Who is Alex Davis: Ten things you should know about the England sevens back

The England sevens captain is also an avid reader of poetry

Who is Alex Davis: Ten things you should know about the England sevens player

Alex Davis is an influential figure in the England sevens set-up.

Off the pitch, the West Country-native fills his time with poetry and volunteering.

Ten things you should know about Alex Davis

1. Alex Davis was born on 3 October 1992 in Gloucester. He began playing rugby aged six at local club Clifton.

2. Alongside playing for England U16 and U19, he represented Gloucestershire in cricket.

3. Davis made his World Sevens Series debut at the Gold Coast Sevens in 2014. His first try in the series came in Cape Town the following year.

4. He won a bronze medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and silver at the Sevens World Cup later that year.

5. After the Rugby Football Union terminated its sevens programmes during the Covid-19 pandemic, Davis made a living by helping his neighbour with gardening and coaching at his former school, Queen Elizabeth’s Hospital.

6. Having withdrawn from the Rio 2016 squad due to injury, Davis made his Olympic debut at the Tokyo 2020 Games as Team GB finished fourth in the men’s competition. The squad may not have reached Japan without the crowdfunding campaign that Davis publicised.

7. He is a keen reader of poetry and used collections from The Poetry Pharmacy to keep a level head during the pandemic.

8. Davis credited England team psychologist Katie Warriner and the support of his team-mates for ensuring he stayed involved in rugby after his father died in 2015.

“Our squad is one of those places where there is no judgment, you can be vulnerable and someone is not going to think any less of you,” he told The Telegraph in 2018. “For six months to a year after my dad passed, I didn’t really have any motivation towards rugby.”

9. Davis was made England men’s sevens captain in January 2022 and, in his first tournament as skipper, led the side to an impressive third place at the Malaga Sevens.

10. Davis has done plenty of voluntary charity work, including distributing food for Cheers Drive and offering crisis support with Shout UK.

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