FORMER Glasgow Warrior Sean Maitland is excited to be back in action for Scotland tonight - just in time for the Rugby World Cup. The New Zealand-born back injured a shoulder playing for Glasgow in the Heineken Cup back in January, and was only recently given the all-clear by the medical staff.

The 26-year-old said he had always been confident that he would be fit again in time to compete in the tournament, which begins later this month. But he knew he was cutting it fine to persuade head coach Vern Cotter that he should go.

“I’ve been out for seven months, quite a while, so I’m just incredibly grateful that Vern and the coaches have given me an opportunity to get back out there and have a run around,” said Maitland, who starts at full-back against France this evening because Stuart Hogg is out through injury. “There were times in the last nine weeks when we did have doubts. But over that time I’ve worked bloody hard with the physios and the rest of the staff to get back into shape.

“Yeah, there were times when I thought: ‘Man, I’m not going to make it.’ But then you get to a point where you turn a corner, started going uphill. It’s feeling good.

“I don’t know what the exact turning point was - maybe just getting a bit of strength back in the weight room, gaining confidence. Two weeks ago I did a bit of tackling, surprised myself how good it was, and when I saw the surgeon he gave me the all clear. That was the big difference.”

Maitland is now officially a London Irish player, but has yet to play for his new club because of the injury he sustained when he was stopped by three Bath players while playing in that Heineken Cup match for Glasgow. “It was the last minute of the game against Bath, trying to reach for the line,” he continued. “I remember three guys landing on top of me – and that’s what jarred the shoulder up, ripped the tendons in there.

“Having been told that it would be fine after six to eight weeks of rehab, it didn’t get better, so I had a choice between surgery and just more rehab, hoping it would get right. I also had other things to worry about, like my medical with London Irish [his new club], so surgery was the only way.

“It was always going to be touch and go, so it’s worked out well. To be honest, I don’t know what the coaches were thinking. For me, the worry was just getting back fit. It was always going to be close, given the deadline for selection. I always felt I would be ready a week or two before the World Cup.”

Warriors winger Tommy Seymour is also back for Scotland this evening after a back strain kept him out of the earlier warm-up matches, in which the national team lost to Ireland before inflicting back-to-back defeats on Italy. Making it three wins by getting the better of the French at home is a big ask, but Scotland at least need to show they are continuing the progress they have made since losing all five of their games in the Six Nations Championship.