For a country kid who played Rugby at university “simply because I had a heap of good mates playing there,” the professional career which awaited Tim Davidson in the years to come was quite remarkable.
Hailing from Young, ‘Davo’ ended up playing 39 Super Rugby matches for three teams (Western Force, Waratahs and Rebels), as well as representing Australia in Rugby Sevens, playing professional in the United Kingdom and captaining a side against the touring British & Irish Lions before retiring at the end of 2013.
Add to that Captaining Sydney University to eight Shute Shield titles and retiring as the Club’s most-capped forward in history, and it’s fair to say that decision to have a run around with his mates paid off!
“I had a year off after school where I just worked on the family farm and thought about what I wanted to do with my life, and then I moved to Sydney Uni I went to Uni to sports science first and foremost,” he told RUPA.
“Eventually I worked my way up to first grade, and then a couple of late injuries to the Australian Sevens squad meant I got a call up to head over and join them. There were no professional players in the Sevens squad back then; it was more of a pathway towards professionalism but it definitely exposed me to another level of intensity and was my first introduction to any system above Club Rugby. Playing Sevens added another level to my game through the demands on every player from a defensive point of view; one mistake would cost the team so much more than in 15-a-side Rugby, so that definitely helped me grow.
“Peter Hewat, Paul Warwick, Tim Walsh, Jarrod Saffy and Luke Inman were some of the mainstays of the team; Sevens gave me a fantastic opportunity to travel and to play at a higher level on the international stage, and to play for Australia at Twickenham is something I will remember for the rest of my life.”
From a short stint on the Sevens circuit came utility backrower Davidson’s first shot at professionalism, when he signed for the Western Force ahead of their first ever Super Rugby season in 2005.
“Moving to Perth was a big decision for me,” Davidson said. “When I first started playing at Sydney Uni, I certainly didn’t envisage that professional Rugby was going to become an opportunity or reality for me. I got to help create a brand new team in Peth and I loved it; you rarely get an opportunity to be part of an organisation from the ground up.
“It was a great group in Perth, and I learned a tremendous amount from both a leadership and playing perspective from guys like Nathan Sharpe. I would have loved to have stayed there longer, but there was a great opportunity to move home and join the Waratahs, which I took.”
Davidson had one season at the Waratahs but wasn’t offered a second contract, although with the benefit of hindsight he can take some solace from the fact his spot in the squad was taken by a man who would go on to Captain the Wallabies.
“The reality of professional sport is that you’re not always in control of the outcome, and Ben Mowen was signed to replace me there,” he explains. “I was still only 25 and certainly didn’t want to give Rugby away, so I went back to Club Rugby to try and reach 100 Shute Shield games for Sydney Uni which meant a great deal to me.
“Once I achieved that (century of games), I went overseas and played in the UK until mid-2009 but I figured I was getting towards the end of making a living out of Rugby. Then Damien Hill signed to coach at the new Melbourne Rebels team, and an unexpected opportunity came up.
“I’d played under Damien at Sydney Uni for a number of years when he was Head Coach, and given my perceived experience and having been part of a start up previously with the Force, he and Rod Macqueen saw some value in bringing me on board.”
So again Davidson’s career plans were put on hold as he re-located to Melbourne, where he would ultimately go on to stay for three years which included being named the Club’s inaugural off-field Captain in 2013; it’s a time he looks back on fondly.
“I absolutely loved my time down in Melbourne, it’s a great city that is absolutely sports mad and it was a wonderful experience. It was special to get to have another crack of playing at that level and also forge some more friendships and build another Club from the foundations up.
“When you’re playing lots of footy that’s when you are at your happiest, and while I was again playing behind some great back rowers such as Gareth Delve, Michael Lipman and Jarrod Saffy I was pleased to be able to contribute.
“It was a very competitive environment and I almost retired at the end of 2012, but the opportunity to play against the touring British & Irish Lions in 2013 was enough of a carrot that I decided to go around one more time. To do it as Captain of Combined NSW/QLD Country was almost a dream come true as I was able to represent where I grew up, and country Rugby has been a huge part of my life.”
After finishing up in Melbourne, it was back to Sydney for Davidson where he finished off the season in the Shute Shield with yet another Premiership before stepping away from Rugby a bit as he embarked on his professional career.
“When I first moved to Sydney, I did a sports science degree because I wanted to get into physiotherapy, however playing Rugby professionally didn’t allow me to have the capacity to continue with that as you need to be working full time. While I was playing, I started a part time Masters of Commerce, which I finished in 2009, and that got me thinking about combining my background and combining my rural roots with commerce.
“While I was at the Rebels, I began working one day a week with Emerald Grain, whose CEO at the time was (former Rebels board member) Alan Winney. That gave me a taste of what it was like to work in an office environment and combined what I had learnt from Uni and also my background, growing up on a wheat and sheep farm.
“That drove my passion to stay involved in agriculture after Rugby, but unfortunately Emerald Grain didn’t have a Head Office in Sydney so instead when we moved back at the end of 2013 I was fortunate enough to get into the Graduate Program at National Australia Bank (NAB).
“One thing led to another and three years later I am still there working in Agribusiness, starting at the bottom and now managing my own portfolio and with my own customers whose business and personal needs I service in regards to the finance. It’s a really interesting space at the moment with a lot of growth, it’s really enjoyable and it certainly keeps me busy.
“I also have about four or five hours to go to finish my pilots licence and I have it booked in to finish in August, which is something I did part time while I finished at the Rebels, which will mean I am able to fly back to the farm; that’s pretty exciting.”
With life away from Rugby going so well, it will surprise absolutely nobody who either knows ‘Davo’ or has followed the trend of this story to hear that he found his way back to Rugby fairly quickly.
“In 2014, all I did was some coaching once a week with the Sydney Uni forwards, but then (Head Coach at the time) Chris ‘Nobby’ Malone wanted to know if I would take on a more formal role with the forwards in 2015. I decided to make a greater commitment to the full season and getting stuck in and helping out, and I learnt a huge amount with Nobby at the helm.
“Next, (Head Coach) Peter Playford asked me to help with the Sydney Stars and we managed to make the Buildcorp NRC Semi Finals which was a huge improvement from the previous season. Nobby was then fortunate to get an opportunity to join the Waratahs’ coaching staff and Sydney Uni began to look at their succession plan.
“Whilst I am not necessarily the final destination from that perspective, I agreed to be a stopgap solution and help out as Head Coach for the 2016 season while I continue to work full time at NAB as well. Now I am enjoying the challenge of juggling full time employment with being the head coach of a program with 160 players, 30 volunteers and four full time staff of its own; it is challenging and rewarding at the same time.”
Part of that job includes managing life-long friend and former Waratahs star Tom Carter, a mainstay in the Uni side which is again amongst the competition front-runners. Laying down the law to Carter is a task that not many would envy, however Davidson is happy with how Carter’s digesting the message.
“I’m fortunate enough that I have known Tom since he was three months old and I am probably one of the only people he listens to!” Davidson laughs. “We’ve played a lot of Rugby together and spent the majority of our formative years together in Young; he’s the closest thing I have to a brother so he certainly carries out instructions and has been one of my biggest supporters at Uni.
“He does a lot of work behind the scenes and prepares the players to play, and does a lot of the organisational work that I can’t do as I don’t have the time, so I do owe him a fair bit for sure!”
Davidson, like all full-time professionally contracted Rugby players in Australia, was able to take advantage of Training and Education (T & E) grants provided by the RUPA Player Development Program (PDP) for eligible study courses.
These T & E grants allow professionally contracted Rugby players in Australia to map out a pathway away from Rugby in collaboration with the RUPA Player Development Manager (PDM) at their Club.
Players are able to access reimbursement for a portion of their study fees based upon successful completion, in accordance with the criteria established by the PDP. Players may claim both whilst still playing and also for a variable time period post-Rugby, based on their number of years as a professional.
