Leeds centre Kallum Watkins has lifted the lid on his fight with depression ahead of Saturday’s Super League Grand Final.
This weekend the Rhinos will take on Castleford at Old Trafford. It will be Watkins’, one of the stars of the Leeds side, sixth appearance in the competition’s showpiece event. He has had glittering career since he first burst onto the Super League stage at the tender age of just 16 a decade ago.
But it hasn’t always been rosy for the England international. Last month Watkins’ wife Sophie revealed his deep battle with mental health issues in Mantality Magazine, run by Leeds teammate Stevie Ward. In it Sophie emotionally detailed her husband’s suffering and the pressures he has and continues to face.
Watkins admitted for a long time that he was in denial.
“A lot of people don’t realize the situations you can get yourself into,” he told The Sportsman.
“In those situations, the fans probably see you as a superhero in a way and being able to do with everything, but we’re just humans. You deal with things as any normal people does. A lot of people go through that and there’s a lot of people who don’t know they have it. For me, for a lot of years I thought I was in denial. There’s nothing wrong with me, it’s just how I am. In time I needed help.”
Watkins is one of the most high-profile players in the English game and first represented his country at the age of 19. He said pressure and expectation from the outside world as an athlete has always weighed heavily on him.
“There was always the added pressure of becoming a rugby league player but especially at a club like Leeds where it’s been really successful. When you’re coming through the ranks a young age – I left my parents as soon as I finished high school. So it was always going to be a tough road in terms of that, but I wanted to sacrifice everything that I could to wear a shirt, to wear a first-team shirt and be in these situations to win.”
Watkins is in a much better place today mentally with the continued support of his family and club. He hailed the work of Ward and Mantality in talking about mental health and spreading the word that it is OK to talk about depression.
“It’s massively important to spread that awareness. With Stevie with what he’s done with Mantality has been fantastic to get a lot of stories of players and their dark pasts, a lot of dark things that have happened [to them] but you also see the bright side and the good things that can come from it. It’s just the spreading awareness bit and getting people involved.
“It’s going to help and save lives, that’s what it’s all about. We need to be happy in our life. I believe we only live once and we’re going to go through situations where there’s ups and downs so it’s really important to get people involved as much as possible.”
If the Rhinos are to topple the Tigers come Saturday, Watkins will be key. The 26-year old has scored 12 tries this season and only needs two more to reach 100 in Super League. His unique mix of power, pace and size means he will be a handful for Castleford’s defence.
Born and raised in Manchester, and a lifelong Manchester United, gracing the turf at Old Trafford is always a special occasion for him.
“It’s still got that magic to it. I’m really excited to be here and to get the grand final is a huge achievement for us this year. It’s a huge occasion to be at. It’s always a dream to play here.”
Four tries for the @leedsrhinos centre in the 2016 #Super8s Qualifiers round 1
Even more satisfying for Watkins and his teammates is reaching this year’s grand final after a turbulent 2016. Leeds missed the top eight and had to escape relegation, with the whole club under scrutiny. But the Rhinos have come out the other side and the softly-spoken centre feels the team has benefited from the experience.
“The club has been really successful for the past decade,” he says.
“Last year was a bit of a blip for us but hopefully it was a learning curve for us massively. It grew some leaders in our team and that helped it being consistent. We’ve been under the radar a little bit and that’s all down to the teams that have been playing well.
“Cas are a huge example of that, they’ve been the best team by a mile this year. For us a group we know we’ve got here but we’ve got a big challenge ahead of us. We want to go and lift that trophy on Saturday.
