Pain & ink TATT WILL DO FOR NATHAN
SUPER LEAGUE tough guy Nathan Massey admits he may be losing his nerve now he’s 30.
It definitely has nothing to do with anyone who the Castleford forward might face on the pitch when the season restarts. The thing that Massey says hurts way too much these days is the thing that makes him one of the most eye-catching players in the game – his amazing tattoos. Massey’s entire neck, body and arms are covered in ink, with only his legs untouched. But the father of two said: “I seemed to be able to sit for hours when I was younger having the tattoos and it didn’t affect me. “But now they absolutely kill. With age they have started to hurt a lot more. “I have nearly done. I think I’ve got one more in me and that’s it.”
Massey is saving his last trip to the tattoo parlour in honour of his baby who is due in August – a brother for Blake, eight, and Daisy, four. He said: “A lot of my tattoos are for my kids and I’ve got my wife Gemma’s initials on my wedding ring finger, so I’ll have something for the third one when he arrives.” Massey admits he’s never dared add up how much he’s spent on his elaborate body art but said: “When you have one you want to get more and bigger ones.
“There’s a couple I’d probably change, like the first one I had when I was 17 which was the typical tribal tattoo that teenagers have.
“But I’m happy with the majority of them and the ones celebrating my kids’ births are the favourites.”
Massey, who made his debut in 2007 and is the club’s longest-serving player, showed his caring side recently with a fund-raiser in honour of his late aunt.
He cycled 158 miles on a Wattbike in his garage over eight hours, burning off more than 6,500 calories.
His lung-busting effort raised more than £3,000 for the Prince of Wales Hospice in Pontefract where his aunt Sandra, a huge Tigers fan, passed away days earlier.
He said: “She had been poorly for quite a while. I’m sure she’d have been proud of me for doing it.”
Castleford were flying before the season was halted with five wins from seven, putting them level on points with leaders Wigan.
“The lockdown wasn’t ideal timing for us but at least we were positive coming into this period,” said Massey.
“Hopefully we can carry on like that when we start again.”
No return date has yet been approved and there is huge uncertainty over how the season can be completed.
One possibility is to cram the remaining games into a full but shortened season, meaning players could face two games a week.
Massey added: “It will be testing for players but in a sense it will be good for younger players to get a crack at playing a few games. There are pros and cons to it all.”