Why dark days led to a bright future for Leeds Rhinos' Chev Walker

Walker served seven and a half months of an 18-month sentence for violent disorder following an incident in Leeds.

He was released just before Christmas, 2003 and played in Rhinos’ first Grand Final win over Bradford Bulls the following October.

Talking in a podcast with Rhinos player Brad Dwyer, Walker said the kindness of a prison officer - who allowed him to watch televised matches on Friday nights - and support from future coach Tony Smith helped him through his dark days behind bars.

“I remember Leeds getting beaten by Wigan at Headingley in 2003 and that was the day I thought ‘I have let my teammates down’,” he reflected.

“I remember thinking ‘I am not going to let them down again’ and I just started to up my training, asking for permission to do extra running and this and that.”

Smith was appointed for 2004 shortly after that game and Walker revealed: “He came to see me when I was in, when he was still Huddersfield coach.

“He had a good chat with me and I clicked with him straight away. I thought if he is going to go out of his way to see me and reassure me, what else can I do other than work hard?

“I got released on December 15 and played Boxing Day. That year was probably my best as a player and we won it, that was the start of the dynasty at Leeds.

“I was so grateful to be able to play and to have a coach who cared about me and wanted us to do well. It was an enjoyable ride because we felt invincible.

“When the final whistle went [in the Grand Final] I just ran off into a corner and Tony came and grabbed me. I just kept saying ‘how different is 12 months’.

“My mum and dad had supported me all year and, when I was in jail and I got my Grand Final ring and didn’t even look at it, I just said ‘that’s yours’.

“To this day I have never seen it.

“The memory means more.”

Walker, 37, feels coping strategies he taught himself in prison are helping him now during the coronavirus lockdown.

He has passed tips on to Rhinos’ squad, who have been furloughed while the sport is suspended and reflected: “When I got sent there I was like ‘what can I do to make this time worthwhile?’.

“The club were really good, they stuck by me and made sure my mortgage and bills were paid, so I had no stresses - a bit similar to where we are now with Kev [Sinfield, Rhinos’ director of rugby] working hard to put things in place to make sure we are all right.

“I thought if I am going to be here, I’m not going to be sat here feeling sorry for myself, I am going to do something. I did my GCSE maths and started to look at things a bit different, rather than just being a rugby league player.

“I started to look at actually developing myself as a person and, from that whole experience, I was able to distance myself from being a rugby player and actually concentrate on who I am.

“That’s a bit what I am getting now [in lockdown].

“I am reconnecting with being a husband and a dad again.”

Walker also told Dwyer he regrets not going to play in Australia’s NRL when he left Leeds in 2006.

He had interest from Melbourne Storm, Parramatta Eels and Gold Coast Titans but, instead, opted to sign for Bath Rugby Union Club. He spent just a year there before returning to league with Hull Kingston Rovers.

Walker later played - and had a spell as an assistant-coach - at Bradford before joining up with Leeds Rhinos’ backroom staff in 2019. He recalled: “I was really tempted to go to Melbourne, but I had just got together with [wife] Lauren and I don’t think it would have been the right thing to do at the time.

“I was itching to go somewhere and do something different, to look after my career longevity.

“People think I left for more money.

“I got looked after, but it wasn’t the be-all and end-all, it was more the fear of getting to 28 or 29 and being too scared to go anywhere else.

“Looking back I should’ve taken the jump and gone to the NRL.

“I had enough in my game and enough fight in me to do that.

“I went to rugby union, the challenge was good, but it wasn’t for me.”

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