Henry Trinder will be proud to run out for his 100 competitive start for Gloucester tomorrow and is “desperate” to finish in the top four of the Premiership.
The 28-year-old is enjoying one of his best seasons in a decade with the Cherry and Whites, putting past injury nightmares behind him to score eight tries in 16 games in all competitions.
Trinder has shown his versatility by playing on the wing in recent weeks and that’s where he will start against Wasps in a crucial fourth versus third clash at Kingsholm on Saturday.
He could equal his best ever Premiership return of six tries if he scores against Wasps, while he is five off his top try-scoring season in all competitions, and it will be a special moment to finally reach three figures for the number of starts he’s made for the club.
“I’ve had a number of injuries over the years and you see guys who have got that who haven’t been there as long as me so it’s definitely something I’ll be very proud of when I get there,” said Trinder.
“It’s obviously quite hard now to get 100 starts at one club with a lot of guys travelling around so that’s something I’ll hold close to my heart."
Trinder has experienced highs and lows during his time at Kingsholm but is relishing being part of a Gloucester side that has caused a few surprises this season under new head coach Johan Ackermann and doesn't want to let their chance to get in the Premiership play-offs slip.
He said: “It’s very enjoyable. It’s a good close group, I think everyone enjoys each other’s company and Johan adds to that, he’s brought a relaxed outlook on rugby and off the pitch as well.
“I’ve really enjoyed this year so far and it’s been one of my most successful years in terms of staying fit and getting game time.
“We do desperately want to be in the top four and I think as long as we keep scoring tries and keep winning games I don’t care who scores them.
“It’s been a few years since we’ve been in the top four and we do want to make the most of it.”
While Trinder has played almost all of his rugby in the number 13 shirt, he has showed he is more than capable on the wing with three tries in his last two games for Gloucester.
“It’s been all right. Obviously it’s not my first choice position but I’m quite capable of being out there,” said Trinder.
“I’ve played there a few times in the past on the wing for Gloucester so I’m quite comfortable out there.
“Obviously you have to work a bit harder in the back three covering kicks and stuff like that whereas you don’t have to think about that at centre as much but I’m getting used to it still and hopefully if needed I can still do a job there.
“In the last few games I’ve been able to get on the end of a few tries, which is great, but it’s all down to the guys’ work in the middle and if I can finish them off then happy days really.”
After defeat at Worcester last week, Gloucester will be looking to rediscover their attacking threat against an in-form and free-scoring Wasps side.
“As Johan’s come in, we do want to play some running rugby, we want to fire some shots at them, not just soak up their stuff,” said Trinder.
“We’ve got a lot of confidence in our attack, it’s won us a lot of games where we keep scoring, we keep going, we don’t really take the foot off the pedal so that’s something we pride ourselves on and I think we need to get back into.
“We’ve unfortunately had a few slips ups in games, not taking as many shots as we’d like but we’re working hard to get back to that.”
