Dan Norton started the year with the dream of winning a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics but he will finish it hoping for a silver lining in Brentford, London Irish’s new home next season. The 32-year-old Norton joined Irish this month, nine years after his last appearance in the 15-a-side version of the game having made his name in sevens. He scored more than 350 tries for England – a World Series record – but when the coronavirus lockdown forced the Rugby Football Union to mothball its sevens programme as part of its cost-cutting measures, the wing had little time to find a new employer. “We knew the writing was on the wall with sevens,” said Norton, who is being acclimatised by Irish and does not feature in their 23 who will face Leicester at Welford Road on Wednesday evening. “Tournaments were being cancelled and things were not moving forward. “We had regular chats with the RFU and it was deflating, after the relief of the first few weeks of lockdown when you could relax with your family, to revert back to rugby without not having an idea about what was happening. It was a crushing period and we knew there would be no rugby for us for at least six months. “I looked to see if there were opportunities to cover positions at a Premiership club and, luckily, London Irish gave me an opportunity. I do not know yet when I will be making my debut. I hope it comes as quickly as possible, but it is not up to me. It is about being as good as I can be in training and taking the opportunity if it comes.” Norton’s contract with Irish runs until the end of the season and he is not sure in which direction his career will go with the sevens programme suspended for the immediate future because of travel restrictions, which vary from country to country, and a funding crisis which has forced unions to prioritise. “I am just worrying about the next couple of months and will see where things are at the end of the season,” said Norton, a silver medalist in the 2016 Olympics who played for Gloucester and Bristol before taking up sevens. “It would be nice to get an Olympic medal, my goal for the last four years, but I just want to play rugby. Sport can be fickle: you have to be in the right place at the right time. “I was not on the call when the RFU ended our contracts. We were told over Zoom but I was training with Irish and got messages from the boys as well as an email from the RFU. We thought sevens would go offline for the short term, but there was no plan about when it would come back and reality hit home. We had given up to 10 years for the RFU and had nothing back at the end. It was gutting to take.” Norton believes it would backfire on the sport if sevens was starved of investment. “It is a massive tool that should be utilised, a gateway to the game for players and countries where rugby is not widely played. It is on a cliff edge and the next steps must be positive. Countless top players started in sevens, playing before big crowds in high pressure tournaments that challenge you mentally. Perhaps clubs should become involved because it is a proven way of developing talent.”