- Published
Amateur rugby union players from Hackney had a shock when they turned up for a training match - to see a former Super Bowl champion among the opposition.
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they → publish → opposition
Hackney RFC's players rocked up on Wednesday for a 30-minute friendly, only to find former NFL star Jason Kelce playing for local rivals Old Streetonians.
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Kelce → rock → Streetonians
Kelce - older brother of Travis, the three-time Super Bowl winning Kansas City Chiefs tight end married to global pop superstar Taylor Swift - played 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles.
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Kelce → win → Eagles
The 38-year-old is now learning to play different sports for his YouTube channel, and had a rugby lesson from former Harlequins and England prop Joe Marler.
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old → learn → Harlequins
"It's a nice little story being able to say we played rugby against Taylor Swift's brother-in-law, which I'm sure he loves as a title," Hackney full-back Peter Scott joked to BBC Sport.
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Scott → say → Sport
"It's amazing that the sporting community, not even just the rugby community, can make these sorts of things happen.
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sorts → make → things
Kelce was part of Philadelphia's 2018 Super Bowl winning side and earned seven selections to the Pro Bowl - the annual NFL game featuring the league's top players - before retiring in 2024.
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Kelce → win → 2024
He was joined by former Philadelphia team-mate Beau Allen, also a member of that Eagles championship side of eight years ago, at Hackney Marshes in London this week.
'I put him on his back - then he ran through me'
Hackney prop Dave Lewis told BBC Sport it took Kelce - a former center, an offensive lineman, whose main role is to snap the ball to the quarterback and then protect him, each play - took a while to get used to rugby's rules.
"
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role → join → rules
We got a message from our club captain saying our local rivals were coming down with two ex-NFL players, but we didn't know anything else about it," Lewis said.
"With the rules, he got there.
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he → get → rules
At the very start, he sort of went round the back of a ruck and picked the ball up, which he obviously was then penalised for.
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he → go → which
"I handed him off at one point and put him on his back in front of his team-mates and all of our fans as well.
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I → hand → fans
I hope they release that footage because I'll be dining out on it forever if they do.
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they → hope → it
"He just got back up and absolutely smashed me later on when he had the ball, running through me.
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he → get → me
So, I don't think he has an ego.
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he → think → ego
I think he's just up for the physicality of it all."
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he → think → it
Lewis' team-mate Scott said he thought Kelce picked the game up pretty quickly.
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Kelce → say → game
"He's a pretty intimidating figure," Scott added.
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Scott → add → ?
They were using him as a number 8, which, I think, is the perfect position for him.
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I → use → him
"There were a few intricacies, like how he was carrying the ball and where he was in the scrum, but he clearly knew what he was.
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he → be → scrum
He didn't look out of place at all.
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He → look → place
"In rugby you are taught to tackle at an angle, and go at people's shoulders.
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you → teach → shoulders
He was a lot more front on, like 'OK, route one, I'm just gonna go straight at anyone that came out'.
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that → go → anyone
Kelce is in England this week to commentate on Sunday's NFL overseas game between his former club Philadelphia and the Jacksonville Jaguars at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (14:30 BST).
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Kelce → commentate → Stadium
Old Street chairman Will Gillgrass said both Kelce and Allen really embraced the whole opportunity.
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Kelce → say → opportunity
"They were very good value in the pub afterwards," he said.
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he → say → pub
"We took them to one of our locals, and they put their cards behind the bar, chatting with the lads for a few hours after the game and really getting involved.
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they → take → game
"They even did our initiation, singing a song and downing a pint."
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They → do → pint
The Hackney players also had their 15 minutes of fame after the match, with Kelce's American film crew interviewing some of them.
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crew → have → them
"They were asking how he got on, and what were the major differences to translate to an NFL audience," said Scott.
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Scott → ask → audience
"The one I picked up on was the amount of power that he was able to generate after he would get tackled.
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he → pick → that
It felt like three people would hit him and then he would go for another 20 metres.
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he → feel → metres
"American football seems to be all about short, sharp, explosive power and he had that in spades - like he was rapid, very powerful, and then would take a backseat for a little while and then come back and do it again."
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he → seem → it
The Aporia
