CHALLENGE CUP NEWS:DAVID McGOWAN should have been looking forward to playing for La Rochelle in tomorrow night's Amlin Challenge Cup quarter-final match against Stade Français at the Stade Charlety.

The 25-year-old Sligo-born secondrow had applied himself diligently for seven months in rehabilitating a shoulder injury and appeared to demonstrate apposite timing in returning to club colours last Saturday against Brive.

His aspirations were dashed in the instant he collided with Brive’s Antoine Claasen, or more pointedly, literally, the South African number eight’s elbow. In the air at the time, he was knocked unconscious and it was only yesterday when watching a re-run of the Top 14 game he was able to confirm the sequence of events.

Thankfully he’s fine following a full medical evaluation but nevertheless prohibited from playing against Stade Français.

“I did a bad job on my shoulder in the fourth game of the season and then was knocked out for the first time in my career in my first comeback game.

“Injuries are part of sport and you just have to get on with things. I was really looking forward to testing myself in the French Top 14 Championship this season, hoping to have a good year and kick on from there. It hasn’t worked out that way and I’m hoping that La Rochelle can somehow hang on to that status.”

It’s looking unlikely as they languish in second last place in the table, having lost six of their last seven matches. McGowan has a contract for next season; it’ll be his fifth at La Rochelle since leaving Connacht’s academy set-up.

“I wasn’t getting too many games with Connacht at that point and I wanted to play professional rugby so I took the opportunity to go to France.”

The former Ireland Youths, U-19 and U-21 international has enjoyed his time in the seaport city on the Bay of Biscay. “It’s a beautiful town but they are fond of their strikes here,” he laughed. “There are good and bad points to living anywhere but the people are friendly and helpful. The down side has not been able to play this season.”

He enjoys occasional contact with some of his former Connacht team-mates but did go to watch the province play an Amlin Challenge Cup match away to Bayonne.

He’d love to get a proper crack at the Top 14 but knows that his immediate future is tied to where La Rochelle reside by the end of the season.