THE current season may still only be three months old, but already Huw Jones has experienced the fantastic highs and the lowest of lows that elite sport can bring.

So down was the Glasgow Warriors centre in fact, that he even thought about moving on from Scotstoun, despite his current contract not ending until 2021.

“At times I’ve thought about (moving on),” he said.

“It’s been a tough year: I’ve had a couple of injuries, non-selection. I think at times I’ve thought maybe I’m in the wrong place.

“But not really. It’s a fleeting thought. Basically when you get dropped, five minutes afterwards you’re sulking about it, but you have to get on with your job. You’ve got to help the guys that are playing on the weekend and hopefully you get your chance if you’re training well.”

However, in recent weeks, Jones has turned things round in remarkable fashion.

He has begun to establish himself in head coach Dave Rennie’s starting fifteen and impressed in the recent derby matches against Edinburgh, scoring Warriors’ opening try in last week’s defeat at Murrayfield.

Jones has been on the receiving end of a considerable amount flak in recent months, with his lack of form and game-time attracting the wrath of many. He has, it seems, never been a favourite of Rennie’s, with the Glasgow coach favouring solid, dependable players, of which Jones has not always been one.

The outside centre was not unaware of the criticism that was coming his way and he admits much of his drive to get back to his best was fuelled by a desire to prove the doubters wrong.

It may not have been an easy spell but he admits that his self-belief never took too severe a dent as, in his opinion, his poor run was down to lack of opportunities as much as anything.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been massively out of form - just not playing,” the 26-year-old said.

“You could say that’s the same thing, but in my head you can only be out of form if you’re playing badly, not if you’re not playing.”

And while Jones is careful not to get too excited by his resurgence, he admits that his recent run of starts has been massive for him, and has worked wonders for his consistency.

“This is the first time I’ve had three starts in a row for Glasgow, I think,” he said.

“As a player it’s hard to just come in for one week and play well and then you’re out the next - you can’t get any momentum. But I think once you get a couple of games in a row you can sort of build on them.

“Guys that play week in week out, you say ‘Oh, he’s massively consistent - he’s playing every week’. But you can’t be consistent if you’re not playing every week.”

With selection for the Six Nations squad only weeks away, Jones has transformed himself from a ‘maybe’ into a ‘probably’ pick. Having missed out on the World Cup squad, Jones’ international future appeared to be hanging in the balance but he has put himself right back in the mix with his performances against Edinburgh, and it is now a waiting game to find out who makes the cut for Gregor Townsend’s squad.

“I suppose Glasgow-Edinburgh games are like an old-fashioned trial, aren’t they?,” he said.

“You’re playing against guys who you’re competing with for that national spot. Obviously, getting closer to the Six Nations, I’m thinking about it - I want to be playing as much as I can to give myself the best chance of getting into that squad.”

Glasgow’s defeat to Edinburgh at the weekend has left them floundering in fourth position in their conference, trailing leaders Leinster by a whopping 23 points.

This Saturday, they travel to Treviso to take on Benetton, with the Italians formidable opponents, particularly at home.

Glasgow have been far from their best this season so far, but Jones reveals he and his teammates feel they have often done enough to won games, only to come out on the wrong end of the scoreline.

Even in their defeat to Edinburgh, there were positives that could be drawn and so by tightening up a few areas of their game, he is confident they can get back to their best.

“For the last couple of weeks we’ve all looked at each other and said we did enough to win,” he said.

“We’re doing a lot of good stuff, I just think we’re not keeping hold of the ball at crucial times. And our discipline isn’t good enough - we’re giving away too many penalties.”