'I felt like a normal human but I wasn't allowed to do anything for two months' - Jono Lance's back fracture ordeal
It sounded gruesome, a prognosis of 16 weeks out of the game with a broken back. For Worcester’s Jono Lance, though, the stress fracture injury sustained last October wasn’t the worst of his near decade-long professional career.
“I broke and dislocated my ankle a while ago. That was a rough one,” he said, comparing the various setbacks that have confined him at times to the sidelines.
“I unfortunately have had a few injuries, but this one was the weird in the sense that I didn’t feel injured but I knew I needed to take some time out.
“I walking around and I felt like a normal human you could say. I wasn’t on crutches, I wasn’t laboured in any way, I was just a normal human who wasn’t allowed to do anything for two months.
“It was a two-month complete shut-down, which was definitely a refreshing time but also a little frustrating. Then after that it was about slowly building back into it in terms of building up the running load, the strength.
“It was probably about a four- to five-week period of getting into that before skills started and then the last month it has definitely added up to the point we are now at. It’s probably the best I have felt in a year I reckon.”
Not that the rehab was entirely plain sailing. “I’m a frustrated spectator. Away games have been tough because you can’t have too much input, but for all the home games I have definitely tried to get in at half-time and have a chat with Duncan (Weir). If I’m seeing something I definitely want to get that message out to the guys.
“The few weeks before I was back I was running water and messages for the group, which was good way to get back into it. It has been a frustrating time but one that has been about still trying to help in any way possible.”
Happy to be back for this game… not happy this gif was used #pout https://t.co/vZ7Qot25Zy
— Jonathon Lance (@jonno_lance) February 24, 2019
All that patience will be rewarded this weekend, Lance catapulted straight back into the Warriors line-up as a replacement in their relegation head-to-head on Sunday away to Newcastle, the league’s bottom side who trail by nine points.
He’d a brief taste last season of the relegation pressures while on a short-term deal, but the Australian, who had Super Rugby stints at the Reds, the Waratahs and the Force, is still getting his head around a competition formatted very differently to what he was used to back home.
“It’s new to me,” said the out-half, who took up Worcester’s offer of a permanent two-year deal last summer. “I’d a brief taste of it last year when I was here for a few months but to be involved in it fully, it is intense and pressurised and just a very interesting thing to be a part of.
“You can say for all competitions there is no easy games, there are no off-weeks, but this makes it very, very much the truth. For us it’s about building on wins and preparing well for each game, but also about trying to look up the table instead of look behind.
“We know how close the table is and we know putting together a lot of good performances can move you up the table quite quickly – and we want to do that. We’re looking at the teams ahead of us and not below us.
“We want to be looking up the table, we want to be playing in the Champions Cup. Everyone has aspirations… the club definitely feels quite settled and the playing group is very confident in where it is going.
“As well as that, with new owners coming in it’s quite exciting times. To see a guy like Chris Pennell, who has been here for 10 years, excited about the future is all the evidence I need about where we’re looking as a group.”
? Alan Solomons talks about Bryce Heem, Ed Fidow and Sunday’s visit to Newcastle… pic.twitter.com/Ix1VWOJ6EI
— Worcester Warriors (@WorcsWarriors) February 28, 2019
Job security is a relief to Lance after living through the Force’s Super Rugby disbandment. “It’s definitely something I don’t want to experience again,” said the 29-year-old, whose switch to England has been a sort of homecoming for the Aussie.
It was 1999 when he arrived in Yorkshire and spent two years there while his father Dean coached Super League’s Leeds Rhinos. Now he’s back and retracing his steps, even if he’s doing so in a different rugby code.
“I lived in England when I was young when my dad coached the rugby league team in Leeds. It was when I was nine until I was 11. I remember going to the smaller stadiums with the atmosphere and the drums and the trumpets. That definitely made a lasting impression.
“As well as that, the shorter bus rides to and from games is a bit different to flying at least three and up to 12 hours to get to an away game. That is exciting, but also the pressure that comes with the relegation/promotion side of English sport is something that is a drawcard.
“There were many factors but I had enjoyed my three-month stint here at Worcester and when I got back to Australia I enjoyed that but I was looking forward to heading back over here.”
A bus ride to a new destination now awaits Lance. He’s never before been to Newcastle, but is ready for what his comeback weekend has in store.
“It’s definitely exciting to be back. The body is feeling good and it’s about trying to get back to playing some rugby.
“Heading up to Newcastle gives us a good opportunity to spend the night away, enjoy the bus ride up, enjoy the whole weekend that comes with it, have a good dinner together and bond as a group.
“If we enjoy our time together and get stuck in on a Sunday, it puts us in a good position as it is going to be as big challenge.”
Comments on RugbyPass
If Havili can play anywhere in the back line, why not first 5. #10.
11 Go to commentsThe dressing room had already left for their summer break before they ran out in Dublin that year, and that’s on the coach. Franco Smith has undoubtedly made progress, particularly their maul, developing squad players and increasing squad depth. And against a very tight budget too. That said they were too lightweight last year and got found out against both Toulon and Munster in consecutive games. Better this season so far but they’ve developed something of a slow start habit occasionally, most notably losing at home to Northampton who played them at their own game. Play offs will ultimately show whether there has been tangible progress on last year, or not…!
2 Go to commentsAustralian Rugby has been a disaster, by not incorporating learning from previous successful campaigns. QLD Reds 2011 - Waratahs 2014. Players, coaches and administrators appoint there representatives for scheduled meetings, organisation’s agreement’s assessments and correspondence. This why a unified Rugby Union under one entity works. Every Rugby nation has taken that path. Was most difficult in the Northern hemisphere with over 100 years of club rugby before the game become professional. Took a lot of humility for those unions to eventually work together.
7 Go to commentsThough Wilson’s sacking was pretty brutal, it wasn’t just down to that Leinster game; Glasgow had a lot of 2nd half collapses that season, in the URC and Europe, and only just scraped into the playoffs. Franco Smith has definitely been an improvement, some players are delivering far more than they did under Wilson.
2 Go to commentsjesus - that front 5!
1 Go to commentsShould be an absolute cracker of a game! Will be great to see DuPont & Ntamack in tandem once again🔥
1 Go to commentsBest team ever…. To have played? These guys are still pressure chokers. Came nowhere when it counted. What a joke
69 Go to commentsMusk defends anonymous terrorism, fascism, threats against individuals and children etc etc But a Rugby club account….lock ‘em up!!!
1 Go to commentsActually the era defining moment came a few years earlier. February 2002 to be precise, when Michael D Higgins as finance minister at the time introduced his sports persons tax relief bill to the dial. As the politicians of the day stated “It seems to be another daft K Club frolic born in Kildare amongst the well-paid professional jockeys with whom the Minister plays golf” and that the scheme represented “a savage uncaring vision of Ireland and one that should be condemned”. The irfu and Leinster would be nowhere near the position they are in today without this key component of the finances.
2 Go to commentsIt is crystal clear that people who make such threats on line should be tried and imprisoned. Those with responsibility in social media companies who don’t facilitate this should be convicted. In real life, I have free speech to approach someone like Reinach and verbally threaten him. I am risking a conviction or a slap but I could do it. In the old days, If someone anonymously threatened someone by letter the police would ask and use evidence from the postal system. Unlike the Post, social media companies have complete instant and legal access to the content in social media. They make money from the data, billions. Yet, they turn a blind eye to terrorism, Nazi-ism and industrial levels of threats against individuals including their address and childrens schools being published online all from ananoymous accounts not real people. They claim free speech. Free speech for anonymous trolls/voilent thugs threatening people under false names? The fault is with the perps but also social media companies who think anonymous personas posting death threats constitutes free speech.
2 Go to commentsSo if this ain’t the best Irish team ever then who exactly is? I don’t remember any other Irish team being this good & winning a series in the Land of the Long White Cloud. Yes I may rip them often for 8 X QF RWC exits & twice not even making it to the QF, but they’re a damn good team who many think can only improve, including me!
69 Go to commentsNot a squeek out of Leinster for weeks about this match. So quiet. The first team have been quitely building for this encounter under Nienaber’s direction. All fresh, all highly motivated. They are expecting a season’s best performance from Northhampton. They will match that. They will be fresher and apparently they will have 80,000 out of the 83,000 shouting for them. I do expect Northhampton to turn up big time. Not to be missed. On a tangent it is evident how the loss of a few Premiership teams has in some respect helped other Premiership teams and England. More quality over less teams makes the teams better, which has a knock on effect on England. Not the only factor contributing to England’s rise but one of them.
2 Go to commentsOur very own monster teddy bear Ox😍💪
17 Go to commentsThis is might be the most generalised, entitled, patronising, out-of-pocket cultural indictment on a group of people you’ll ever see on what is supposedly a sports publication. I can only assume the author is weak like a woman or homosexual. I’m feeling an incredible range of emotions but I am not quite sure how to express them. I might go beat up a hockey player - assuming that’s okay with Duane and the boys? 🙂
9 Go to commentsBest thing the Welsh clubs could do is apply to join Gallagher prem surely be more exciting matches for there support than they have now.
2 Go to commentsRugbyPass writers are useless! you guys should get a real job because you all suck at writing about rugby!!!
9 Go to commentslooking forward to RWC2027 …. Boks on mission impossible for the Three-in-a-row, ABs to prove they being on par, France wishing to crown the “DuPont-era”, Ireland knocking on the Semi-Door ….. until then we’ll probably have to deal with Weird Ben’s fantasy-RWC23 (fun fact is, the drivel always creates a flooding of comments) …..
222 Go to commentsBen Smith you really make some good points in this article, the Springboks were not close to perfect and good still beat the All Blacks, imagine if they were as good as they were against France what a hiding the All Blacks would have gotten… maybe another Twickenham drubbing
222 Go to commentsIt is a good argument to keep the Rebels for one more year but also isnt this just opening the door as well for keeping them beyond 2025. If they can create some sort of financial stability in the next year and if their performances lift as they have this season then how would RA even cull them after that? It might be the most cost effective decision at this stage and perhaps many people are guilty of keeping relationships going because of the cost to decouple but then again when does that ever work out well?
29 Go to commentsDear Ben Smith you are a genius! God please become the next all blacks coach that can take on the mighty BOKS. Your rugby acumen is second to none - imagine your dads sperm bounced as unfortunately as that oval ball did….we would not be blessed with your presence. Just as the all blacks were missing a man you too are missing a chromosome for 80% of your life, so your insights are not only profound but ring true from your own experiences. Just as the TMO interfered with citing an illegal pass I am sure your local authorities interfere with your illegal passes you make on women - How dare they!!! God forbid that rugby be officiated fairly. You are the right man for the job. Next all blacks coach is here ladies and gentlemen Miss Ben Smith (He/She/They/IT)
222 Go to comments