LIFE IN RUGBY
THE FORMER ENGLAND, SARACENS AND LONDON WELSH CENTRE
LOOKING back on my playing days I feel incredibly fortunate to have been at a club like Saracens, at such a transformative time in the game.
Professionalism came in halfway through my tenyear spell at the club, and through Nigel Wray’s fantastic vision and generosity I managed to play alongside some of the game’s greatest players. How could I not improve in between Michael Lynagh and Philippe Sella?
I joined Saracens aged 19 in 1990 after returning from a season of club rugby in North Harbour, New Zealand, for a club called Northcote. Richard Turner, a pretty formidable No.8 who some people might remember laying into Dean Richards during the 1993 Lions tour, was my landlord. The idea was to get a feel of the senior game in the biggest rugby hotbed of them all. I also played provincial U21 rugby there and that period changed both my game and outlook.
There was a remarkable intensity about the way players of all levels went about their sport. My midfield partner was Mark Mayerhofler, who I lined up opposite for England against New Zealand eight years later.
I vividly remember a conversation with Nigel Wray talking about professionalism and what it meant during the Middlesex 7s one year. The game had just gone open and he was encouraging me to stay part of the squad because I’d get the chance to play with quite a few good players. At the time, I didn’t have a clue how good!
Thankfully I had a very understanding employer who was flexible enough to allow me to combine my job as a trainee lawyer with life as a professional player.
I think I was the only part-time member of the squad at Saracens in those early years but I’m glad I took the decision to continue with both, as playing for such a good team helped me to progress from England Schools, U21s, Student and “A” honours to a full cap, while also standing me in good stead for when I did retire. It was the right thing to do as I’m now a partner at one of the leading law firms in the world, White & Case.
The pinnacle of my time at Saracens was the 1998 Tetley’s Bitter Cup win at Twickenham. There was a lot of emotion around the game; Brendon Daniel had lost his father a few days before and it was Michael and Philippe’s last game. I got on the scoresheet as we beat a formidable Wasps side. It was great to see the smile on Nigel’s face as we lifted the Cup.
That summer I was off to Australia, New Zealand and South Africa on the infamous ‘Tour from Hell’. Jerry Guscott and Will Greenwood had both withdrawn and I got the nod. I’d got close to the England squad a few years earlier while they were out in South Africa for the World Cup, but that was in a totally different capacity as a drinks and seafood waiter after the catering firm I worked for – in tandem with playing for a club side in Durban – had laid on an event for them!
1998 was a disappointing tour and the Australia game was a pretty brutal introduction to Test rugby. We lost 76-0 but if you look at the two line-ups, ours had only a few experienced internationals whereas theirs was almost the same as the XV that won the World Cup a year later.
On returning to England, I played a couple more seasons for Saracens and received a testimonial. By 2000, I realised that I needed to get back to my legal career on a full-time basis and I left to play for London Welsh in the Championship. For the five years I was there, we did well to hold our own on very limited resources against some professional teams like Worcester, Bristol, Exeter and Leeds. I still catch up a couple of times a year with my old London Welsh “Red Herrings” mates.