Former butcher Javan Sebastian happy with Scotland after 'dark time'
Javan Sebastian admitted to being “a bit overwhelmed” about the prospect of making his first start for Scotland at a World Cup after bouncing back from a “dark” spell working as a butcher when he feared his professional rugby career was over.
After failing to earn a contract in 2016, the Wales-born prop had to drop into the semi-pro ranks and got a job as a butcher in Carmarthen to make ends meet.
At that point, resigned to the likelihood that it was not to be for him at the top end of the game, Sebastian could never have envisaged he go on to represent Scotland – the nation of his father’s birth – at a World Cup in France.
“I was a bit overwhelmed when Gregor told me I was going to be starting tight-head,” said Sebastian, reflecting on the fact that – after six appearances for Scotland as a substitute – he will make his first start in Saturday’s World Cup Pool B match against Romania in Lille.
“I was quite surprised to even be selected in the World Cup squad. It’s a massive achievement to be selected in any squad, so to get a starting place is pretty surreal.”
After struggling to break through at Scarlets and then having an unfulfilling loan stint at Glasgow, Sebastian dropped out of the professional game aged 22 to become a butcher while playing part-time for Carmarthen Quins.
“That was a dark time,” he recalled, speaking from the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille on the eve of his World Cup bow. “It was after I left Glasgow, having been there for a year. I went back home (to Wales) to have my first-born.
“I took a year out of rugby and didn’t really end up having a job so I applied to be a butcher and play semi-pro.
“I worked in the butcher’s for about two months. I couldn’t hack it any longer than that. It was dark, not a nice place.
“I thought my professional rugby career was pretty much over, so I took a year out to reflect and get back to normal life.
“It made me open my eyes to what I could potentially do. Being a butcher or any other normal job is quite tough. I’m not saying that being a rugby player isn’t tough, but the real world is scary.
“I discovered normal life wasn’t for me, so I thought I would try to play rugby again.”
Sebastian was cajoled in that regard by his coaches at Carmarthen who felt he was too good to be playing at such a lowly level and helped him earn a second chance with Scarlets in 2017. He became a prominent figure at the Parc y Scarlets until joining Edinburgh this summer on a two-year deal.
“Playing semi-pro in Wales was pretty dark,” he said. “You go to places like Neath, Cross Keys away, when it’s raining and it’s seven o’clock at night and the pitches are deep in mud. It’s not a nice place to play.
“The coaches at the time were Craig Evans and Richard Kelly. They really pushed me on to try and go for more than what I was doing at that time. Richard was also a coach at Scarlets, so he really pushed me to get back in.”
Sebastian – effectively Scotland’s third-choice tighthead – feels his move to Edinburgh can help him progress further.
“It’s just another step on the journey where I want to project on to the next level,” he said.
“Edinburgh have a strong pack, so trying to play some expansive rugby within that pack will benefit me.”
Scotland srum coach Pieter de Villiers was full of praise for the way Sebastian has forced his way into contention for his first international start in a match Scotland must win with a bonus point to keep alive their hopes of reaching the quarter-final.
“It is a well-deserved start,” he said. “He’s had a great preparation period and is very well respected within the group.
“In terms of the set-piece, I think he’s one of the best scrummaging tightheads out there. You can ask any front-row player, they’ll always back Javan to pack down in a scrum.
“Playing at Edinburgh next season, it’ll be good for him to develop alongside his international team-mates. It’ll be good to have him closer to home and to see him grow.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Job done guys. Great win in a game where things can quickly go wrong.
1 Go to commentsAlex Sanderson fantastic coach and person .So pleased he has signed another contract great days ahead for Sale under his leadership.
1 Go to commentsAndy Goode cant kick to 12
162 Go to commentsDoxed himself. Great work Johnny. You are well suited to the Saders
1 Go to comments_Best game players _
1 Go to commentsWho's Jarrad Hohepa?
1 Go to commentsSo let me get this straight. Say you have the dominant scrum. You are 99% sure you can go for a scrum pushover try on the line to win the game. The opposition knows it too. They give away a silly tap kick instead. You are now not allowed to scrum. This is ridiculous! *%@ing the game up as usual! The fact that the attacking teams are not allowed to scrum from a held up over the line is just as ridiculous. Really world rugby? Careful people might start a rebel league called True Rugby or Real Rugby.
76 Go to comments12 subs during a game? How has that been allowed to happen NB? I hate when the game goes in this monopolistic direction closing up shop, it just becomes non sport. Btw have you seen anything of how Liam Coltman was tracking for Lyon? He has just signed to return to Otago though we have a couple of young hookers developing here. He was a popular gentle natured character down here and I’m glad to see him back but maybe he will be a mentor primarily?
11 Go to commentsGreat breakdown and the global politics always confuses me a little. The southern hemisphere seems to be left out a bit but I wouldn’t even know where to start with fixing it. Club challenge could be a step in the right direction
11 Go to commentsSince he coached Free state, from that time onwards, I maintained he was the coach for the Boks. A nice, no nonsense guy with an excellent brain, who gets results.
11 Go to commentswell - they only played against 14 men and had the TMO team on their side - and still should have lost… so actually that makes sense.
33 Go to commentsSouthern hemisphere Rugby is exactly that, boring. Northern Hemisphere Rugby is soooo much more entertaining and better with better players.
2 Go to commentsIf he was to be cited for a dangerous behavior, then it’s natural that he should be. Then NTamack too, yes? And I’ll add a good whataboutism - Yeandle eye-gouging on Richie Arnold: not cited. Eye-gouging. Not high tackle. Eye-gouging. It was on French TV, with French TV directors.
5 Go to commentsReally poorly written rambling piece ..
11 Go to commentsIt was so boring
2 Go to commentspersonally I’d go with : 1. France 2. NZ 3. England 4. Ireland 5. Scotland
33 Go to commentsAndy everything becomes easier with experience therefor counting etc straight after a match becomes easier when you have 100+ caps vs 17 which is the experience you speak from.
162 Go to commentsGetting rid of the Dupont Law is a good thing and ought to have been done months ago! Officially getting rid of the croc roll is a good thing. The law about no scrums from a short arm is well intended in terms of speeding the game up but it’s an overreaction to a clever yet calculated gamble that could have blow up in South Africa’s face if they conceded a penalty from the scrum that was set after Willemse took claimed the mark in the World Cup QF.
76 Go to commentsRassie The GOAT
11 Go to commentsOf their 5 big matches in RWC Scotland and NZ were the easiest. They took a 12-3 lead against NZ and after the red decided it was best to hold the lead and take chances that came. None came and it was tight but they dug a lot deeper in the other two knock out matches. They had trounced NZ in Twickenham in a fixture that NZ must now regret. Psychology was clearly with SA in the final as a result.
33 Go to comments