Fringes

Ben Mercer, Fringes: Life on the Edge of Professional Rugby (2019)

I’ve been enjoying rugby over the last few weeks, and watching the Six Nations has got me thinking more about French rugby.  This is a fascinating, self-published book, written by an English rugby player who spent four years playing third and fourth division semi-professional rugby in France with Rouen Normandie Rugby (formerly Stade Rouennais).  It tells the story of Ben Mercer’s initial enjoyment of playing in France and prolonging his professional rugby career, followed by the disillusionment as the club get progressively better and end up being promoted to the Pro D2, second division (after Mercer leaves).  The story itself is interesting, but the best thing about this book is the insight it provides into the life of a rugby player on the fringes of professional rugby, which is the situation for many – probably the majority – of the players in the professional leagues.  He gets a flat to live in and gets paid enough to live on, but it’s very much a hand-to-mouth existence.  The end of a rugby career (and job) is only one bad injury away, and Mercer shows how players in this situation don’t always get particularly well treated by the club owners and coaches (in this case the former England scrum half Richard Hill, who doesn’t come across in a very positive light).  Having said that, there are times of real camaraderie (often involving alcohol), and lots of interesting characters.  I can away from this book with a sense that playing rugby at this level is not easy, but can offer a few years of intense and sometimes enjoyable experiences.  Although Mercer became disillusioned with rugby towards the end of his time in Normandy, he clearly valued the four years he spent there and he has written a very good book.