MY LIFE IN RUGBY

THE FORMER BEDFORD, CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY AND ENGLAND LOCK

Iwent to Wales versus Scotland with a friend last Saturday – only the second time I’d been back to Cardiff since playing there for the Barbarians against the All Blacks in 1973 – and the memories of that game came flooding back as I walked past the Old Royal Hotel, our accommodation all those years ago. It has seen better days but haven’t we all!? Unusually for those times we had our own rooms which was probably a good thing considering the amount of champagne I consumed after our famous victory.

The match itself was an amazing experience. Obviously, as an Englishman, it was something to have the Cardiff crowd on your side for once. While I was the traditional, non-capped player in the side I’d had a good grounding in firstclass rugby and had already played in front of some fairly big crowds. I’d been to Argentina and played against their national team for a combined Oxford and Cambridge side before I’d even got my first Blue. So, the occasion didn’t faze me, and I think I played pretty well. The inside pass I took from David Duckham was memorable, as was the tackle that Alex Wyllie put in on me.

While I’d been involved with England training since 1971 my first England cap didn’t come until 1975, shortly after Bedford beat Rosslyn Park to win the English Knockout Cup at the end of my first full season with the Blues. Rosslyn Park were very much the favourites, but we ran them off the park with our distinct, fluid style of rugby. England probably had no choice but to pick me after that! Chris Ralston probably fell out of favour for whatever reason and I was next in line until they returned to the likes of Nigel Horton and Maurice Colclough.

My England debut was against Australia, in the so-called Battle of Brisbane when Micky Burton was sent off. We beat them fairly comfortably in the return match at Twickenham – my only win as an England player as it turns out. I played in the Five Nations the following year, but we didn’t have a good Championship and the France game in Paris was the last international for me and about half-adozen others. It felt like I’d fallen off a cliff, there was no explanation from the selectors.

All six of my caps came alongside Bill Beaumont – a great role model and a real grafter. I was a different type of player, my attributes were my speed about the pitch, my jumping ability and my understanding of the technical side of the game. As a thinker and student of the game, I suppose I was the anti-theses of your normal second-row forward. I think a few of my contemporaries also thought I was too soft.

It was a different story with the Barbarians, they seemed to like me, and I'd always say yes when asked to play for them. I went on four Easter tours of Wales, which may be a record. As a 20-year-old, the chance to tour with the best in the British Isles was unique; it’s a tragedy that young players today don’t get the same opportunity.

I continued playing until 1985, and perhaps should have packed in sooner – or moved clubs. But my loyalty was with Bedford. During the latter stages of my playing career I also acted as club treasurer. It appeared that I was being groomed to run the club, and maybe for the East Midlands seat on the RFU Council.

But I was getting burnt out. As a former international in your early 30s, you are a bit of a target but no longer always have the means to look after yourself. I had a young family and a business to run – ripening bananas – so it all got a bit much.