'It's so outrageous how things have gone' - Jake Woolmore's journey from teaching kids with learning difficulties to playing in the Premiership
Gallagher Insurance couldn’t have had a better ambassador at their Project Rugby event in Bristol than Jake Woolmore.
The aim at Ashton Gate was to offer a morning of rugby to those who might not have regular access to the game in England, youngsters from low socio-economic backgrounds, Black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) individuals and those with disabilities.
This was a template right up Woolmore’s street. Not only was rugby something he wasn’t able to dabble in properly while growing up, he was teaching children with learning difficulties before an offer from Exeter in 2014 gave him a late developer shot at professional rugby at the age of 23.
That dalliance didn’t work out and only after carving out a loosehead niche for himself at Championship outfit Jersey was he snapped up last summer by Bristol for a Premiership debut just months before his 28th birthday.
He took to it like a duck to water and the rest is history, 20 appearances in the league and recents starts in the wins over champions Saracens and fallen giants Leicester at Welford Road. No wonder he was the perfect role model for the wide-eyed kids getting their first taste of the sport the other day.
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“It’s just great getting more people involved in the sport,’ he told RugbyPass. “This is what you like you like to see, people enjoying themselves, enjoying a game they don’t normally get an opportunity to play and participate in and make the most of it.
“When I was younger I got into rugby a bit late. It did so much for me growing up, things I could take away from the sport, not just physically but the ethics of the game. I didn’t have many opportunities to play the game, a little bit of schools stuff. It was just ‘we’re going to cover it for a few weeks here’, but that was it.
“Everything growing up was very much football-based, which I was terrible at. I didn’t go too well at that but once I got an opportunity to play rugby, I realised how much I enjoyed the game and the camaraderie it brings among team-mates.
Fantastic to see some of the great work done by #ProjectRugby. It's so good to see young people getting a chance to enjoy rugby and show their talents. Well done to everyone involved ?@GallagherUK @BristolBears @BristolBearsCF https://t.co/6Gpp3vbN5H
— Jake Woolmore (@JakeChunkz) May 1, 2019
“I was feeling sort of socially accepted and found I absolutely loved it, started taking it quite seriously and here we are today,” he explained, before revealing he could still be teaching were it not for his unexpected rugby adventure.
“I’m currently training as a barber alongside the rugby, but had I not fallen into rugby I could still be working in care… I was working at a college for students with learning difficulties. It was something I always enjoyed doing.
“Doing something that made me feel worthwhile, doing something to help others and support others in benefitting their lives. I always enjoy that and I got opportunity to work at a college and coach students with learning difficulties. It was something I enjoyed. It was challenging, but it rewarding.”
Just like his rugby is now nearing the end of his first full season the English top flight, a campaign where he has thrived and has so many experiences to bring forward into the second season of his two-year Bristol deal.
“It’s surreal. I was at the age of 22, 23 and was just playing for the craic, playing just to be with my mates and have a bit of a social thing on the weekend. Then all of a sudden you started getting a bit of wind and fell into becoming a professional rugby player,” he continued, reflecting on a career that innocently began at Yeovil College before switching to Taunton.
“That first year (at Exeter) was surreal and with the way things have gone, here we are now in my first year in the Premiership and I have been lucky enough to get some game time. You get caught up in the season but when you stop and actually think back, you do realise it is so outrageous how things have gone for me and how much game time I have had.
“It might seem a little bit stupid with some of the big games we played in and some of the results we have had, but for me it [my favourite memory] was always when the team got selected for the first game of the Premiership season and I was named in that 23.”
Those 17 minutes at home to Bath meant the world to Woolmore. “That was such a big thing. I felt like I’d been working hard. Over the past few years since I left Exeter (in 2015), my aim was to always get back into a Premiership side and play in the Premiership and to see my name up in that 23, I just had a moment of reflection, ‘Here you go, you have got to where you wanted’. Then it was like, ‘Alright, stay there’. It has been a whirlwind of the season and great fun.”
He owes so much to Jersey for moulding him. Owes much, too, to Pat Lam for spotting his potential in the lower league and providing the opportunity to try-out higher up the chain. “It [Championship] is a great level to be playing well in, week out, a great opportunity to get some real competitive rugby at senior level and really learn your trade.
“Jersey were a forwards-based club and it really opened my eyes as to what I needed to do to become that better player and work hard which then put me in the shop window to be able to progress to the Premiership.
“I remember the phone call and having a chat with Pat – it was very much, ‘I can see something in you that you can offer to our squad and the way that we play’. There were progressions to make, especially coming from a club that was very set-piece based going to the way Pat likes to play. He’s a lot more expansive.
“He said the opportunity will be there for me to work hard and to put my hand up to play in the Premiership under him. He put it out there that he could see something in the way he had seen me playing in the Championship, he has seen something that could fit with what he wants from me in the team.
“He explained his vision, the culture he likes to drive in a team, and said if I felt that matches up with my visions and my aspirations, then we can put pen to paper and get an opportunity to play for Bristol in the Premiership.”
Not that it was a straightforward transition. Lam likes all of his players to be ball players. Even his props. There was nowhere for Woolmore to hide. “A lot of people tell you you don’t need to worry about that, you just need to hit rucks and push. Coming to the game late, I was probably a little bit behind on some of those skills that Pat wanted, but there is a lot of opportunity to improve and focus on skills and being able to pass the ball with both hands.
“It doesn’t matter what position you’re in, if you need to step up in the backs and be a bit of a playmaker you need to be able to do that. You have the likes of John Afoa, who leads this by example, but there are lots of opportunities to improve and I believe I have improved massively.
We would like much more of the same next season please.
Thank you to every lovely supporter ?#togetherwerise #upthebears pic.twitter.com/QqlDFdriU6
— Jake Woolmore (@JakeChunkz) May 2, 2019
“I’m constantly working on it and that is a good thing with Pat. He has put that goal out there and said, ‘This is what I want’. He gives you the opportunity to become that and likes to give everyone opportunities to get better.
“There was nerves. You have come to the club to play and want to perform the way you feel can put you in the best light for your coach to select you. I just put my head down, worked hard and showed I had the ability to play at this level.
“Physically there wasn’t necessarily too many changes, it was more training at this level. The Premiership is a more open game than the Championship so just being able to move around the park a little bit better, that just came in training in the environment we’re in.
“I didn’t necessarily feel like I had to lose or gain any weight but as I transitioned some of my weight changed slightly. I’m probably as heavy as I was (120kgs), but leaner. There wasn’t any real pressure for me to change too much, but I always had my own goals. I always wanted to be a little bit fitter, a little bit leaner. They helped me to do that.”
Bristol sure have.
WATCH: The RugbyPass documentary on the Bristol Bears
Comments on RugbyPass
Super rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
8 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
8 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
14 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
14 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
8 Go to comments