Bod was so humble, unlike Prem ‘stars’
IT was quite daunting when I first met Stuart Lancaster because he was so different from what I had known before in terms of coaching. Up until then, I’d just had my Malton & Norton RUFC club coach, who was a family friend, so it was real step-up and an eye-opener. He instilled in us Leeds academy lads what it meant to be professional and you can see the impact of that through the number of guys who’ve gone on to have such a good career at the top level like Danny Care.
I’d always played second-row in the academy and during our Championship-winning season of 2008/09. So when Neil Back took me to one side before a game against Gloucester and said I would be making my Premiership debut at six, I had a range of mixed emotions. Obviously, I was so excited at the prospect of testing myself against one of the best teams in the country but it was also a bit daunting to be playing out of position. Other than a win for the team, it couldn’t have gone much better. I made a big impact at the start of the game with a try from about 25 metres out which helped settle the nerves.
I’d played quite a lot of men’s rugby until that point, getting opportunities for game time in the Championship with Leeds and on loan at Otley and Rotherham, who had a strong squad at the time. This exposure at a young age stood me in good stead and gave me a grounding into what was to come. Backy talked me up as a potential England international, which obviously gave me a big confidence boost. In hindsight, it was a bit premature to say something like that. It is hard to predict how a young player’s career will go.
During the first half of our relegation decider against Northampton, I was sat on the bench thinking, ‘we’ve done it boys’, but they unloaded their subs and our 24-3 lead disappeared very quickly. Emotions were high because we knew the consequences. Earlier on, Leinster had made an approach for me, but I was still under contract and Leeds wouldn’t release me without a fee. But Leinster maintained their interest and I joined the following season.
To go to the European champions as a Championship player was amazing. Leinster under Joe Schmidt was an environment where you couldn’t fail to improve. It was a massive step up. They push you so hard. Also, as a young player, you absorb so much from the calibre of players around you.
I had one of those surreal moments on my first day when I walked into the medical department to have my assessment, and I was sat on the physio bed opposite Brian O’Driscoll.
I had to tell myself that he was just a team-mate and not to be a ‘fan-boy’! It was a bizarre feeling. Only a few years earlier I was playing Rugby 08 with my housemates, and he was the top ‘star’' player in the game who we all wanted in our team. One of the things that really struck me about him, and the rest of the squad, was just how humble they were despite what they’d achieved in the game.
It wasn’t like that with some of the Premiership players I’d come across, who tended to have an arrogant way about them without having lifted a trophy. In Ireland, I don’t think that type of player would have lasted very long. I made some good friends over there and look forward to making a trip over to Dublin when restrictions are lifted. Having lived with Rhys Ruddock for four years, we have stayed close friends; he was an usher at my wedding in 2019.
Playing in the 2015 Heineken Cup semi-final against Bath at the Aviva Stadium was an incredible experience. The whole build-up to the game was special. We had a police escort to the ground and the stadium was full and the match was very close. The icing on the cake was having my best mates from back home watching the game. They had flown over and thankfully I got on with about ten minutes to go.
In my last season at Leinster I picked up many soft tissue injuries due to an issue with my back, and I didn’t get much game time. I was also in a longdistance relationship and started to miss being in England.
So when the opportunity came to move back to the Premiership with Gloucester, it felt like the right thing to do. But unfortunately, it didn’t turn out the way I’d have hoped. The bad luck with injuries continued and I couldn’t find my form in my two years there, I probably made about ten appearances. It was a comedown after such a big high at Leinster, but I still left with fond memories and huge admiration for the Gloucester fans' passion.
In my last season at Kingsholm, I’d had quite a few epidurals in my back because I kept on tearing my calves and we couldn’t work out why. Convincing clubs that I still had some rugby left in me wasn’t that easy, but Ealing came in for me. I liked their ambition and signed for two years. It felt different being at a club where I was seen as a senior player. It was a good motivator, especially after a year in which I’d fallen out of love with rugby a bit. Ealing helped me enjoy my game again, and we had a good battle with London Irish for promotion.
I’ve suffered from concussions throughout my career, and it got to the point where they were happening as a result of smaller and smaller impacts. I went to see a head-injury specialist in Tottenham Court Road as it was becoming clear the risks were outweighing the reward of playing. The doctor said if I were an amateur player he would tell me to stop, but because this was my career, he couldn’t make that decision for me.
This puts you in a difficult position, but after I got a concussion in the final league game against Irish and the headaches weren’t clearing, I knew what I had to do. So over the summer, I sat down with my family and partner, and we all felt it was the right time to step away. It’s a big relief that I am now symptom-free. Not everybody has been as fortunate.
“Lancaster instilled in us Leeds academy lads what it meant to be professional”