Chatting with Brissy's Country Boy James Tuttle

This week, I caught up with James Tuttle, former Australian Under-20s captain, and now Reds scrum-half. We chatted about his Reds journey so far, as well as the current NRC season and why a Brissy boy like him is now playing for "Queensland Country".

(For those that aren't in the know, the National Rugby Competition, or NRC, is now in full swing! Both the "Brisbane City" and "Queensland Country" teams are playing locally, and around Australia. Both teams feature members of our Queensland Reds. Check out the schedule here and get to a game if you can...)

Hope you enjoy my latest interview!

Hi James, thanks for making time to catch up.

No worries Tommy, more than a pleasure.

How’s the off-season for the Reds going?

Off-seasons going good. We’ve got a bit of time off after the Super Rugby season, and now we’re along the way with all our NRC training, and the competition for Queensland Country.

It’s been good - we’ve played three games so far. We lost to Canberra, but we were lucky enough to beat [Brisbane] City up in Noosa which was a great achievement for us, we haven’t beaten them in four years.. it’s been really good.

How have you found your first season with the Reds?

Yeah it’s been really enjoyable. Coming into this year was exciting. I played a few games last year, but this year I’ve gotten a lot more time playing number 9, and a lot more opportunity as well.

I’m really happy with how I’ve progressed this year, and really looking forward to what we can do at Suncorp Stadium next year. We’ve got a good group of players, with some new coaching staff, so I think a lot of the boys are ready to rip into pre-season and we’ll back playing in no time in February. It’s going to be really exciting.

You were born in Brisbane, so how is it that you came to be playing for Queensland Country in the NRC?

(Laughs.) It’s a bit funny isn’t it. I think a lot of the boys in the team are from Brissy.. but at the start of the competition they had to split the Reds players evenly across the two sides. But in our squad at the moment, we do have a lot of players with country backgrounds, so they get to represent where they’ve come from, and play for those people back home that have gotten them to where they are now, so I’m glad that I’m playing for country. I’ve loved every minute that I’ve played this year and I can’t wait to get stuck into it on Sunday.

Can you tell us about your journey through the Reds development program?

Yep. I left school in 2013, and came to the Reds under 20s at the start of 2014. I played a year with them and then played with my club side as well, Jeeps… then at the end of 2014, did my first pre-season with the Reds, and in 2015, just played a bit of Jeeps, bit of Reds under-20s, and mainly the Australian under-20s, as well as the NRC at the end of the year.

Moving into 2016, it was pretty much the same, played the Aussie under-20s and then got into the last few games with the Reds. I made my debut over in Loftus, in South Africa against the Bulls.

I signed my first contract in 2015, for the 2016 season. It’s been a good journey, it’s a great development program the Reds have here. You see a lot of the players coming through now, a lot of the blokes my age, or similar ages to me that have progressed through the under-20s ranks and now they’re playing for the Reds, or for their NRC sides as well. 

We’re gonna breed some great talent in the next couple of years, and I just can’t wait to see the progress in all of the players.

Who was your favourite player growing up?

I think… I do love my rugby league, and I used to watch it more than I did my union, but one of my favourite union players growing up was probably George Gregan. Playing half-back, I loved how quick he was around the ruck and how quick he was around the field, and how he stabbed the attack for all the Australian and Brumbies backlines that he played in, he was probably my idol in a Rugby Union sense.

For rugby league, I really loved watching Darran Lockyer as well, he was probably my favourite player growing up. He was just phenomenal whenever he played for the Maroons, the Broncos, or for Australia. But I was pretty happy watching either rugby union or rugby league, I just love both of them.

What is the biggest highlight in your life so far?

Biggest highlight of my life so far.. I think probably debuting for the Reds. It’s been a dream of mine for a while to play for the Queensland Reds side… Watching them as a kid, and finally getting an opportunity to play, it’s hard to put into words. I made my debut, as I said, against South Africa against the Bulls, it’s a pretty awesome place to make a debut. I obviously would have loved to have made my debut at home here at Suncorp, in front of home fans and a home crowd, but Loftus is such an amazing place to play, and I was really happy with the opportunity I got give. I think that’s the highlight of my life so far, definitely.

And everyones favourite question… Can you tell us something about yourself that not many people may know?

I was waiting for this one. (Laughs). Maybe a couple of things. I’m studying at the moment, business and law at QUT. I like to keep myself busy when I’m not playing footy. I think it’s pretty important to keep myself doing something when I’m not around here.

Maybe another one, when I was leaving school, I was offered to go and play league with the Broncos under-20s. So I had the option of coming here and playing for the Reds, or going to Red Hill and playing with the under-20s with the Broncos. I weighed up those two options, and made the decision to stay here. I’m pretty pleased with the opportunity that I’ve been given here.

Thanks again for taking time out to chat.

No worries Tom.

All the best for your game against Sydney on Sunday!

Ahh thank you. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to chat with you, and hopefully we’ll get the win on Sunday. The boys are pretty pumped!

Hanging with Higginbotham

I was happy today to get to hang out with one of the great number 8's, someone who's down (neck injury) but far from out. Fitting in some time after an early morning gym session, Scott was relaxed and optimistic. He shared that even though his injury recovery had been slow at first, he was making progress to get back in the game soon.

Hope you enjoy reading my latest interview!

Hi Scott! I'm really happy that we have finally got the time to chat! I'm surprised it hasn't happen sooner.....

Yeah me too Tommy, me too.

How has the off season been? Have you been up to much?

Yeah Tommy, I had that neck injury in the June test series which was a couple of bulged discs and a bit of nerve stuff. That happened during the Scotland game, so unfortunately I missed the game and I missed the last two rounds for the Reds. But since then, the necks come along well, it was a bit slow, but it’s improving. It makes pre-season a bit hard because you can’t do too much besides a bit of gym and a bit of cardio.

Also, I’m not able to do the fun stuff like surfing, that I normally do in an off-season.

I'm glad you're back in Queensland. Looking back though, what were the highlights of playing in other places, including Melbourne and Japan, and internationally for the Wallabies?

It was obviously hard to leave the Reds back in 2012, especially after having so much success in 2011. 2012 we made it to the quarter final, but you know, came up against a Sharks team that should have won that year - if they didn’t have to travel for the quarter, semi, and the final, I reckon they really would have won. But I think I got a lot of leadership skills, being in Melbourne. It was good to be captain I think, that was something that I aspired to. Being captain of a super team was a great achievement for me. Which, unfortunately I don’t think would have happened if I was at the Reds, in terms of, I suppose the leadership that was there at the time, it just didn’t look that way. So going to Melbourne, I got that out of it, and living in a different city was great. And same with Japan actually, being able to live overseas was a great experience, and something I’d recommend to all players. You know, if they get the chance to live in another country, or even experience another State, those experiences are second to none and they can really hold you through life I think.

How was it returning to the Reds this season as one of the experienced members of the squad?

Yeah it was a different experience. Being at the Reds initially, I started in 2005 in the academy, training out at that shed over on the other side of the field, and started training with guys like Chris Latham, John Lowe, and you know Crofty, Hardy, and all those guys. I guess I was here for 5 years initially, still coming through and just making the Wallabies and achieving a bit. But you know I still felt young and I still felt a bit immature in a rugby sense. And it’s a lot different to come back and be the older guy. I spent a lot of time as a younger bloke, and it’s nice to be older now and to have a bit more experience under your belt to hold you in better stead, and you feel like you can achieve something with the younger blokes here I think.

I'm interested in the stats of the game, and your name comes up as the highest scoring forward in Super Rugby. How did you feel when you broke that record?

(Laughs) Yeah I was pretty pumped about that. Rugby for me is a lot of fun, and I don’t like the idea of you know, forwards being stereotyped into a certain mould. I grew up as a back, as a winger through school, and played a lot of soccer and basketball. I like the idea of using different skills and being able to kick the ball in the game, I don’t think that should just be limited to backs, and that goes the same for scoring tries. It shouldn’t be just the backs. To me, that’s the funnest part of the game, it’s putting points on the board. That’s how you win games.

That’s something I’m really proud of, and hopefully, in the next couple of years I can extend that record and hold on to it for a while. (Laughs again).

What have you enjoyed most about playing for the Reds so far?

So far, I think that the best thing has been seeing the young talent coming through. Like I said, being an older player, there’s two sides of it. I’ve really enjoyed coming back and playing with guys like Quadey, playing with Simmo, playing with Slips again, you know these are guys that I went through the academy and grew up with. And just being able to spend time with those guys. When you go overseas, and go to different States, you miss those friendships, so it’s great to come back and rekindle that. And on the other side, it’s great to see young guys coming through, and I guess to help them achieve their Super Rugby or Wallaby goals.

What do you enjoy most about living in Brisbane?

Probably days like this. Brisbane is one of the reasons I came back. Playing for Queensland, but also being able to live in this State, with the weather like this. Especially after being in Melbourne where it gets a bit cold through the winter. But I love it. We’re 40 minutes from the Gold Coast, an hour from the Sunshine Coast, surfing is something I’m passionate about, and I love doing that in my spare time.

It’s a big country town Brisbane, it’s an easy place to live, and it’s just got great weather. 

And everyone's favourite question... can you tell us something about yourself that not many people may know?

I love motorbikes. A few people know that, but I’m pretty big into my vintage cars, and vintage motorbikes. I love that kind of stuff, like getting to swap-meets, I’ve got a Harley myself, I’ve got mates that have Harley’s and we love going for a ride over the weekend. And of course I love music, and getting into live music. Brisbane’s come a long way in that scene. It’s good to be back, and trying to get back into it.

Thanks for making the time this morning. It's been great chatting.

Tommy, no worries. Any time mate, any time.

Kicking back with Karmichael

It's good to be back!!!

Since the last blog, I've been to New York and back to visit family (check out my Insta to see some pics)... But right now, it's good to be back at Ballymore and back into action.

Today, I was lucky enough to sit down with Karmichael Hunt and hear, among other things, how his injury recovery is going! It was great to see him him and also James Slipper with their trainer running on the field. It looked like they are both making awesome progress!

I hope you enjoy my latest interview, and getting to hear from Karmichael himself how he is going.

Hey Karmichael, how's it going? Thanks for making the time to catch up.

I'm going really well. My pleasure Tom.

How's the ankle going?

Yeah it's going well. I've been out of my moon boot for 2 weeks now, so into the second week I've started to run, and today, which is the end of the week (Friday), I've probably had my best running session yet. So all positive signs for me, that I'm heading in the right direction with football, and the ankles feeling great.

What's the next step for you?

The next step for me... Next week, I just got told by my physio that I'm going to be stepping up my running. So I'm probably going to be doing a lot more running, in terms of fitness sessions, and then hopefully in a couple of weeks time I'll be able to play some football.

Congrats on being selected for the Wallabies squad earlier this year. That was a huge achievement.

Yes it was. Thank you very much. It was definitely a huge achievement for me, especially for my career and having gone through some tough times individually, but also with the team up here in Queensland as well.. It was nice to be selected, along with Eto who made his debut, and we obviously had Quade in the team who's been there many times before, as well as Samu. So it was a huge honour for myself and my family.

What was it like putting on the gold jersey for the first time?

Well, it gave me goosebumps. I'd watched the Wallabies play so many times on TV before, and it had been a dream of mine ever since I came to Queensland to the Reds 3 years ago now. So for me to finally be able to pull the jersey on, I had a lot of emotions going through me, thinking about family, my parents, all the people who put hard work into me to get me up to this point, it was a really huge moment for me.

Well, we were all proud of you for getting there. You played brilliantly. We were gutted when you got injured. I'm really glad your recovery is going well.

Thank you very much. I enjoyed being involved with the Wallabies, and it is a shame that I got an ankle injury in the last round of the year, but these things happen in football. You just have to rehab it, move on, and get fitter and stronger and push for selection, which hopefully I'll be doing in a few weeks time.

What did you get up to during your down time?

Obviously, you probably know I've got 3 daughters and a wife, so my time at home is pretty well spent with the kids. We took them down to the beachh a couple of times, they love going down to the water, down on the Gold Coast, so just hanging out with the girls, doing a bit of study as well, so yeah not much travelling for me, just been here in Brisbane, looking after the family and keeping them happy.

Have you found any good music or books lately?

Yes I have actually, music wise, it's not new music,  it I've definitely found some good music that I've been getting into, I've been enjoying a bit of Metallica, so it's not my usual playlist, but Metallica, Guns N Roses... I've been getting into my rock which is pretty cool.

Did you watch any of the Wallaroos games at the World Cup?

I saw the highlights, I didn't watch any full games but definitely they gave it a good shake, they played some good football, and me having three daughters, it's nice to see the ladies playing sport that generally men would play. So definitely proud of them.

Cool. Well, thanks again K for taking time out for this. It's a pleasure as always.

Yeah my pleasure as well! It's always good to talk to you, and to be on the blog for the second time. So hopefully we can talk again in the future.

Sounds great. As supporters, we're all behind 100% you. Keep getting better fast.

Thank you very much. I definitely appreciate the support. So thank you very much.

Kick and Chase - An Excellent Afternoon

Last week was an exciting week. It's not every day that a producer from Fox Sports calls you up and asks to come and interview you personally.

The story aired last week, here's the clip if you didn't catch it:

Thanks to all involved, and thanks to Ryan for producing and bringing it all together.

And while you're at it, check out this video from the same episode and "Get to Know the Wallaroos". My cousin Grace is on the right:

The Reds Final Game is This Friday

Apologies for the delay with getting an interview online. The Queensland Reds are in New Zealand at the moment preparing to take on the Highlanders.

Tune in 5:35pm (Brisbane time) to watch and support!

Sitting Down with Sef Fa'agase

Earlier this week, right after a tough mornings training, I was able to sit down with Reds prop Sef Fa'agase to chat. We spoke about rugby, his life, and his teams recent trip to Samoa - his families country of origin. Enjoy!

Hey Sef, Thanks for making the time to chat.

That's ok. Thanks for having me Tom.

How's training going for the Reds team at the moment?

Trainings been very tough. It's been almost like a mini-preseason. It's been a good opportunity, during the June period with all the [Wallabies] test matches where us as individuals can get better with the little things that we need to work on that we can't really do during the season, so trainings been really good.

What was your highlight from the Samoa trip?

I guess playing in front of my family, they don't get to see me play too often. They've only been able to watch from a distance. And I guess showcasing to the boys a little bit about where I come from was a real highlight.

You guys played well, especially with the captain out of action.

Yeah I think we played exceptionally well. We were unlucky to not come away with the win - but it was good that the captain that we had that night stepped up when Samu got injured and he led really well.

You're originally from New Zealand. How did you end up playing in Brisbane?

Yes I was born in New Zealand, but my family moved to Brisbane in 94. So I've spent most of my life in Brisbane, and I've played most of my junior footy out in Beaudesert, and now I'm here with the Reds.

What do you enjoy most about playing in the Prop position? What does the position involve?

I guess being a prop you're really at the front line of it all, especially within the scrums, it's my favourite part of the game. Just being physical with the other opposing player, it's why I love playing.

My main job as a prop is scrum first and foremost, and I play an integral part in the line out functioning. So a lot of lifting, and a lot of set pieces.

Can you tell us something about yourself that not many people may know?

Ok, something that not a lot of people know about me... it wasn't til after I left school that I picked up rugby, but during high school I was a cheer-leader, so I think I can thank that for my line-out lifting. [Laughs].

You already have a lot of experience in rugby society. Do you have any advice for someone wanting to pursue a career in rugby union, both boys and girls?

So like I said, I didn't pick up rugby until after I left school, but for anyone that has a dream of playing rugby, I just say go ahead, anything is possible. Just as long as you set yourself some goals, I think that's the main part. And then asking as many questions as you can, people that are around, within the rugby society. So that's my biggest advice. Ask a lot of questions, set goals, and anythings possible.

The next Reds game is against the Brumbies on Friday the 7th July. For sure I'll be there watching and supporting. All the best for your teams training over the next few weeks.

Thank you a lot! I look forward to seeing you there, and I look forward to hopefully getting a win against the Brumbies, just for you.

A Big Day for Ballymore/A Conversation with Izack Rodda

I had a great day today at Ballymore stadium. I got to watch the Wallabies train and meet a few of them for the first time, as well see the Reds do their thing. The Wallabies are in Brisbane, ahead of their match against Italy - 3pm this Saturday at Suncorp - on Channel 10.

Henry Speight was humble enough to take a photo with me, even with my Reds hat on

Bumped into this stranger. I tried to make him feel as welcome as possible at Ballymore

For this weeks player interview, I was lucky to sit down with the giant himself, Izack Rodda. Enjoy!

Hey Izack, thanks for taking time to chat. I know things are busy for you at the moment.

Yeah no worries mate!

I heard a rumour you've been training with the Wallabies. Is that true? 

Yeah it’s true I trained yesterday.

How did it go?

It was exciting. It was a new step for me in my career. It was a lot of fun and a lot of work. Contacts are a lot harder than over here, so it was good.

Back to the Reds - how's the teams training going at the moment?

Yeah trainings been good. We’ve doing a lot of games and we’ve been working specifically on our line out work and kick-off reception which has been good for us. We’ve been lacking that this year, so we’ve been really honing down on it in the last couple of weeks and really improving.

So how did you end up playing for the Reds?

Well I finished school up at Ipswich Grammar in 2014 and I came over to the under-20s programme and was in that for about 2 years. In 2016 I went from that and started training here and haven’t left since. I sort of just went through the pathway.

You’re originally from Lismore, which is in New South Wales.

Yeah I grew up in Evans Head down in Byron Bay. They had some scouts from the school come down to one of the local rep game and asked me to come along down to the school there so I just took the chance.

Sorry about the game last night.

Yeah the Blues sort of went to sleep in the second half, and let Queensland back into it. JT was never going to miss that kick.

What was your highlight from the teams recent trip to Samoa?

It was probably Jakey McIntyre dancing with his shirt off at the dinner, with a little Samoan girl in the show they did. That was definitely a highlight.

And the question we ask everyone... can you tell us something about yourself that not many people may know?

Umm… when I was 6 years old, I played soccer and did ballet for school. Not many people know that. I kept that on the down low for a long time.

Thanks for your time. Good luck with your training this week.

No, thank you. Pleasure. Yeah, one more session to go and then a couple of days off.

With the #redsinsamoa

I’ve had an awesome week visiting Samoa with the Queensland Reds for their game against the Auckland Blues. As this is being written, we are just getting ready to head back home to Brisbane.

As well as this weeks player interview (with Lukhan Tui) I wanted to share a bit more about my trip overall and some of the memories I’ll take home with me. I had a great time travelling around the island, eating great food (especially the fish!) and meeting some of the amazing locals who really took care of me. It was also great to hang out with members of the Reds team during their down time, and even at their trainings.

The biggest highlight for me (besides watching Friday night’s game) was handing out the jersey’s to team, on the morning of the game. It was an honour to be a part of the day in that way. I think I’ll kick off with photos from there:

Click here to see a quick video of the morning on the Reds Instagram page.

Catching up with the team on arrival

Obviously… this is me talking to Samu Kerevi, the Reds captain, in the hotel lobby. What I didn’t know when this picture was taken is that Bill English, the Prime Minister of New Zealand is in the background. True story - we actually met Bill later on, after Friday nights game and were allowed to take a proper photo with him. (He's a nice bloke by the way.) I might choose to post that one later, but for now, I just wanted to share this one. I like it better. He does support the Blues after all.

Unfortunately Samu was injured during Friday’s game. Samu - we’re all behind you, and are wishing you a quick recovery in time for the rest of the Reds season.

With the Reds at Training

I was gutted to find out at training that Rob Simmons (to my left) also got injured that week. Rugby is definitely a tough game! Rob, I know you’ll be back soon.

Catching up with Reds coach Nick Stiles after the captains run at Apia Stadium

The Game

Watching the game was an awesome experience. The Reds didn’t win it, but overall, their performance was good. Click here to see one of their tries that my press secretary managed to capture:

“Two-try Tupou” is what my Dad called Teniela after he scored his second try.

It is true there were some empty seats at the game, but the crowd was still very vocal and enthusiastic. Sure there were a lot of Blues flags in the crowd, but there was also a very loud group supporting the Reds. Over the next few days, as we travelled around the island, everyone we spoke to knew about the game, and most people that weren’t there with us had watched it on television. It’s clear the game was well received by the locals, and that the Reds now have many fans in this country.

George Smith getting up close to Samoan Reds fans after the game

If you’d like to see more photos from the Reds trip to Samoa, why not type in the hashtag #redsinsamoa on Instagram.  I hope the Reds travel here again.

On game day, a reporter came up to me and my Dad and wanted to photograph and interview us. It came out in the paper the next day.

Travelling around the island

On Saturday and Sunday, I spent half of the day travelling around different parts of the island.

Our first trip took us to Lalomanu beach, and Sunday afternoons trip took us around the other side, ending in Mulifanua which is close to the airport.

The Samoans showed themselves to be great at hospitality, feeding us very well. I especially loved eating the fresh fish. Also, I probably drank way too much pineapple juice and Fanta. 

A big thanks to Tili and Lette from “AHM Taxi Stand” for taking such good care of me.

This is Junior and Rose. One night, the pathway we took to get home was quite rocky, and they helped hold my wheelchair for most of the trip home. Like I said, people took good care of me around here.

Thanks again Samoa for having me. Everyone should try and visit this country sometime.

June Wallabies Tests

The Super Rugby competition is on hold for a while. There are three Wallabies tests happening in the month of June and I’ll definitely be watching every one of them.

Although Rob and Samu are injured, Stephen, Quade, Scott, Karmichael, Eto, and Lukhan are all Reds players who have made the squad. (The last three are playing for the Wallabies for the first time!)

The first test is this Saturday, June 10th at 3pm (in Melbourne). Make sure you're tuning in....

I'll be back with another player interview soon.

Are you following me on Instagram? Make sure you find me @tomhamiltonreds