In balance
Sunderland seemed like it had everything I was looking for.”
But there was also another reason for Simon to head up North – a reason close to his heart.
“I really wanted to get picked up by the Falcons,” said Simon. “And I knew if I came up here and proved myself, it would be a possibility.”
Arriving in Sunderland, the young player juggled his first few years of study with playing for Darlington Mowden Park RFC for two seasons before he grabbed the attention of the Newcastle Falcons.
Simon’s rugby career has now gone from strength to strength, having just completed his second season with the club, which saw him make his first team debut against the Wasps on November 4 last year.
In January this year, he signed a new contract with the club. He also kicked off 2018 by making his European debut against Russian team Enisei-STM.
Simon is doing two things he loves and says he can fall back on his career in pharmacy if a career-ending injury in rugby happens.
“Well, I’m lucky in that I’m doing two things I love,” said Simon. “My life would be so much harder if I got up every day dreading going to university, but I don’t.
“I know that if I ever have a careerending injury that I will have something to turn to and I know that pharmacy is 100% something I want to continue doing as a long-term career.
“Playing professional rugby is something I’ve dreamt about since being a boy and now I’m living that life. But there’s still a long way to go, there’s still a lot to achieve. I want to be playing in the Premiership week in, week out.”
Simon, who lives in Sunderland but travels through to Kingston Park to train, says both the university and the rugby club have helped him manage his hectic schedule.
“The university has been brilliant, they have worked around my training and been incredibly helpful in making sure I don’t miss out on anything,” said Simon.
“We’re getting to exam time at the minute, so it’s been really busy and I’m doing a lot of revising.”