Ollie Chessum became just the second man from Lincolnshire to represent England’s Rugby Union side when he made his debut four years ago last Friday.
Not only that, but he also became the first man to do it in nearly 50 years since Peter Warfield last pulled on the Lions shirt in 1975.
However, from never being a standout player in his youth days at Kesteven RFC and Sleaford RFC, he lined for his country in a Six Nations opener and managed to pick up man of the match as they defeated Wales 48-7.
The way he got there was never entirely down to his skill but rather his eagerness to learn, lead and his all-round ability to just be a good person.
From joining Kesteven at 15-years old, Chessum only grew under the guidance of coach, Phil Jordan, and a dedicated team that stuck together from the second he joined the club.
He was also later helped by coaches at Midland’s Under 18’s, England Counties Under 18’s, Nottingham RFC and now Leicester Tigers.
The 25-year-old has since gone on to make 11 appearances in the Nottingham first team, as well as a further 77 for the Tigers where he now represents the club as captain.
Not only that, but he has also picked up 30 caps for England as well as three for the British and Irish Lions in last summer’s tour to Australia.
Current Kesteven Under five’s coach, Phil Jordan, 45, coached Chessum at age grade level and spoke on what he remembers when he first saw the international.
“It was nothing completely out of the ordinary. He stood out because he was quite tall and had pretty good ball handling skills.
“But you never really thought he was going to go on and play for England.”
“What stood out most was that he was someone that wanted to listen and get better but at the same time naturally dragged others along with him.
“He fitted into the team straight away and at that age you’ve got 15-year-old lads that were starting lose a bit of focus and he took us from being fairly mediocre to a county-cup final.”
From there, the Carres Grammar School student was one of the first in his age group to turn 17, which made him eligible to play open age Rugby.
Phil added: “Some lads at that age would struggle a bit physically but he was quite easily playing against men.”
He then made eight appearances for the sides second team throughout that season but never made an appearance for the first team.
Then there came a decision to merge Kesteven’s Colts’ team, which was the youth side Chessum was playing for, with the second team.
Phil explained that decision and how it helped the Tigers captain in the long-term, when he said: “It’s quite a nice level to get people playing at in that second team.
“They had a good team so when we merged the age groups together, they were definitely ready and he was a big part of that because he just naturally gets along with everyone.”
It was in the third and final year at Kesteven that things really started to progress for Chessum as he was successful at county trials which made him eligible for a Midlands Under 18’s team.
That then allowed him to play for an England Counties side at same age group as he became the first player from Kesteven to do so.
He captained the side that went on tour to Ireland as he was chosen by all but one player on the team. The only player that didn’t vote for him, was Chessum himself.
Phil said: “That really stood out to me and proved that he was a really natural leader, and it’s been absolutely brilliant to see where he has gone since.”
We also spoke to current Kesteven chairman Dimitri Arlando, on the work that the second-row player does now for the club.
He said: “Whenever he can and his schedule permits, he’s up at the club watching his cousin play and he’s just a nice guy and laid-back person.
“Kids will come up to him and ask for an autograph, and he has a love and appreciation for where he learnt his trade.
“He’s always willing to come back for dinners and present awards, and he’s certainly an inspiration for the kids that come through the club.”
And that seems to be what sums his journey up perfectly. Ollie Chessum went from playing for the second team of a local Rugby Club to making his England debut in just three years.
He’s the perfect example of how Rugby is a late development sport and how anyone from anywhere really can do anything.