‘I rang Saracens chief out of the blue and now I’m chasing a medal’
A cold call rejuvenated ex-harlequins hooker Joe Gray’s career, writes Charlie Morgan
‘Hi, Mark. It’s Joe. You don’t know me, but I’ve played against you a few times over the years. Could I please come and train with you?” There are self-starters in life, and then there is Joe Gray.
Last summer, two months short of his 30th birthday, the experienced hooker and budding entrepreneur dialled up Mark Mccall, the Saracens director of rugby. A ballsy cold call and a free pre-season – via five-hour round trips between London and the East Midlands – have revived his
‘I left the drill and when I came back all the guys were busy using it’
playing career, leading to European silverware and the possibility of a second Premiership final appearance some seven years after his first. Twelve months ago, any more first-team action might have felt unlikely.
At the beginning of the 2017-18 campaign, Gray agreed with John Kingston that he would leave Harlequins after eight seasons. Then came a spiral of misfortune.
Gray rushed back from a broken thumb, refractured it and required an operation that wiped out 14 weeks. For a player eager to get into the shop window and secure his next move, it represented a major setback.
Despite returning for the end of the season, Gray left Harlequins “with a nice send-off but no contract and nowhere to go”. Options in France dried up and Championship offers arose but it was a “nerve-racking and horrible” period. “A friend said, ‘Why don’t you just call someone up?’ I found out Saracens had injuries at hooker. I’d never spoken to Mark Mccall in my life, but I got his number and thought, ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’”
Mccall consulted with his coaches and rang back. Gray was given no assurances beyond the prospect of keeping fit, but enjoyed his five-week stint.
Because there was no pay initially, the income from Gray’s position as director of rugby at Barnes RFC in National League 2 South proved vital. In August, when former team Northampton Saints came in with a short-term contract, he kept up that role.
For two months, Gray left his house at 5.30am. Every Tuesday and Thursday, he would drive straight from training at Northampton to oversee sessions at Barnes, returning home around 10.30pm. Then Saracens suffered more front-row injuries and Mccall was on the phone again. This time, he could offer a contract.
In January, Gray signed an extension for the 2019-20 season. His pinpoint line-out throwing and graft around the field have seen him muscle into Saracens’ top side as they hunt a double.
“I wanted to prove to myself and everyone else that I wasn’t done,” he explains. “There’s been trust from the coaches as well. They put me in one of the biggest games of the season, the European semifinal against Munster. Munster have an unbelievable line-out defence but the line-out is one of my favourite areas. I didn’t see it coming, but you have to take those opportunities when they arrive.”
Gray, who won the 2012 Premiership title with Harlequins under Conor O’shea, admits he has copped friendly flak from excolleagues for crossing to “the dark side” of a feisty London rivalry but collecting a Champions Cup medal at St James’ Park gave him a full set of trophies to go with a single England cap from the 2014 tour to New Zealand.
Ambition and determination
have been running themes over a colourful career. At Harlequins, Gray qualified as a carpenter through night college. This has led to a third job as an inventor.
During his lay-off following thumb surgery, Gray grew bored and dismantled a drill. He welded a stool leg onto the attachment to create a massage gun and used it on his irritating Achilles tendonitis. Although rough and ready, the product eased the pain so Gray brought it into training.
“They went to town on me,” he says. “I remember leaving the drill in the changing room and going to get my ankle strapped. I came back in and there were 10 lads using it.”
Gray sold the prototype to Kyle Sinckler and made himself another. That episode has spawned Myomaster, the sports recovery company Gray has founded with his wife, Lottie. Team Wiggins Le Col, the cycling organisation bearing the name of Sir Bradley, are official partners.
Whether or not he features this weekend, Gray’s story has been one of the feel-good tales of this season. “My wife always says my glass is half full,” Gray finishes. “That’s how I’ve always looked at life. I want to be able to say that I didn’t die wondering. You can only be positive and control what you can control. I could control picking up the phone. The opportunity arose and here we are.”