REBORN IN THE USA
At 29, England and Lions prop Corbisiero still has regrets over how he quit rugby, but now he’s been...
NOT much has changed at the family restaurant in New York where Alex Corbisiero worked for $ 20 a night during his school holidays. Uncle Tony and Uncle Mark still run the show and the recipe for grandma’s tomato sauce remains a secret.
It is still a hotbed for politicians from the Queens district. Alberto, the liquor room manager, has just clocked his 37th year of service.
‘I grew up 20 minutes east of here but I’ve spent more time with my grandparents over the last year than I did during most of my childhood,’ says Corbisiero as he tucks into the ‘family cut’ of ribeye. ‘I’m in a happy place now.’ It is not just the giant plate of meat that is keeping Corbisiero happy.
The American-born Lions prop has only just celebrated his 29th birthday, but his playing days are well behind him and he has set up a new life in the USA.
He is a frontman for NBC’s rugby coverage and moves between New York and Miami, where he has spent the week clearing up his apartment after Hurricane Irma.
‘Miami got pretty lucky compared to some,’ he says.
‘My place is on the 14th floor but it’s right on the ocean so I just had to clear out some water because there was so much wind and rain.’
Corbisiero’s last rugby match was a World Cup warm-up for England against France in 2015.
He is over the bitterness and resentment of a career cut short by chronic injuries, although he regrets leaving through the back door, to the click of a press release with no closure.
‘The only thing that haunts me is that I never said goodbye,’ he says, having turned down the opportunity to join Harlequins last November after a meeting with Graham Rowntree.
‘I had no idea that England match at Twickenham was going to be my last. I had an injury before the match but it was the only opportunity I was going to have to get in the World Cup side.
‘ I made things a lot worse by playing… and I made that same mistake a few times in my career.
‘I’d love to train hard and play a BaaBaas game or one more match for London Irish as a proper farewell. In the end I just limped off quietly halfway through the season and that’s no way to finish. I’d love to get back on the pitch one more time, do it properly and say, “That’s it. It’s over”.’
Uncle Mark, with his thick New Yorker accent, stops by to check everything is OK.
‘Beautiful,’ says Corbisiero, who speaks as passionately about food — with enough to serve every rugby player in New York — as he does about American rugby and issues of player welfare. ‘You know the Jet steam that won the Superbowl in ’69 used to eat here?’ says his uncle.
‘I support the Jets, I love the Jets, but we suck! We’ve sucked for years. I’m going to have to watch more rugby!’
There are small signs that the sport’s sleeping giant, America, could finally wake up.
Participation is increasing and viewing figures for Corbisiero’s show are rising sharply.
Issues, however, remain around high school dropouts and financial struggles at the top table. ‘It’s not going to happen overnight but the ball is moving in the right direction,’ says Corbisiero.
‘ There’s so much potential. Major League Rugby is launching and guys l i ke Mike Ford are coming in. You just need a sustainable model that isn’t just a black hole of cash. It’s not a quick fix.
‘ Look at the Major League Soccer… that took a long time to take off. Even Pele played here when it first started and they were throwing big money at i t . People who were there at the start aren’t even involved anymore. It almost died and rebirthed to get to where it is now. You need patience, people who are in it for the right reasons and an aggressive marketing strategy.’ Corbisiero is now fully committed to the American
dream. He was once regarded as one of the best looseheads in the world and now he wants to become king of the big screen.
His body was ground down by the sport but now he is fighting fit — although he fears more players will retire before 30 unless there is change.
‘ The way the game’s set up in England, you’ re serving two masters,’ he says. ‘You’re serving your club and you’re serving your country. There’s no co-ordination of managing loads like there is in Wales or New Zealand, where you’re centrally contracted.
‘You need someone to oversee the 32-game limit, especially as the hits become bigger and more physical than ever.
‘If a season were 15 to 20 games a year you might see me playing again. A 40-week season is just too long. There’s pressure to win a match and they’re paying you, so they want you out there. They could have another prop next week but you won’t have another brain, arm, shoulder or knee.
‘ Maybe t he answer i s more players earning less money. It’s a business balancing act. You’ve got to be realistic but you want guys to have 10-year England careers.
‘You don’t want Billy Vunipola, the best No8 in the world, burnt out by the time he’s 27. You want Maro Itoje to be playing at 30.’
Corbisiero knows that all too well, although others may not have such a happy ending.