FOR a wing, scoring droughts are never good, but there cannot be a better time to end one than the day before the national coaches sit down to select the their World Cup squad. Better still for Tim Visser, he having broken his six-match scoreless run, he then picked up a second to register his first double since November 2012.
The breakthrough is that after a badly broken leg cut his spree short, it is only now that he feels he is back to full fitness. "I have put in a lot of hard work behind the scenes to get my speed and power back. That is something since I lost since my leg injury," he said
"Getting back on the pitch, having your first training session and testing that leg in training – when you are on the pitch that is not you back. That is just you back on the pitch. It is not back to where you were. It has taken me at least another full season to get back to where I am now."
Now that the sharpness is back, he is also starting to look for more work. Notable in the first warm-up game against Ireland, and again at the weekend, was his willingness to hunt for the ball infield where, with his size, pace and power, he offers a dangerous option.
Now the wait is on to see whether he has done enough. In the spring, it looked unlikely; now he has proved himself again and can dare to dream. "Hopefully I have put my best foot forward. Going to a World Cup would be massive. No ex-Dutchman has ever done it," said the 28-year-old.
"Playing for Scotland is a massive honour but going to a World Cup is another step up, one I am determined to make."
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