Martin relishing playing with pals

George Martin is a familiar name to English rugby fans, but the man behind the player is still very much a mystery.

The towering Leicester Tigers forward burst onto the scene in 2020, winning his first England cap off the bench against Ireland, and has quickly gone onto become a household name; but away from the pitch, he likes to keep a low profile.

“I just like chilling out. I love watching films, I’m big into my films,” he said.

“I like seeing my friends and going out on walks. I live in the middle of Leicester and I’ve got Abbey Park right next to me, so I make sure I can get out, but I put my hood up.”

His humble nature away from the pitch is embodied by the fact he still drives his first car, which he detailed earns him a bit of stick from Leicester and England teammate Ollie Chessum.

“I’m in a little Volkswagen Up,” he added. “It was my first car, I got it when I was like 17 and I haven’t changed it since. Ches always takes a mick out of me and says it’s like Mr Incredible climbing into his little car.”

Martin and Chessum have played with each other for years at Welford Road, and since making their senior debuts have quickly gone onto become key cogs in the Tigers pack.  

They also both find themselves in the unique position of being able to play both second-row and flanker, and have both seen plenty of action in either position for their club; but Martin opened up on their desire to play together in the engine room.

He added: “It’s been a bit weird really. I was playing 6 when Ches first came in, and then he was playing a bit of six, and then Steve had me and Ches playing all over. I’m pretty sure there was a back row at some point of Ches at seven, me at eight, and Hanro Liebenberg at six.

“We’ve obviously played together a lot, but we’ve both been at each other for ages saying ‘we’ve always wanted to play in the row, and I think hopefully we can play there for many years to come. He’s a great lad and I’ve got a lot of time for him.”

The imposing forwards aren’t the only young guns from Leicester to now be part of the fabric of Steve Borthwick‘s squad. Freddie Steward has become a regular fixture in the England backline, and players like Joe Hayes and Jack van Poortvliet have also won caps under Borthwick.

This has left Martin feeling the love, and he reflected on a ‘special moment’ he had at the World Cup with his long-term friend Steward.

“I remember me and Fred had a nice moment at the World Cup,” he reminisced. “We couldn’t believe that we were there. We’ve been mates since we were 14 and have pretty much grown up together, and then now we’re at the World Cup.

“We just said ‘wow’, but it’s awesome. We were in Le Touquet, and we were walking like back from training and we just couldn’t believe it.”

“Jack is in the same boat too. He’s been a bit unlucky with his injuries, but he’ll be back soon. It’s been great, I’ve loved it.”

Written by Louis Chapman-Coombe

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