Rugby union legend inspires the young Peterborough RUFC players by hosting a training session at Fengate

David Campese, Aussie rugby legend, with the young players at Peterborough RUFC. Photo: David Lowndes.

Rugby legend David Campese gave teenagers at Peterborough Rugby Club the time of their lives on Werdnesday evening.

The 101-times capped Australian international, who was ‘Player of the Tournament’ when his country won the 1991 World Cup, gave the under 15 and under 14 boys’ team an hour-long training session before joining them for a meal and talking openly with them about his career and passing on invaluable advice.

“If you put the hard work in, it pays off,” Campese told an enthralled room of young players. “Don’t worry about making a mistake, but learn from your mistakes. If you try something and it doesn’t work, use that experience to learn from.

“And learn from watching somebody who plays in your position, learn from them. That’s how you get better. Pick somebody you admire, and watch everything they do in a match. Watch where they move, watch how they move.

David Campese gives advice to Peterborough RUFC youngsters. Photo: David Lowndes.

“And above all, just have fun. Go out and have fun with your mates. You’ve got to enjoy the game; that’s why we play it.”

The 60-year-old former winger scored 64 test-match tries during his 16-year international career, which was the world record when he retired in 1996. He was the first Australian, and only the second player in the world, to win 100 caps.

Borough Under 15 captain Quinn Gedney said: “It was really inspiring to have such a legend of the game at our club. I’ve always wanted to play professional rugby, and his advice was fantastic. It was just so inspiring to see somebody like that coming to our club, being in our clubhouse and helping us out. It’s been an absolutely fantastic experience.”

Campese, who also played for nine years in Italy and has coached the Singapore national team and the Tonga Sevens side, had all the time in the world to pose for pictures with the players – and their starstruck parents – and also passed comment on the way he sees the modern game.

“You can’t win a game of rugby if you don’t have the ball,” he added. “People are always kicking it away these days. I like the guys who are prepared to have a go, the guys who can change a game. If you’ve got the skills and the confidence, you can try whatever you want, and you just don’t see that enough these days. I don’t like the way the game’s gone. It’s all about defence now, not attack.”

And the best advice he had for the young Peterborough Rugby Club players: “The more you play together as a team, the better you will get!”

Peterborough Rugby Club has 22 different teams, male and female, ranging from veterans to under-6s and including both full-contact rugby and touch rugby. New recruits to their Fengate home are always welcome and potential newcomers can make contact through https://peterboroughrufc.rfu.club/teams.