Sheffield Eagles legend Paul Broadbent on Sheffield, rugby and being an athlete mentor.

As Sheffield Eagles return to Sheffield to play their first home game at the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Stadium after a nine-year nomadic existence, we spoke to former Sheffield Eagles legend and Trust athlete mentor Paul Broadbent about the club’s return and his career and current role as an athlete mentor.

What are you looking forward to most about the Sheffield Eagles returning to play in Sheffield?

It will be great to see them settled and now in a position to start growing the club further. The green shoots are there with the Women’s rugby team starting as well as a wheelchair team plus a team for people with learning disabilities – it’s great we’re giving everyone the chance to feel like they are part of the family. For a number of years now the Sheffield Eagles have had some really tough times in the wilderness, and I feel this could be the catalyst to put them back at the forefront.

What have been your best sporting achievements?

Playing for England and Great Britain would definitely be my best sporting achievement. Also winning the Challenge Cup in 1998 with Sheffield Eagles when we beat wigan Warriors in the Final would be right up there as well.

What skills do you need to compete at elite level?

I think the key to any success in sport is all about hard work and resilience. It’s only over when you decide it’s over.

What has been your biggest sporting challenge?

Retirement from the sport I loved was the toughest challenge I had to face. ?You end up losing your identity and trying to find out where the next challenge comes from and what that is going to look like. You’ve spent all your life on this journey to becoming an elite rugby player, then it ends, and you’re left thinking ‘what’s next?’

How does competing in elite sport relate to the issues that young people face?

The challenges are very similar in many ways. ?You get thrown into different situations such as dealing with injury or being left out of teams and you start feeling like this dream is getting away from you and there’s little you feel you can do about it. Experience has taught me though that when things feel like they’re getting away from me, if I keep turning up and giving the best account of myself, then somehow things always turn a corner. Life is about peaks and troughs; they will always keep coming so you need to learn to fight and work your way out of the troughs and keep yourself firmly grounded on the peaks. But never give in, because when you do, that’s when it’s over

What sort of things do young people usually ask you when you work with them?

I guess they are interested in how you deal with failure. I always tell them my battles were with the man in the mirror, the self-doubt and insecurity can eat you up if you let it. My drive was going again and again until I proved to myself I had it and my recipe for self-confidence was making sure I was working when everyone else wasn’t. This made me play with the belief I had done something to improve the situation and meant that I was the best that I could be. Chasing perfection is natural but progress is key. I’m not sure perfection ever happens but always searching for perfection can sometimes stop you enjoying the little achievements on your journey

What attracted you to becoming an athlete mentor?

Helping someone get on the front foot is really rewarding. The crazy thing is it’s the young people we work with that make it happen, as athlete mentors we just give them the belief. It’s that face in the mirror that convinces them they’re no good. They can do things, but most of them let their fear of failure stop them trying. Us being there as athlete mentors and working with them to persuade and encourage them is as good for us as it is for them. I firmly believe there’s something really rewarding about helping others.

What is your favourite thing about being an athlete mentor?

Working with some brilliant people and getting to know some outstanding young people that generally don’t get the credit they deserve. Given a chance you’ll find out there’s a winner in us all.

Can you share one or two highlights from your time as an athlete mentor with the Trust?

The AQA Unlocking Potential programme has had some brilliant moments. Seeing one of my students stand on the stage in front of over a hundred people at a celebration event when he struggled with stammering was probably one of the bravest things I’ve ever seen.

I also remember we had a young lad who was severely overweight starting on one of the Get on Track programmes I worked on. He went from 25 stone down to 14 and that completely changed his life, he was like a different person.?