The Pen meets Ashe & Hart

For many it’s probably relaxing with the family or getting out on the golf course for a quick 18 but for the Glasgow Warriors pairing of Adam Ashe and Grayson Hart, they spend their downtime in quite a different way. So much so that they’ve been inspired to start their own podcast.

On the surface, Ashe and Hart seem like they are chalk and cheese. Ashe, a number 8 by trade, is a big ball carrier who progresses through almost every rank in Scottish Rugby and was assigned to Glasgow as an Elite Development Player in 2011 and a handful of games for Glasgow later and he found himself with a Scotland cap to his name, making his debut in Port Elizabeth against South Africa. Ashe soon became a key member of the Warriors squad who won the Pro12 in 2014/15.

Hart on the other hand had a very different journey. Born in New Zealand, the nippy scrum half made his name playing for Auckland and being one of the All Black U20 team to play in the inaugural 2008 IRB Junior World Championship, a tournament which they won. He has turned out in Super Rugby for the Blues and NSW Waratahs before coming to Scotland as an Edinburgh player, then making the drive along the M8 motorway when Gregor Townsend and the Warriors came calling.

So other than the rugby paddock, what is it that draws these two players together?

Ashe and Hart have begun their own podcast called “The Warrior Mentality” where they cover a range of topics from psychology and self-growth to self-help and awareness. So what inspired them to do it?

“I saw there was a change in Grayson’s life but at first I didn’t say anything to him” says Ashe, a reasonably new convert at this new way of thinking. Annoyed at himself one day, he googled books that make you feel good and having found a book that suited his search the penny dropped for him and he noticed a change in his thinking.

Hart and Ashe, on an away trip with the Warriors realised a common interest when discussing podcasts they’d been listening to.

Grayson, having had difficult times growing up and losing his father when he was 21 got to a point where he felt very few things were making him happy and sought advice from a sports psychologist, realising that it was not the material things in life that make you happy. “Some of most successful people outwardly are very unhappy people” says Hart and he’s grateful that those tough times have now shown him a new way to live.

“Being a professional sportsman can ingrain in you these material outlooks and you can get caught up in it. If you always look outwardly, you’ll never going to feel completely content with your life” Hart points out. It’s refreshing to hear from a rugby player in the modern era when money and object seem to so often be the be all and end all.

“I’m in control here, no one else is and whatever happens in going to happen because of me” says a clearly buoyant Ashe, despite being injured since May. Ashe and Hart have started a “Warriors Book Club” at Scotstoun and have created an environment where it’s good to talk and can learn from one another. They found that they were able to speak to players on a different level and as a way of integrating new players to the “Warrior Mentality”. Ashe and Hart both agreed that having been able to have this conversation with team mates, they could take it to a wider audience and connect with everyone. Hart and Ashe set this up as their own project , only choosing the name as it was a common link between the two men.

With rugby perceived as a very macho sport, the boys have put any fears behind them about being ridiculed and are interested in more than just following the crowd. “It might not be what’s normal to talk about but we don’t want to just stay in the square.”

On their podcast they talk about many of the things that they have spoken about at the book group, how they’ve learned to cope with the pressure of sport, family life and helping others to reach their potential. It’s about showing others that they can find purpose and express themselves as individuals on and off the field.

It’s clear to see that Ashe and Hart have strong belief and great passion in what they are talking about. They, as Hart notes “… are works in progress… we’ve grown heaps from it already”. Indeed, Ashe was invited to speak at a local college to speak to sports coaching students about what he and Hart have learned.

Sitting in this Glasgow coffee shop listening to these two players talk in a way that was totally different to the soundbite, stereotypical press conference or interview was something I can say was truly inspirational.

Both lads feel they’ve come such a long way in such a short time. They are learning all the time and by speaking about what might be considered taboo at some other clubs, they hope to inspire not just team mates but those around them. And it seems to be working. The 3 episodes of “The Warrior Mentality” have been very well received. Long may it continue.