Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
NO HUME & GLOOM
Ulster centre learns to keep a clear head
PODCASTS and walks with the dog have helped James Hume come to terms with the mental pressures of unleashing himself as an established starter under Dan Mcfarland.
During lockdown last year, Hume – still only 22 years of age – set himself twin goals of becoming mentally stronger and making the Ulster No.13 shirt his own.
Nine months later he is succeeding on both fronts, thanks in main to his talent on the pitch but also a growing ability to sidestep any doubts and demons in his head.
Ahead of tomorrow’s Rainbow Cup clash with Connacht, Hume said: “After lockdown I talked about mental strength and how I felt I lacked in that department.
“I’ve listened to a lot of podcasts and done a lot of self improvement work. I’d walk the dog a lot and stick them on.
“It motivates you to do more when you’re training. It drives me to do an extra bike session or go in half an hour early to do extra stretching or passing.
“I didn’t really appreciate until this year how much mental strength is part of the game and I’ve tried to work on some techniques to deal with those external pressures.” On nailing down the No.13 shirt – he’s started there in 15 of Ulster’s 22 games this season – Hume said: “At the start of the season my goal was starting at 13 and I feel it has gone pretty well so far.
“Obviously Luke Marshall (inset) has been out injured but when he comes back I don’t want to be happy with alternating. I want to stay there.
“It’s up to me not to be comfortable with where I am and to keep working on getting better. Every day I come in, I try to focus on that – stretching, extra gym, whatever.”
Hume, who made his Ulster debut in 2018, added: “I’m only 22 and I’m looking to play every game I can. Now that I’ve got a run of games, I don’t want a break.”
While Ulster have a Challenge Cup semi-final at Leicester Tigers next Friday, Hume insists his only focus is on Connacht at the Kingspan Stadium.
“It’s a case of ‘next job’ for us,” he said. “Yes, we’ve got a semi-final next week and it’s great but we’ll focus on that next week because we have a job to do this week. It’s also our first home game in a while so our focus is on this week. It’s almost like a mindset switch.
“After the disappointment of the PRO14, we identified the Challenge Cup and Rainbow Cup where we could put our foot down and finish the season on a high.”