But as time went on my friends were more into rugby and that led me down that path. James Stokes is one of my best friends from school and he went on to play for London Irish, and Max Trimble, who played a lot of games in the Championship for Coventry, was also there.
It was while I was playing age-group rugby for Nottinghamshire and the Midlands that I first got noticed and Leicester wrote me a letter inviting me down for a trial with about 40 other lads. I managed to get picked off the back of that, and I was over the moon because, by then, I had my heart set on becoming a professional rugby player.
Leicester were the biggest and most successful team in England and it was quite daunting knowing the calibre of players in front of me in the back-three pecking order. At one point I worked it out that I was the club's 14th-choice winger. I went from boy to man very quickly, and I am grateful for that because it's just what I needed. But a few other academy lads got chewed up and spat out of that old-school environment.
During my time at Leicester I was sent to Nottingham on loan and had a really enjoyable time playing under Glenn Delaney. I'll always be grateful to him because he played me a lot as a 19-year-old in a really competitive league and that helped me develop as a player. My dad is a Notts County fan so it was also really nice to run out at Meadow Lane, albeit as a rugby player not a footballer.
I played eight LV Cup games for Tigers but once I got to 21 I sensed I would have to move elsewhere to realise my goal of playing in the Prem. I didn't feel like I had the confidence of Matt O'Connor at all, and the old Tigers CEO, Simon Cohen, confirmed as much when I bumped into him by chance a few months ago and asked him the question. I actually got on all right with Cockers (Richard Cockerill), I think he saw the fight in me, but at the end of the day he wasn't picking the backs.
Bu hikaye The Rugby Paper dergisinin July 28, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye The Rugby Paper dergisinin July 28, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
England show who's No.1
ENGLAND women’s head coach John Mitchell says his side will take valuable lessons from the 24-12 win over world champions New Zealand as they build towards their WXV1 title defence.
Skivington: We're going to roll dice and go for it
THE Cherry and Whites are the enigmas of the Premiership.
Looking to go one step beyond this time around
NE small step is what it will take for Bath to go one better than last season and secure the Premiership for the first time, but it would be one of the biggest taken by the club in the professional era.
Four-try England make it 17 wins on the spin
ENGLAND women opened the Allianz Stadium era at HQ with a victory over New Zealand to make it 17 wins on the bounce before their WXV title defence.
Time for Borthwick to prove his worth
HONEYMOON periods are not set in stone and in my estimation Steve Borthwick’s ends this summer. Don’t get me wrong, he’s still in good shape.
Barrington ready to power up the Mob
RICHARD Barrington has signed up to the Ampthill “Mob” reassured that he’ll still have a target on his back most weeks.
Skivington keen to build identity
GLOUCESTER won their first trophy for nine years last season and reached the Challenge Cup final, but when George Skivington went on holiday the day after the campaign ended the words in his head were never again.
Roebuck targets England success
WINNING a maiden England Test cap to top the best season of his career will not be enough for Sale winger Tom Roebuck.
Booth: Tough telling players I was leaving
TOBY Booth admits telling his Ospreys players that he would be leaving at the end of the season was one of the hardest things he has had to do in his career.
Stephens' debut try sees off old rivals
DORKING had to dig deep in another tight game between two old rivals, with the lead changing hands twice and result in doubt right up to the final whistle.
