Young Gun: Drew Cheshire – Moseley wing

Drew Cheshire has been one of the most prolific try-scorers in the National Leagues for the past two seasons with 46 tries in 69 games for Luctonians.
So when Moseley went on the lookout for a replacement to their star winger Matt Williams, the 22-year-old winger was top of Kevin Maggs’ wish list.
Cheshire was contracted with Gloucester last season but, although he helped the Cherry and Whites lift the Premiership Sevens trophy in pre-season, his first-team opportunities were scarce and he spent most of the year back at Luctonians on dual-registration.
He managed to play a full game at the Scarlets in the LV=Cup and he made his Premiership debut against Worcester in the last round of the season.
“It was a great experience to train at Gloucester alongside guys I used to watch on TV like Mike Tindall, Jimmy Cowan or James Simpson-Daniel,” he told The Rugby Paper.
“Apart from the Premiership Sevens and the Scarlets game I didn’t play much for Gloucester but those 30 seconds against Worcester in the Premiership felt like a great achievement and I was very happy.
“I told my agent I would like to play more regularly at the highest level and he told me Moseley were interested so I met up with Kevin Maggs and his vision seemed the right fit for me. I really wanted to test myself and see if I was good enough to play at this level consistently.
“It’s a big step up from National Two North. I’ve become faster and stronger and my skills and game understanding have massively improved. Everything happens a lot faster and you’ve got to be ready when you get an opportunity because they don’t come as often.”
Cheshire was introduced to rugby at the age of eight by his dad Mark and joined his hometown club Hereford.
He stayed there until 16 while captaining his school side at Whitecross High before moving on to Luctonians and Hartpury College.
Playing in the same age group as Ian Clark, Ryan Mills and Dan Robson, Cheshire was late to develop as a player, however, meaning he did not get the chance to represent the College’s 1st XV.
But his performances at club level, which helped earn him an England Counties call-up in 2013 and a place in TRP’s National League Two North Dream Team in 2014, proved hard work pays off and he has not given up on a second crack at England’s top flight.
He said: “It’s every schoolboy’s dream to get the chance to pull an England shirt on so it was a very proud moment for me, my girlfriend and my family who believed in me from day one.
“I’m definitely a late developer when it comes to rugby but the setbacks at Hartpury and Gloucester made me want it even more.
“Now I’m done with my University degree at Cardiff Met, I’ll work hard to see how far I can go.
“Dropping to the Championship does not mean the end of your career. A lot of Premier-ship clubs recruit from the Championship so it’s up to me to keep working hard, play well at Moseley week-in week-out and maybe one day I can add to my 30 seconds in the Premiership.”