'Henry's not stupid. He knows that': The Pollock caveat from Saints camp

Henry Pollock has been backed by his Northampton Saints boss Phil Dowson to move to another level after signing a commercial deal with leading boxing promoter Eddie Hearn.

Hearn’s newly formed Matchroom Talent Agency has joined forces with the England international’s agents, Stellar Rugby, to manage the off-field commercial interests, and it has the full backing of Dowson.

Dowson believes that having the Hearn hype machine behind Pollock will only be a good thing for the sport, like Red Bull’s investment in Newcastle and James Dyson buying up half of Bruce Craig’s shares in Bath.

“Henry’s been hugely explosive on and off the field, and people have really responded and interacted with the game, which is usually a good thing, and now it’s going to go to another level with Eddie Hearn.

“Henry is more than happy to hype himself up. I think it’s good for the sport because it’s going to get people talking and you get somebody who’s from a non-rugby background who’s going to get involved.

“I think that’s the same with the Red Bull, and obviously, Dyson is investing in Bath. I think that can only be a positive thing, getting eyeballs on it to grow the sport, make it more exciting, and bring in different people.

“Henry’s broken through on lots of different levels, and he’s going to be represented by somebody who has a huge sway in international sport and in the media. I don’t think it’s unexpected that somebody would pick up Henry.

“I think rugby’s on a bit of a high. Henry’s driven some of that himself, and he’ll be interested to see where that relationship goes,” said Dowson.

Dowson admits that Pollock will have to keep on performing on the pitch and not take his eye off the ball if he wants opportunities off it to keep rolling in.

“All players on the international radar are wanted by sponsors, and they’ve got to balance that up. They’ve got to balance off-field opportunities with on-field performance.

“If you’re performing on the field, those things I feel will always be there and will only increase. If you’re not performing on the pitch, then it can very quickly dissipate.

“Henry’s not stupid. He knows that. He knows he’s got to make sure he gets his rugby right first, and then we’ll try to help him balance what he does off the field regarding his other interests,” he said.