Young Gun: Simon Uzokwe – Newcastle flanker

Not being offered a contract by Northampton was tough to take for Simon Uzokwe, but in the space of three years he fell back in love with rugby, became a stand out player in National One and is now back at the highest level with Newcastle.
The 21-year-old had to rethink his career path in 2013 when Saints decided to let him go. After a gap year he moved to Sunderland University to study Pharmacy and began playing for Darlington Mowden Park.
He quickly impressed and ended last season as the club's top try scorer with 20. He came close to nailing the No.7 shirt in TRP's Team of the Year and his all-action displays got the attention of Falcons boss Dean Richards, who offered him a contract.
“I was pretty disillusioned when Saints let me go but playing for my local club Ipswich during my gap year made me fall back in love with rugby,” he told The Rugby Paper. “My coach Clive Bell was brilliant in helping me out and I still speak to him a lot.
“When Sunderland offered me a place I thought playing for Darlington could be a way to get picked up by the Falcons. We had a great season last year with DMP even if I'm not sure how I managed to score that much. I hadn't score a single try the previous season.
“Newcastle's offer came out of nowhere but I can't wait to be coached by Dean and also train alongside guys like Will Welch, Mark Wilson and Nili Latu.
“I had knee surgery over the summer but I should be back running in the next few weeks and be back playing in a couple of months.
“I'll mainly play for Darlington this season but I hope to be involved in the A-League with Newcastle and maybe the LV=Cup, too.”
Uzokwe also bucked the trend of youngsters switching from the back-row to the front of the scrum when they arrive in senior rugby, such as Leicester's Ellis Genge and Bath's Henry Thomas.
He joined Darlington as a hooker but switched to openside to great success and even represented England Students against France and Ireland last season.
He added: “I played everywhere in the past whether that was wing, No.8, prop, hooker and now openside.
“I'm not too fussed where I play as long as I'm on the pitch but I do love the back-row.
“My main goal this season is to get my fitness levels up to the standards of the Premiership. At 116kg for 6ft, my size is my strength and I don't want to lose that.
“I'm quite similar to Steffon Armitage in terms of body shape and I'd like to keep it that way even if my playing weight will probably be about 17 and a half stone (112kg).”