The BIG Interview - Doncaster Knights Centre Will Simpson

RGN: Hi Will. So how did you first get into playing rugby?

WS: In the beginning for me it was all about football. Then my Dad took us to a rugby session in Northallerton, he said he was taking me swimming but told me on the way there was this rugby session on. I went and never really looked back.

RGN: Was this your main junior club?

WS: From there I went to Ripon and then to York. While I was at Ripon we got beaten by York and I scored against them, one of only two tries they let in all season. Their coach came up to me at the end and said you should come over to us and my rugby really kicked on from then.

RGN: How important was rugby when you went to school?

WS: I went to Ampleforth and rugby was really important and has been historically. In my year we had a really promising team, but unfortunately four of the key players got injured, all with popped shoulders which was bizarre. This affected my last two years a fair bit and we didn’t get as many wins as we’d hoped, but rugby was definitely the main sport there. We trained 4 times a week and we had great facilities like the gym and the pool there which really helped.

RGN: Who were your main rivals at school?

WS: Sedbergh and St Peter’s, York were the big ones. For me personally it was St Peter’s because I played for York rugby club and some of my teammates played for St Peter’s.

RGN: How did your rugby take shape after school?

WS: When I left Ampleforth I had 5 months at Leeds Carnegie Academy and played against other academy sides. We played Leicester a few times, Sale and Worcester while I was there. It was the first time I was exposed to proper weights programs and a professional setup. Leeds was the first part of a gap year, I then went to Christchurch in New Zealand and played for a team called Waihora and had the best season over there. At Leeds it was very professional with protein shakes straight after the game but Waihora was more about having a beer after the match and being social. We went unbeaten for about 24 games out there.

RGN: So you’ve played a decent standard in the Southern and Northern Hemisphere, what do you think are the main differences between the too?

WS: There was a lot less structure in New Zealand. Playing for Yorkshire and Leeds there were more play by play patterns but in New Zealand it was much more ‘play what you see’ and I really enjoyed that side of it.

RGN: What attracted you to Loughborough University in the first place?

WS: The rugby mainly, as well as the reputation that Loughborough had. I went to an open day and it was mainly about my chosen course which was Geography. I met with the rugby head coach there and he said if you want to be a big fish in a small pond then Loughborough is not the place for you, but if you want to be part of the best university setup in the country for rugby then Loughborough is where you want to be. When I got to Loughborough it wasn’t a dead cert that I’d get in to the rugby squad. I had to trial with everyone else. A few of the players who had played age group for England or Ireland didn’t, but I did.

RGN: What was the difference between university and school rugby?

WS: Loughborough is such a professional atmosphere, it has great gym facilities, there are 130 players who get picked and that’s it for the year. There’s so much competition that you just get pushed. I didn’t start off the in the performance squad who played in the Saturday RFU leagues to start with, I started in the BUCS 1 and 2 squad and didn’t get any a games for the top team in my first year. In the second year there was an injury to the top inside centre and I played in his place about 2 games into the season and stayed there. I made the performance squad and then was then made part of the elite squad, the 7 or 8 players who got a bit of extra attention with regards to access to the physio and gym time, which was really appreciated. The head coach David Morris showed a lot of faith in me.

RGN: Speaking of David Morris, was he the most important influence on you as a player or were there other earlier influences that were important too?

WS: Dave was great as he understood what I brought to the team and he made me believe that I was a decent rugby player who could compete at that level. He really honed in on my defensive ability and he wanted me to bring this to every game and he set me targets to ultimately be a very solid number 12. Tosh Askew at Loughborough was also a great skills and backs coach. Before Loughborough, Dicken Edwards who was the academy manager at Leeds gave me a chance there and he helped me put on some weight and get stronger which helped a lot before I went to Loughborough.

RGN: Did you find it hard balancing such a professional atmosphere with a genuine university experience?

WS: You had to be careful about going out to close to a game but I think a lot of the social side came from being in the rugby club. Just because we were playing national league rugby, it didn’t take away the ‘social’ aspects of the game, so we managed it quite well. If we had a poor performance the week before there would be a few words said on the Tuesday about taking it easy, but we’d usually go out on a Saturday but this may have changed this year with the 1^st XV going up to National! I was tempted to stay on for another year to do a masters but then I was given a shot at Doncaster.

RGN: I’m sure you would have had a few interested clubs after your signature, why Doncaster Knights?  

WS: Dave Morris last Christmas got in contact with Brett Davey at Doncaster and mentioned I was interested in moving up a level and if I could go up and train with them for a couple of weeks. So went over and after I’d finished there Brett said keep in touch. I trained at London Scottish as well but Brett made an offer and I went with that.

RGN: What’s a typical training week for you like at Doncaster?

WS: Monday we meet at 10am for weights and rehab. We’ll do backs skills and a video review with regards to attack from the previous game and in the afternoon you have a rugby session, usually quite light because we’re a little stiff from the weekend. Tuesday is similar but we have a defensive review and a contact session. Wednesdays are our day off and Thursday we do some light weights and a team run through. On Friday we travel if the fixture is far away like Plymouth, but mostly we leave on the Saturday morning. Pre-season is a little more intense with a lot more weights then fitness, then more weights.

RGN: Do you think Doncaster have got a chance of making the playoffs?

WS: I think we’ve got a good chance, we came really close against Bristol last week. Bristol and Newcastle will be the main contenders. If we achieve our potential by performing the way we can there’s no reason why we can’t make it. I think we’ve got some really good players in the squad and seeing teams like London Welsh go up who weren’t favourites was encouraging. Anything can happen at that stage and it’s about who turns up on the day.

RGN: There's been a lot of conjecture about the state of rugby union (participation and match attendances being the focus) in the North-East, especially with Leeds and Newcastle now in the Championship. As a North East lad, where do you think the issues stem from?  

WS: Growing up Falcons were always a top side and its strange to have seen them gone down. I think the rugby league dominance up in the North and the attraction of moving down south to good players is very strong. The draw of football may also play a role, but rugby spectators tend to watch rugby and the southern teams probably attract more talent and then spectators as result.

RGN:  Finally, you once said in a cutting interview for Loughborough Rugby that you would prefer 'spooning' to 'forking', care to reconsider?

WS: Did I say spooning? I think I’ll keep with spooning as I don’t really understand what forking is.