Ferris fit and raring to make up for lost time
Ulsterman's long stint on sidelines has steeled his resolve as he gears up for World Cup battle
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WHEN Stephen Ferris was awarded a commemorative cap for Ireland's ill-fated 2007 World Cup campaign, it meant nothing to him.
"I didn't earn it, so I gave it to my mum," he says.
His rejection of it is understandable, for he never played a minute in the 2007 World Cup. On the plus side, no guilt for Ireland's abject failure could be attached to the barnstorming Ulster flanker.
Four years on, it looked like Ferris might be in for another gutting World Cup experience, with his fitness following yet more knee surgery making him a major doubt.
But not having played since January 22, finally on Saturday against France he got a run-out for the last 20 minutes. That was enough to persuade Ireland coach Declan Kidney to gamble on him being ready for the rigours of the World Cup. On Monday, when the party for New Zealand was unveiled, Ferris was one of the 30.
"Thankfully I got game-time before the squad was announced," said Ferris. "I felt confident on Saturday and thankfully I've been given the opportunity to go on my second World Cup.
"I felt great, felt fine. I probably would have liked to have taken a bit more contact but I felt grand. The knee came through 100pc so now I'm just concentrating on this weekend."
Ireland host England on Saturday afternoon in their final outing before jetting off for New Zealand on Tuesday. It is an important game for Kidney's men, who have lost to Scotland and twice to France this month. It is particularly important for Ferris, who is in urgent need of pitch-time.
He had to work long hours in reaching this stage and that was not easy.
"You wake up some mornings and your knee is absolutely killing you and the lads are going out and enjoying themselves in training and you have to get up and go into the gym and get physio," he reflects.
"But all those dark days are put behind me now. You've just got to look to the future; that's what I tend to do with every injury I've got. Thankfully I'm on the right road now."
What made the long haul back to fitness particularly draining was his initial belief that he was only going to be out for a short time.
He thought he would be involved in the Six Nations. Then, when he missed that, he fixed his sights on Ulster's Heineken Cup quarter-final against Northampton. Then his target became the Magners League play-off semi-final date with Leinster. Each of those dates came and went.
"I thought I was only going to be out for a week or two. Then it turned into six weeks. Eight weeks. Six months.
"But I've got myself right at the right time," he says with a smile returning to his face. "I've been taking every training session as it comes for the past eight weeks, building it up.
"A few weeks ago we talked about maybe getting some game-time against Connacht, but it progressed really well so Declan decided to pick me against France on the bench.
"I've been training with all the other lads and been taking full contact now for three weeks, coming through it really well.
"Twenty minutes against France -- for my first game back after being out for nearly seven months -- was kind of being thrown into the middle of it, but I felt comfortable and didn't feel out of my depth at all."
That's very good news for Ferris and for Ireland -- not to mention a mum with no desire to add to her cap collection.
- Niall Crozier
Irish Independent
