and felt I’d let people down.
“That said, it wasn’t my fault, nor was it the club’s fault.
“But I went from really high emotions to super, super low.”
Grace showed himself to be a devastating finisher in rugby league, with 89 tries in 143 games. Some of his scores were spectacular, seeing him slash open defences as if taking a razor-sharp knife to paper, with his combination of searing pace and a step making him a threat from anywhere on the pitch.
He isn’t the biggest wing ever, but he left Wales as a teenager to try his luck in a different code and earned the respect of the rugby league community. Not every Welsh export to the north of England over the years could say the same.
Clive Griffiths, who coached Wales at league and was part of the national coaching set-up at union, has long believed Grace could transition back to 15-a-side, telling this writer prior to the player’s switch to Racing: “He has the ability to play international rugby union for Wales — of course he does.
“He reminds me of Shane Williams in that he’s very quick, can sidestep and has the ability to spin out of tackles. He also has a phenomenal strike rate when it comes to scoring tries.”
Griffiths added: “He’s 5ft 10 and just under 13st but he’s all muscle and he’s tough with it. Coming from Port Talbot, he knows how to look after himself and he can take a knock.”
But it’s back to square one for him now, with months of rehab ahead. “I had to go back to the start and begin everything again,” said Grace.
“I had the op on February 22nd, so my recovery started from there. I’ve just passed nine weeks, post-op.
“My goal is to play before the end of the year, November time, perhaps.
“The club have been really good, saying that I’m a Racing man and they’ll look after me and make sure I get back to fitness so I can be the best I can. They’ve taken care of me and made sure I’ve had the best treatment.”
There are worse places to be based than the French capital, mind. “Me and my girlfriend are out here,” said Grace. “I’ve picked up a bit of the language. I’m far from fluent, but I can get by far better than when I first came here.”
How challenging it must be, though.
He had hoped to challenge for a Wales World Cup spot after hopping across codes, and he had joined one of Europe’s most glamorous clubs. Now he’s had to play a game of patience before he can show them what he can do and exactly what they spent their euros on. His plight is frustrating and then a bit.
His injury has not dulled his long-term ambition of playing for Wales at union — “of course, I’d love to,” he replied when asked that very question.
But of course he has much to do first: “You put all these goals in your head but my goal now is to get back running and start playing for the team. Then it’s a case of going from there.
“I’ve had to reset all my goals and that’s tough.
“My first target is just to get back on the field and play in the Top 14. I just want to show people here what I can do.
“It’s part of the sport, but it’s not easy.
“I want to do well for Racing as a first step. That’s the aim for now.”
Let’s agree it’s overdue for fortune to smile on him.
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