![](\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/static-assets\/images\/newsletter\/sport\/sport-135x135.png\")
<\/p>\nBen Curry is hoping to put a tough year for him and his twin behind him to get back in the England side <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
If the old tale about twins feeling each other\u2019s pain is true, then spare a thought for the Curry brothers. Perhaps, in the darkest recovery days, Ben and Tom might even have wondered if there was some sort of curse on the family name \u2013 it\u2019s been that sort of year for a pair who seem to have a timeshare on the treatment table.<\/p>\n
11 months of injury woe began before the Six Nations, when a hamstring issue sidelined Tom for at least the first two rounds, opening the door for Ben\u2019s inclusion in the England side for the opener against Scotland. A fit again Tom returned, but only briefly \u2013 Ben was back in camp soon enough after his brother tweaked his other hamstring.<\/p>\n
Then, it was Ben\u2019s turn, leaving Sale Sharks\u2019 Premiership semi-final win over Leicester on a stretcher. That hamstring injury was severe enough to end his chances of forcing his way into Steve Borthwick\u2019s World Cup squad. Throw in Tom\u2019s ankle injury in August, his sending off against Argentina and everything that happened in the week of the World Cup final and the Currys could surely compare notes with the Baudelaire siblings on their own series of unfortunate events.<\/p>\n
The latest blow came this week: Tom\u2019s hip requires repair; his season for club and country is over. The tough times continue.<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2023\/11\/23\/15\/newFile.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Ben Curry endured a long lay-off after a serious hamstring injury earlier this year <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really unfortunate for Tom,\u201d Ben says at the launch of the new Investec Champions Cup season. The pair still live together \u2013 they are considering a room reconfiguration to move Tom down from the top floor. \u201cIt is tough for him, on the back of the injury before the World Cup, but with the person he is, he will come back stronger. I have no doubt in his ability to come back from this.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only bit of advice I\u2019d give to him is to take the first few weeks to recover, not just physically, but mentally. He\u2019s played a lot of rugby in the last few years and it does take it out of you.<\/p>\n
\u201c[I\u2019d advise him to] take it for what it is, take your time away from the game so that when you come back, you properly go after it. It\u2019s a good opportunity to get better, bigger, stronger, faster. You\u2019ve got five months at it, so it can make a difference to how he plays and also his longevity as well if he gets it right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both have suggested that their injury woes are purely part and parcel of the sport, particularly for two men who thrive at putting their heads and shoulders into places best not ventured. Ben\u2019s hamstring tear, for example, came while winning a jackal turnover \u2013 \u201cthe penalty was the saving grace of all that; if I didn\u2019t get it, I would have been fuming\u201d \u2013 and the attrition rate for openside fetchers is higher than at perhaps any other position.<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2023\/11\/23\/14\/newFile.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Both Curry twins have struggled with injury in 2023 <\/p>\n
Not that Ben is going to change his playing style. \u201cNot right now \u2013 maybe in a few years,\u201d he explains. \u201cFor me, that\u2019s how the best sevens play. It\u2019s about having more involvements, being powerful, working a lot at a high intensity. If you look at David Pocock, Michael Hooper, or Richie McCaw in their prime, that\u2019s how they did it. It\u2019s tough but I don\u2019t think there\u2019s any way to really get around it as a seven, or a six as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The twins\u2019 travails are a reminder of the physical demands placed upon professional rugby players, but it is mentally tough, too. Tom Curry and the rest of the family were subjected to \u201dunacceptable\u201d abuse after the flanker alleged that South Africa hooker Bongi Mbonambi directed a racial slur towards him during the World Cup semi-final. His brother, understandably, dares not go near the topic but the impact is clear.<\/p>\n
Their injury woes mean the pair are yet to fulfil their dream of playing together for England, Ben\u2019s back spasm in 2017 having originally opened the door for his brother to enjoy a breakthrough tour of Argentina. The nature of being identical twins means the pair are similarly skilled \u2013 squeezing them into the same back row isn\u2019t necessarily easy.<\/p>\n
But club captain Ben thrived on the openside last season, while Tom reinvented himself as a wide-carrying blindside as Sale reached the Premiership final. Alex Sanderson\u2019s side are going well again this term \u2013 the table-topping Sharks face second-placed Bath on Friday night \u2013 and the prospect of pairing up on the flanks in a white shirt is driving Ben on as he bids to get back in the England mix. <\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/static.independent.co.uk\/2023\/11\/23\/15\/newFile-8.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Ben during the Premiership semi-final against Leicester <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve done it by myself, but I want to do it with Tom. I will be honest, that is one of the biggest things that motivates me, playing for England with Tom. That\u2019s a big motivating factor for me. The day I can\u2019t play for England with Tom I would seriously consider my options. To not be able to achieve that goal, I\u2019d have to evaluate some things.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo have gone through that period playing for England gives me belief. I got capped a few years ago against America and was probably like, \u2018that isn\u2019t quite it\u2019. International rugby is those big games, against the Irelands, the Frances, those Six Nations sides. That was always my goal. To be able to dip your toe in a bit and get some experience is big for my confidence. [I want to] properly kick on now. That\u2019s the aim.\u201d <\/p>\n