Newcastle Falcons vs Sale Sharks Match-Day Programme

different sports has helped me in my development, and I always enjoyed watching it. I had a
poster of the Brownlee brothers on my wall when I was a kid, the GB triathletes who are also
from my home town of Bramhope, and they were the kind of guys I looked up to.
“I went to my local primary school in Bramhope and played at West Park Leeds rugby club, and
I got a rugby scholarship at Sedbergh which really took my game onto another level. They’ve
got a great coaching staff and a load of top players have come through there, and just being
around your mates all the time was good fun.
“Sedbergh make a big thing of all the players who have come through the school, and leaving
the shirt in a better place when you leave. I remember going there as a Year 7 or 8, standing on
the touchlines and watching the likes of Cameron Redpath and Josh Hodge, who have gone on
to have great starts to their professional careers. You’d see them around the place and their
names would be on the boards, and it has a big influence on you.
“I was probably 14 when I first got involved with the Falcons, and at that stage it was mainly
just coming over on a Thursday night and then coming into play in the Academy League once
that got underway. I came right the way through that system playing for the Falcons’ Under-
18s, and we had a pretty strong side.”
“I’ve had lots of
opportunities so early
into my career”