Fax’s Garside has one eye on the future by combining rugby with school role

The Halifax second-rower combines his day job as Year Leader at the school with his extra-curricular activities as a Championship rugby league player with Fax.

The 30-year-old, who lives in Lindley, has worked at the school for three years, and has a degree in sports coaching from Northumbria University.

He is a non-teaching head of year at the school, with responsibilities over behaviour and attendance.

“There’s around 180 pupils in my year group and I’m there to facilitate their learning,” he said.

“I’m the first person they see in a morning when they come through the school gate, I check they’re dressed smart and they’re prepared for the day.

“I make sure their welfare is OK, they’re all safe and happy, and I’m there to facilitate the teachers so the learning goes smoothly.

“I’m there to help out and do what needs doing, and if there are any safeguarding issues.

“I hold parent meetings in school as and when we can, and keep an overview of the pupils’ attendance and behaviour.

“I like to think I’ve got a good relationship with the pupils and that I’m quite a good role model, and a positive influence on them.

“Lots of my conversations are about discipline, working hard and getting your rewards for that.

“I like to think I’m liked by a lot of the pupils, perhaps others not so much!

“But a lot of the pupils respect and respond to what I do in rugby, which is good.”

Garside was at Huddersfield’s academy as a youngster, and studied at New College in Huddersfield.

He then went to Northumbria University on a sports scholarship to play rugby, appearing for the university team and Gateshead Thunder while he was studying.

He doesn’t yet have his teaching qualification, but wants to pursue that once he finishes playing.

“Obviously playing rugby doesn’t last forever, and I’m getting on a bit now, I’ve maybe got a couple of decent years left in me, and then when I finish playing, if there’s nothing for me in rugby league I’ve got my foot in the door at the school,” he said.

“I’ll probably look to do my teaching qualification and go into that.

“It’s nice working in the school and trying to be a role model for the pupils, helping them out.

“You have your serious head on at work, being head of year and looking after 200 kids, being strict and behaviour-focused.

“But then it’s really refreshing on an evening to rock up to training and have a laugh and a joke with the lads.

“I think you’ve got to be quite motivated and disciplined. The school day’s quite regimented, and then you need to be at training nice and early doing your weights.”

Garside says whatever result he gets on a Sunday will then be the hot topic of conversation with his pupils the following day.

“The school is right in the heart of Dewsbury, which is quite a big rugby league community anyway, so plenty of pupils keep an eye on me,” he said.

“There’s a lot of Dewsbury fans who give me stick, so there’s plenty of talk on a Monday morning depending how the game’s gone the day before.”

Garside is part-time at Fax, but would have to think carefully should any full-time offer be made to him.

“I’ve spoken about this with my headteacher, it is a difficult one,” he said.

“Being full-time is great, you can focus on your training, you can get stronger, fitter, relax better.

“Ultimately you’ve got to look after your family and the people around so if an offer was on the table that works for everyone then great, but I’m looking long-term at this for the next 20 years because I won’t be doing rugby for that time.

“I’ve played rugby since I was six, I love what I do, it’s my hobby first and foremost and I’ve been lucky it’s been my job for a long time.

“There’s parts of the school life I enjoy and can see myself doing for the next 20, 30 years and having a good career in a school like I’ve had in rugby.”

Garside signed for Fax last year from Bradford, having previously played for York City Knights, Sheffield Eagles and London Broncos.

But he has only made five appearances for Fax due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It’s been pretty awful really. I’ve always been in that team environment where you’re having a laugh with the lads, training during the week,” he said.

“Then I’ve been going into Halifax College, picking up a set of dumbells and not seeing anyone for six months.

“It’s been pretty quiet, the lads have been trying to gee each other up on WhatsApp and phoning each other to keep morale up, but it’s been difficult, really strange and really quiet.

“It’s been nice to have your evenings back with the family. I finish work at 4pm and normally dive straight over to the college and start training.

“So it has been nice to have time to chill out a bit, but that’s also made me miss it more.

“We’re back in the thick of it doing our fitness and strength testing very soon and I know a lot of the boys are looking forward to getting back to it.”