Wyatt Returns from Injury at Old Stomping Ground

After ten months on the injury list, it is almost poetic that Tommy Wyatt will make his return to action against his former side, Cornish Pirates, at a ground he ran rampant on just a few short seasons ago – the Mennaye Field.

A walking, talking, tackling, try-scoring embodiment of the positives of the Chiefs pathway, Wyatt gives a cheeky answer when first asked how it feels to be making his much-anticipated return this Friday evening.

“Scary,” he chuckles as he sits in the stand overlooking the Sandy Park pitch. “No, I’m really looking forward to it. It’s been a long time but when you look back on it now, it’s all gone so quickly that I’m not really sure where all that time went.

“Now I just want to get some minutes under my belt, get back out there and start progressing again to try to pick up where I left off.”

It was an ACL injury sustained against Glasgow Warriors in January this year that forced the young full-back off of the pitch and off of a teamsheet which his name had firmly been stamped upon for the majority of the 2023/24 season. It marked Wyatt’s first real experience with injury.

“I probably wasn’t very aware of the rehab process before this injury – I usually try to stay away from the physio room as much as I can! I’ve adapted to it and it’s very different to being in the squad environment.

“You have to keep driving yourself. It’s not fun at all. There’s not much enjoyment to it but you know that the day when you get to play again will come and that drives you.

“At the start of the process, I set myself a goal of knuckling down to get all the hard work done and hope that it all paid off.”

Before his season was cruelly cut short, Wyatt had regularly sat atop the Gallagher Premiership metres made and carries charts as heads started to turn the 24-year-old’s way as an emerging talent to watch in the domestic and European leagues.

“In that time spent out, I did look back and that’s probably what made it all so emotional when you have to limp off the pitch. I’m not one to look back too much but I did reflect a little bit. You go back and watch games, to see those moments when you’re doing well. It was a good time for reflection, though maybe just not in the greatest of circumstances.”

It would be amiss not to wonder if the young full-back has spent any time this week reflecting on his time spent in Penzance as a Pirate when he is making his return against his former side.

“A lot of lads have said that it’s quite nice that the Mennaye is where I’m going to play my first game back. I don’t think my time there will come into my mind, it’ll be strictly business.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’ll definitely enjoy going back there. I’m actually on 49 games for Pirates, so some would argue I should have played for them this week just to get 50! In all seriousness, the trip will be a really nice opportunity to see some old faces.”

“I took a lot away from my time there, but I think the biggest thing was just time in the saddle. You play a lot of games, so you generally craft an overall understanding of the game and how it’s meant to be played.

“The Championship is such a physical league that I think that side of things was progressive to my game and helped mould me as a player.”

Should this weekend go well, Wyatt will no doubt be raising his hand for selection again next weekend as Chiefs are set to welcome Hartpury to Sandy Park for round two of the Premiership Rugby Cup.

The Championship side may not know what to expect from the atmosphere of Chiefs’ HQ, but Wyatt has come to know the stadium and it’s special gamedays all too well.

“Phenomenal,” he says with a smile when asked what it is like to run out the Sandy Park tunnel as a Chief.

“Since we’ve developed the stadium, the atmosphere has just gone to another level. I think, a lot of the time, that’s what drives you – that thought that you don’t want to let people down when you’re in front of so many of them.

“Running out in front of so many thousands of people is definitely a buzz – I don’t care who you are, or how boring you are, you still get a kick out of that.”

He’s had some spectacular moments at the stadium after all. His club debut against Bath Rugby in 2019, carving through the Sale Sharks defence to release Sean O’Brien for a memorable try, causing headaches to the Stormers defence and no one will forget any time soon his wonder try against Montpellier in the Champions Cup last 16 in 2023.

He says he’s not one to spend time looking backwards, but moments like that must surely sprout into the memory from time to time. Especially on weekends like this.

“I probably do think about those moments a lot by myself – I’m not very open about that. Before games, I think about stuff and even sometimes go re-watch clips. I 100% want more moments like that, big games like we’ve had. I’d love to be able to top them.”