What did they do before rugby went professional, outside of Rugby...???

First topic message reminder :

I was just chatting with a friend and discussing former amateur players careers prior to professionalism. I know there are only a few of you who remember rugby back then but if you have any information. I think it would be interesting to know.

Jeremy Guscott - Amateur then pro now works for the BBC

Brian Moore - Amateur then pro now works for the BBC and The Telegraph

Stuart Barnes - Amateur never pro now works for Sky Sports and The Times

Robert Jones - Amateur then pro now works for the BBC

Jonathan Davies - Amateur then pro now works for the BBC, what did he do before he went to league

Keith Wood - Amateur then pro now works for the BBC

Will Greenwood - Amateur then pro now works for Sky Sports and The Telegraph

Jason Leonard - Amateur then pro I think he was a chippy, is he still a chippy

Martin Johnson - Amateur then pro no idea what he does now

Kenny Logan - Amateur then pro, his wife works for the BBC, Kenny does a lot of charity work, does he have a real job, what was his previous profession.

Sean Fitzpatrick - Amateur then pro now works for Sky Sports and some newspapers. What did he do before

Michael Lynagh - Amateur then pro now works for Sky Sports


Any ideas please post...!

TJ wrote:

LondonTiger wrote:

Talking about former Gloucester props, Phil Vickery dabbles in a a bit of TV cookery to prepare for when he retires from the game.

Is that not a different man of the same name?
rugby player

Phil vickery the chef

It was meant to be tongue in cheek - hence talking about when he retires. I accept my attempts at humour do tend to fail rather dismally.

Oops - sorry it went straight over my head - maybe becuase it took me a while to realise it was two differnt folk

I think I read somewhere that Vickery had retired....

Ugo Monye is a professional Male Model outside of full time rugby player.

Sackey used to and still does source exotic cars for rich people.

Any one know what Austin Healy did before he went pro? I just can't imagine him working in an office or something like that!

yappysnap wrote:Any one know what Austin Healy did before he went pro? I just can't imagine him working in an office or something like that!

Not sure what he did when he was at Orrell, but he joined Leicester after the game went pro.

When he retired in 2006 he had a job with Credit Suisse combined with some punditry. Not sure how long that lasted.

yappysnap wrote:

Any one know what Austin Healy did before he went pro? I just can't imagine him working in an office or something like that!

imagine having to put up with that 9-5 in a cramped dank office.

Would probably end with a multiple hostage situation.

Looseheaded wrote:

yappysnap wrote:

Any one know what Austin Healy did before he went pro? I just can't imagine him working in an office or something like that!

imagine having to put up with that 9-5 in a cramped dank office.

Would probably end with a multiple hostage situation.

Guscott was a model:





Wikipedia has Stuart Barnes working for Bristol and West Building Scoiety.

More from the Telegraph here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/8680551/Day-jobs-how-amateur-rugby-players-used-to-pay-the-bills.html

I can remember a butcher and a baker in the welsh team in the 70's. Candle stick maker must have been a footballer

Lots of Miners as well (that's coal by the way)

As mentioned above, Guscott was a bricklayer.

Rob Andrew was a chartered surveyor with DTZ.

Michael Lynagh was also in property at what now is CBRE, the same as Hastings.

The French player Condom was a bouncer.

Interesting in many ways how in old days a job would be 'found' for players while playing, and now the same is true after they retire in many cases.

Bathman_in_London wrote: Condom was a bouncer.

Hmm, sure there is a joke there

Yes Tiger - They are both there to protect

The Prince, Bleddyn Williams worked for the Steel works until the BBc enlisted him as a presenter though I bring him to note for a great story often told that many of you might not know.

He trained as an RAF fighter pilot in World War II, already a respected and recognised rugby player, though not capped until after the War.

He apparently also took part in various commando activities for the parachute regiment famously part of "Operation Varsity" a medical mission crossing the river rhine into the Nazi Hinterland.

Apparently Williams landed god knows where and spent a week hiding out, sleeping rough and surviving on his much famed wits until eventually finding some Allied troops. Their commanding officer was a famed County level batsman who told Bleddyn he was meant to be at Welford Road the next day playing outside centre against the colonies and to get his arse on the first supply plane to Brize Norton with immediate effect.

Some of you may be too young to remember but before Richie McCaw came along and before Fitzpatrick went pro, he was the devil.

Richie McCaw that is.

Aye and Piri Weepu was jesus. Bearded, kinda middle eastern looking, olive skin, probably, being of South Sea islander decent, religious...!

LondonTiger wrote:

TJ wrote:

LondonTiger wrote:

Talking about former Gloucester props, Phil Vickery dabbles in a a bit of TV cookery to prepare for when he retires from the game.

Is that not a different man of the same name?
rugby player

Phil vickery the chef

It was meant to be tongue in cheek - hence talking about when he retires. I accept my attempts at humour do tend to fail rather dismally.

They are both chefs, one professionally on tv the other amateur who won Celebrity version of Master Chef (or was a finalist, can't exactly remember).

Bathman_in_London wrote:As mentioned above, Guscott was a bricklayer.

Rob Andrew was a chartered surveyor with DTZ.

Michael Lynagh was also in property at what now is CBRE, the same as Hastings.

The French player Condom was a bouncer.

Interesting in many ways how in old days a job would be 'found' for players while playing, and now the same is true after they retire in many cases.

Yea I know Sarries do a lot for their players to help them post rugby. And Skinner at Quins when he got injured this season was sent away to work as an office junior to get some experience.

Didn't Leicester help Castro get his pasta restaurant and help pay for Julian White's farm?

yappysnap wrote:Didn't Leicester help Castro get his pasta restaurant and help pay for Julian White's farm?

No idea, but not officially.

From memory Sean Fitzpatrick was a builder or a chippie before professionalism (I think Zinzan was too). A few others
Peter Fatialofa - Piano mover
Olo Brown - Lawyer
Eric Rush - Lawyer
Richard Loe - farmer/stock agent
Todd Blackadder - farm labourer
Robbie Deans - farmer
David Kirk - doctor. Got a Rhodes scholarship after rugby which lead to an abortive political career followed by being CEO of Fairfax (newspaper publisher)
John Kirwan - apprentice butcher (worked for the "Mad Butcher" Peter Leitch who's probably the most famous RL fan in NZ)
Keiran Crowley - dairy farmer
Andy Haden - famously created a stir when he wrote "rugby player" on an customs & immigration form on the way to France as he'd not worked in months due to rugby tours etc. These days a professional celebrity talent agent and mysogynist loudmouthed berk.

I'm not sure what Va'aiga Tuigamala did pre-professionalism but these days he's a funeral director and part-time boxing promoter!

ZinZan Brooke and Frano Botica are now both bankrupt.

aucklandlaurie wrote:
ZinZan Brooke and Frano Botica are now both bankrupt.

Thats sad news. What happened?

Buying properties on short term interest only loans, comes time to refinance and whoa, the equity in the property isnt sufficient to cover the amount ofthe loan.

aucklandlaurie wrote:
Buying properties on short term interest only loans, comes time to refinance and whoa, the equity in the property isnt sufficient to cover the amount ofthe loan.

Not the first, the only or the last...!

I know a lot of the players from New Zealand worked part time or not at all.

During the Wales tour to New Zealand in 1988, the Welsh lads spoke to the New Zealand players, and administrators, and were told that companies paid them sponsorship to basically be professional.
You can also read about this in Jason Leonard's autobiography.

They also were allowed to wear their All Blacks kit and do tv / magazine adverts, using their status as a player to help make money.

In the southern hemisphere they had a policy of:

"We don't pay our players for playing, but we do have a policy of allowing our players lead comfortable lives, have the benefit of any commercial or promotional activity that surrounds the game. while having the encouragement and and support to work on their fitness and skill levels every day".

That was the official stance in New Zealand in the 80's and 90's.

In Wales and England players were banned from rugby for simply releasing a autobiography. Gareth Edwards and Barry john were banned from working in Welsh rugby at any level due to bringing out books. It was deemed profiteering from rugby. While any sponsorship work that was under taken, the money would always go to the union.

I also said in earlier posts the New Zealand and Australian players were allowed to play in Italy in the off season.
For an international player he could expect to be paid around £30,000 (£81,300 in today's money), for about 8-10 weeks work.
The £30,000 figure comes directly out of Jiffys autobiography, when he was talking to David Campese after a game and Campo was offering to get him a place out there.

Steve Ojomoh and his wife now run children's daycare centres.

It was a long time ago, decades before rugby went pro, but I still remember the newspaper headline - "Tarzan picked for Wales!"

Rex 'Tarzan' Richards, who was capped once at prop in 1956, had possibly the most exotic career outside rugby. He was a Hollywood action man actor, a stunt high-diver and all-round athlete. His home club, when he wasn't in America seeking fame and fortune, was Cross Keys.

He never actually played Tarzan. When the role fell vacant, the Hollywood studio whittled 1,000 applicants down to 2 - Rex Richards and Gordon Scott. Scott got the part and became famous as one of the handful of men to have starred in a series of Tarzan films.

Rex achieved movie fame of a sort. In 1958 he had a leading part in 'Wild Women of Wongo' - which later received a somewhat dubious accolade, being voted one of the worst 10 films ever made!