Leicester and England tighthead Dan Cole

ENGLAND PROP gives Rugby World’s Bea Asprey got an insight into the lighter side of his life…

Rugby World: What’s Toby Flood like to live with?

Dan Cole: I could tell you lots of things about him but he wouldn’t speak to me for a week!

RW: Any little things?

DC: Not his ears, they’re quite large.

RW: He’s got big ears?

DC: You said it!

RW: Who are the England jokers?

DC: James Haskell’s loud, but whether or not he’s funny is debatable.

RW: How was your England initiation?

DC: It was fairly standard. I sang Stand By Me. I don’t like speaking in front of people and I’m not a good singer, so when you combine the two it’s not really a match made in heaven!

RW: What’s the funniest thing you’ve seen on the pitch?

DC: I don’t see a lot of games because I’m too busy pretending to scrummage, but the lines Boris Stankovich has come out with at times have been funny.

RW: What three things would you take with you to a desert island?

DC: Some form of water purification so I could drink, sun block and a machete to make a hut.

RW: What’s your idea of a dream holiday?

DC: I’d like a holiday on a beach with everything provided for you, away from most people. But I’m not good in the sun, so I’d like to go exploring in South America.

RW: What are your nicknames?

DC: At the moment it’s Da Cole. Louis Deacon claims I was calling myself that on a night out in Italy. I wasn’t.

RW: Do you have any bad habits?

DC: No, I’m very clean and healthy. I don’t snore or do anything like that. Floody would totally agree with me!

RW: Who’s your ideal woman?

DC: Someone who’d cook, clean and generally look after me. And earn lots of money so I didn’t have to do anything.

RW: How do you switch off from rugby?

DC: I listen to music when I drive home. I like the blues. Or I have a good moan with Floody for five minutes, then move on and chill out.

RW: Do you moan about Richard Cockerill?

DC: Of course not! We only have praise for such a… the person who pays our wages!

RW: Who’d play you in a film of your life?

DC: Someone cool like Steve McQueen.

RW: Tell us a surprising fact…

DC: That I’m 23 years old despite my looks! I get a lot of stick for the way I look.

RW: If you weren’t playing rugby what would you be doing?

DC: I was going to go to university to study civil engineering, so that, or working in a forest. I’d also like to play American Football. I’m not good at hand-eye coordination but I like to smash people!

RW: If you could have one superpower what would it be and why?

DC: I’d be like Colossus in X-Men. He can turn himself into steel, and he’s athletic, strong and shiny, so win-win!

RW: What’s the silliest thing you’ve bought?

DC: I’m a sensible man! I don’t buy stuff. But the most expensive is some jewellery I got for my mother after my first cap and a watch for my dad.

RW: What are you most asked by the public?

DC: Can you hold my bags while I ask for Toby Flood’s autograph?

RW: And the answer?

DC: Of course!

RW: What would you like to achieve outside of rugby?

DC: Somewhere nice to live, not with Floody – I’ve had enough of him. And a normal life.

RW: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learnt?

DC: After you’ve made an error, as the cheesy saying goes, you’ve got to bounce back.

RW: Any words of wisdom?

DC: No. You’ve got to be wise for that!

Check out his profile for England…

This interview appeared in the March 2011 edition of Rugby World. Would you like to buy the full issue, digitally, for your PC, Mac or Ipad – click here

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