From guardian:

Leon Pryce is smiling. “Hi, mate, how’s it going?” he bellows as he enters the room with an ear-to-ear grin. “Life’s pretty awesome at the minute, isn’t it?”. Once, this greeting would have been little to remark upon from Pryce, but, given how the former Great Britain rugby league international is about to describe the mental turmoil he went through this summer after retiring unexpectedly, it makes his mood all the more surprising.

We meet at a service station coffee shop which, while only a few miles from Bradford Bulls’ Odsal Stadium, where Pryce made his name, is a world away from his glittering career.


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For two decades Pryce was one of the sport’s most recognisable players, regarded as one of the finest of his generation. Born into a family with a rich history in the sport, the 35-year-old became the youngest player in Bradford’s history, at the age of 16 in 1998, and went on to win every domestic honour at his hometown club as an integral part of one of the most successful teams in Super League. He went on to extraordinary success at St Helens, Catalans Dragons and Hull FC, finishing as one of the most decorated players in the sport’s modern era.

In 2016, he was part of the Hull FC squad who won the Challenge Cup at Wembley for the first time in the club’s history but there was still one box left to tick in his career – finishing at Bradford and when the opportunity arose this year, he took it.

Things quickly turned sour. The Bulls, now in the sport’s second tier, the Championship, were liquidated in January amid crippling financial problems and while Pryce remained loyal and became captain of the reincarnated Bulls in February, he was battered and broken. “By the end of my career I was having painkiller injections in my knee just so I could play. I ended up with chronic arthritis in my knee, and I was training only once a week so I could get through games. By the end, I was suffering mentally, as well as physically.”

Now in daily pain and accepting his playing days were limited, Pryce called a halt to his career in May, 24 hours after being substituted during a defeat by London in which a section of the Bradford fans, who once watched him lift trophy after trophy at the club, jeered him as he left the field. The agony and the mental strain had taken their toll on Pryce and in the blink of an eye, his career was over.

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What followed is proof that even the greatest of talents are not immune to the darkest of demons. As the sports minister, Tracy Crouch, underlined at the beginning of this week when calling for more help for elite sportsmen and women, “profession is no barrier to the darkness that invades your mind and soul”.

For Pryce, regrettably, things, would not get any better in the days and weeks after retirement. Suddenly he was stranded. “I had a breakdown,” he says. “I ended up moving out of my house and living with my mum for a bit. My wife was pregnant and it wasn’t right to be around the house at that time. It was bad. She and my mother-in-law saw I was in a horrible place – and that’s when they got in touch with Colin.”

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Colin is Colin Bland, the chief executive of Sporting Chance, the clinic founded by the former Arsenal captain Tony Adams, in 2000, to help provide treatment for sportsmen and sportswomen in need of it.

Pryce found himself whisked away to Liphook in Hampshire, where the clinic is based. “It’s 25 days you’re there,” he recalls. “It’s just about recovering: no drinking, no pressure, no financial strain, nothing. You’re cut off from it all. It’s the most stress-free you’ll ever be.”

Harrowingly, he is clear about what might have happened had the call never gone in to Sporting Chance. “There is no shadow of a doubt that it saved my life – 100%. I wouldn’t be sat here doing this interview if I hadn’t gone to it.”

Pryce admits he was also thankful for the support of former players throughout his struggles. His former St Helens and Great Britain team-mate Lee Gilmour sat up with him for an entire night to ensure he was safe. When news of his problems began to surface among the rugby league community, players such as the former Great Britain captain Jamie Peacock, and his international team-mate Adrian Morley, phoned and offered their support.

Pryce, thankfully, returned home from Sporting Chance with clarity and, perhaps more importantly, a vision. Many players opt for coaching or punditry when they retire. Pryce is intent on something different. “Whilst I was down there and my mind began to clear, I realised I wanted to help people who may be in my situation in the future,” he explains. “I was mindful of speaking out because I didn’t want it to be a sob story – but if I talk and help break a bit of the stigma attached to rugby, and it shows that if I can go through it anyone can, that is massive.”

For two decades Leon Pryce, here for Bradford at Warrington in 2003, was one of rugby league’s most recognisable players.
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For two decades Leon Pryce, here for Bradford at Warrington in 2003, was one of rugby league’s most recognisable players. Photograph: Copley Gareth Copley/PA
Rugby league has made great strides forward to tackle mental health problems but Pryce is acutely aware there is more work to be done. He wants to help. “I’m going out with Rugby League Cares and the guys at Sporting Chance, and trying to set something up,” he says. “I’ll be there for people. As rugby players you’re taught not to show emotion and it’s the way you’re built – but eventually people break. I did.”

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So what’s the vision? “We’ve got to give the lads options when they finish playing. The RFL do a great job but they need help. I’m looking to get into schools, rugby clubs, and educating as many people as I can about my experiences. Rugby players need the help more than anyone about dealing with finishing playing – if I can help one person, I’ve done something good.”

Pryce is unlikely to return to rugby in a coaching capacity – though not because of any form of resentment of the game. It is clear he is more passionate about preventing anyone else from having to endure the same things he has. And away from rugby, there was a happy ending, too.

“My wife gave birth to our third child, Leo, recently,” he says, again with the grin returning. “But I don’t want to disappear into the sunset without helping anyone. It wouldn’t be right – I don’t want to walk away from this.

“I’m in a really good place, especially with the new arrival. It’s time to give something back. That’s all down to Sporting Chance and what Tony Adams did. He probably won’t see this and we obviously don’t know each other but I just want to go on record and say thank you to him and all the staff at the clinic who helped me. You’ve done something very special: you’ve helped save lives. I know that.”

Since your here...

A very sobering piece for all of us that have booed players representing the club.

There's not much to be said about that really; it's all in there. I guess the 'boo boys' never knew just what he was going through and, as was said at the time of his retirement, it was a sad way to finish his career.

Was discussing it earlier. After being in the bubble of training day in day out been part of a team environment etc it sounds like it can be very difficult to come to terms with it once it finishes and especially in the sudden way it did for him. Glad he has come to terms and come out the other side

If you couple it with the suicide of Chris Leatherbarrow not too long ago, you would hope people would think about the abuse they're giving out from the stands. Whilst I'm sure nobody ever wants it to lead to anything bad, you don't know just how much it might be affecting the subject of said abuse.

Thats why I never criticise any of our players from the stands or from behind a keyboard. They are all human beings. We dont know what they are going through in real life. I dont believe any of our players go out to play bad. I believe they all try - but they dont all succeed.
We should sticky the above and read it before we slate ANY of our players.

I recall reading a piece a few years ago about a certain former coast at the bulls who use philosophy , and he used to say to certain players after games if they hadn't performed to well that it wasn't their fault they had not had a good game, it was his fault for picking them,

Well, the buck stops there, I guess!

Ultimately I think the coach has the call, and he can see when someone is not having a good one, I do feel very sorry Leon because he wanted to end his glittering career with the team who made him, let's hope everything goes well for him in the future, and he can come back into rugby at some level to pass his experience on

To be honest in the pre-season games we could see how he handled himself. Shouting at really young players instead of encouraging them, then when the season started standing away from his team when the opposition scored etc. And the fans were right to be annoyed at that behaviour. I for one was really annoyed at this, it's one of the things that stuck out for me early season. So for me the criticism was justified.

However I don't agree with the booing his bad performances. He still ended up putting people through gaps and gave us a little bit of structure. Plus playing with the injury too make him look a little slow and cautious. He kept the nucleus of the team together in the off season and is still one of the best players the Bradford Bulls have produced. I'd go as far as saying he's a club legend. Just gutted we didn't see him score a final try for the Bulls.

I do hope he gets through his mental issues and feelings that have affected him since retiring. It must be hard to go from this routine for 20+ years and then all of a sudden it's gone. And I hope he finds his way back into the sport, either as a first team coach or a halfbacks coach.

Been thinking about this booing malarkey. If I recall correctly he wasn't booed because his performance was poor. His lack of mobility allowed a try and the coaching staff tried to replace him. He had none of it and went to the stand side where ten minutes later his lack of mobility let in another try.

No one can question his commitment to the cause but at that moment there was a lot of pressure to win and he appeared, unwittingly or not, to put himself above the club by not coming off. I got the feeling that was the reason for the booing?

Still inexcusable to boo him off the field, even if it was a minority of idiots.

I don't think Leon got booed, it was more cheering he had been subbed. However it was still disappointing and not on. I thought Leon's performances were very good up til that point (some fans want miracles) I felt we badly missed Leon's experience in our winless rut, which ultimately sent us down. We needed that calming influence behind the attacking line which Leon did brilliantly IMO

Agreed. He played a big part in the wins in the early part of the season but it was clear he was physically struggling at times. We just didn't have the squad depth to give him enough of a breather. As you say we missed his experience later on.