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As I drove up to Kingston Park, I tried to remember the last time I had kicked a conversion on a rugby ground.
It was at school, no later than 1980 … so well over 35 years ago.
I wasn’t the greatest rugby player that ever took to the field; I wasn’t the worst either, but I was probably closer to being the latter. During the years I played (well I was on the field), I moved from the second row, to fly half and then to full back. The next logical stage in my “career” would have been touch judge, but hockey became the game of choice outside the cricket season, and I hadn’t picked up a rugby ball since…
It was fantastic for Newcastle Thunder rugby league club’s head coach Jason Payne (who I had known for a several years) to give me the chance to not only try and kick a goal out on the pitch, but to also chat to the current squad about my mental health experiences and challenges.
In their former guise of Gateshead Thunder, the club had been a massive part of my life. From its formation in 1999, I followed the team both home and away for several years and, as well as some amazing memories (particularly during that first season), I made many lifelong friends…
Anyway, back at school, the rugby pitches were muddy and bumpy and place kicks required you to create a divot or mound with your boot before placing the ball, which was heavy with thick laces. Fast forward to Kingston Park, and it’s all very different: a state of the art artificial pitch, combined with plastic kicking tees and much lighter rugby balls would surely make popping over a conversion nice and easy … even for an old bloke with badly worn hips.
Wrong…
In front of a squad of elite athletes, I scuffed the first kick, miscued the second and watched as the third faded wide of the upright. As the self-imposed pressure mounted, I connected beautifully with the next effort and watched it sail majestically between the posts, to a combination of cheers and chuckles from the players.
A couple of group photos and it was back to training for the Thunder squad, and back to the car for me - challenge … and kicking masterclass duly completed!
It was at school, no later than 1980 … so well over 35 years ago.
I wasn’t the greatest rugby player that ever took to the field; I wasn’t the worst either, but I was probably closer to being the latter. During the years I played (well I was on the field), I moved from the second row, to fly half and then to full back. The next logical stage in my “career” would have been touch judge, but hockey became the game of choice outside the cricket season, and I hadn’t picked up a rugby ball since…
It was fantastic for Newcastle Thunder rugby league club’s head coach Jason Payne (who I had known for a several years) to give me the chance to not only try and kick a goal out on the pitch, but to also chat to the current squad about my mental health experiences and challenges.
In their former guise of Gateshead Thunder, the club had been a massive part of my life. From its formation in 1999, I followed the team both home and away for several years and, as well as some amazing memories (particularly during that first season), I made many lifelong friends…
Anyway, back at school, the rugby pitches were muddy and bumpy and place kicks required you to create a divot or mound with your boot before placing the ball, which was heavy with thick laces. Fast forward to Kingston Park, and it’s all very different: a state of the art artificial pitch, combined with plastic kicking tees and much lighter rugby balls would surely make popping over a conversion nice and easy … even for an old bloke with badly worn hips.
Wrong…
In front of a squad of elite athletes, I scuffed the first kick, miscued the second and watched as the third faded wide of the upright. As the self-imposed pressure mounted, I connected beautifully with the next effort and watched it sail majestically between the posts, to a combination of cheers and chuckles from the players.
A couple of group photos and it was back to training for the Thunder squad, and back to the car for me - challenge … and kicking masterclass duly completed!