England winger Jonny May reveals all about injury hell summer
Rugby NewsThursday, 16 September 2021 at 09:55
Jonny May has opened up on how he felt after being overlooked for the Lions and his injury hell summer.
“I was in bad place for a good couple of weeks,”revealed the Gloucester and England speedster.
“I hurt my ankle, had the scans and I was still hoping to go on (the Lions) tour because I thought I could get picked.
“Not to get picked was disappointing. I had played as hard as I could to get on that tour, but you can’t control selection - that’s just the way it is.
"Then I got Covid so that left me in a bit of a rut. I was in bed for a couple of weeks with a sore ankle. I was disappointed, hurt.. So, yeah, it wasn’t great.
"This is not the first tough block I have come across in rugby and it won’t be the last. There are times when the game challenges you and that’s when your family are there for you.
"This summer was a bit of a low but I have to accept it for what it is and push on.”
LIST | 5 Things to Know About England Winger Jonny May
1. Strange rumour
May had to respond to the rather strange rumour that he used to think he was possessed by a chicken.
The story emerged after Danny Care said: “Jonny is — in the nicest possible way — very strange. A few years back, he used to think he was possessed by a chicken!
He used to go around clucking and thought this chicken demon was inside him. I don’t know whether it was an act or true — with Jonny you just never know.”
The England speedster has since gone onto respond to the story.
“It’s a bit silly isn’t it? I don’t think at any stage that has happened,” revealed May to the, blushing ever so slightly.
2. Partner in crime
He is often cheered on by his stunning wife Sophie Snook, whom he married in July 2017.
Sophie shares her husband's love of keeping fit and staying active and has built a successful career as a personal trainer under the brand @Girlsontopoffitness.
The company's Instagram page features helpful workout tips and inspiring transformation photos of delighted clients.
3. He can score with no shorts
The 2010 Junior World Cup semi-final between England and Australia produced an unforgettable rugby moment.
England’s winger got the ball 22 metres from the Australian line and was tackled by his shorts. With the defender desperately hanging on and his shorts sliding down, May got to the line to score, his backside fully exposed for much of the way.
4. 100m speed
The speedster clocked 10.71 for the 100 metres with a strong argument to be England’s quickest wide man ever.
5. North Korea calling
The North Koreans' interest in Jonny May appears to stem back to an interview England team-mate Ben Te'o gave to The Telegraph in February 2017.
Te'o said the pair had watched a lot of documentaries on the hermit state and discussed how to bring peace to the region over many a cup of coffee
But in November of that year, May received a letter from the North Korean government asking him to have a go at putting his ideas into practice.
The Leicester winger told the Daily Mail: "There was this letter waiting for me with a wax stamp on it, the full works, saying 'private, confidential."
"It said, 'Hi Jonny. We've seen that you and Ben Te'o are interested in our country and we'd love to arrange a trip up to the embassy for you, to meet all our president's dignitaries, then we can organise a VIP tour to North Korea'.
"I sent the picture to Ben saying, 'What the hell is going on? Is this a wind-up?'. He said, 'No, I've had one too, they're watching us!'.
"That's what's scary, they do watch out like that, they have a Google alert. When anyone is talking about North Korea, it will pop up.
"I haven't been to the embassy. I'm actually worried about it. I didn't write back."
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- Jordie Barrett over Damian de Allende is far from being correct. The hype around Dupont is also overreaching, he's probably 4th in the world and has been since the 2023 WC. He also avoids certain matchups which is strange. The rest of the list is pretty good apart from minor subjective biases.JasonMarlow16-09-2026
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