Avoiding rugby's version of 'cold turkey', the Josh Matavesi way

It is estimated that around 35-40 professional players in England will find themselves out of contract and out of a job in the next few days.

For those who have heeded the Rugby Players’ Association’s advice or accessed their career initiatives to map out a life beyond pro rugby well in advance, the future might not look quite so scary.

However, even the most together of individuals find it hard to replicate an environment where you work day in day out with some of your best mates, getting paid to do something you love, while also struggling to replace the adrenaline of playing in front of thousands of fans in big stadiums, once their race in professional sport is run.

Dropping down a league or two to play as a semi-pro or even recreationally is not an option considered by many, but for former Fijian international, Josh Matavaesi, turning out for his hometown of Camborne whilst working full-time for the club’s main sponsor, CLX, has made the transition a whole lot easier.

Proud Cornishman Matavesi played an active part as player/defence coach in Camborne’s promotion-chasing season, which ended with Clifton pipping them to the National 2 West title, and has confirmed that he will continue to lace up his boots next season, along with ex-Gloucester and Pirates winger, Kyle Moyle.

“Still being involved with rugby really helps with the transition. People who go cold turkey and leave rugby altogether, I think, are the ones who find it hard because the structure of your life is around the team,” said the 33-year-old, who represented Fiji at the 2015 and 2019 World Cups.

“I am still playing as a semi-professional and I’m still involved in the community in a rugby space, so I think that helps to keep the fire inside of me.

“I love it, I still get the same butterflies as if I were playing for Bath vs Bristol. That Camborne shirt has something in it, I don’t know what it is.

“We’re very lucky to have Kyle Moyle, who played for Gloucester. He’s here with me, and we talk about it (the transition) a lot. He is in the same boat as I was 12 months ago, coming out of rugby. So we have a lot in common, and we’re both glad that we didn’t completely finish playing.”

As well as playing for Camborne and designing new stores for M&S and Costa Coffee, Matavesi is the youth development officer for the club, serving as a role model to the town’s youngsters and encouraging them to be physically active, in rugby or other sports.

For Matavesi, it is about giving back to a community that has been so supportive towards him and his two brothers and fellow players, Sam and Joel.

“They say a village raises a person, and to be fair, the whole town has raised me and my brothers to do what we have done. The town has done a lot, a mural was made of me and my brothers, it’s spray-painted by an artist called Cosmic. That’s a reminder to the kids that three brothers have come from Camborne and done something successful with their lives.”