Rugby league players have had varied stories throughout the ages concerning their upbringing to their career.
But, few have had it tougher than rugby league and union star Kyle Eastmond, who hung up his boots in May of this year.
Eastmond, who returned to the 13-man code in March to play for the Leeds Rhinos, registered two appearances for his new club before calling it a day.
But, in an incredibly honest interview with the Daily Mail, the 32-year-old revealed just how tough his path into rugby actually was as a youngster.
‘We’d be kicking the ball around and there were guys we were friends with drinking methadone on the side of the pitch because they couldn’t get any more heroin. Drug addicts, guns, violence, it was all around you,” Eastmond admitted.
‘There were a lot of bad times. At 16 you start going to the clubs with family and friends from the estate, but they’re gangsters.”
Having said that, Eastmond couldn’t hold back his admiration for the love that surrounded him in those days.
“They’d say ‘Kyle, what are you doing here, go home’ because they knew I was the only person from our community with an opportunity. They wanted to protect me.
“There ain’t no rugby club that can show the same love as that estate. If you have no food, next door will give you some. It’s just that when you get stuck in it, it’s hard to get out. “
