About Nick
I'm a sports dad first.
The Olympic stuff just gives me context.
I spent 15 years in elite rugby and competed at three Olympic Games. But these days, I'm the dad on the drive home wondering if I said the right thing after a tough game. I built In Your Corner because I needed it too.
The Athlete
What 15 years of elite sport taught me about parents
I grew up as a kid who just loved to play. Rugby, cricket, athletics - if there was a ball or a finish line, I was in. Sport shaped who I am.
By my late teens, I'd found my calling in Rugby Sevens. I made the Australian national team, became captain, and competed at three Olympic Games - Rio, Tokyo, and Paris.
But here's what I noticed that changed everything for me: talent got athletes through the door. But what happened at home shaped how they felt about the whole journey.
I watched teammates carry the weight of their parents' expectations alongside their own. I saw parents who meant well but said the wrong thing at the wrong time - and the effect it had. And I saw families who got it right, who knew when to push and when to just be there.
What you say at home, in the car after training, and at the dinner table after a loss - your kid carries that with them. It matters more than most parents realise.
Why I Built This
Parents kept asking me the same questions. I couldn't ignore it.
After retiring, I moved into banking. I thought my sports conversations were over.
They weren't.
At barbecues, colleagues would pull me aside: "My son gets so nervous he can barely perform. What did the best athletes do differently?"
At school pickups: "My daughter just got dropped. She's devastated. I don't know what to say to her."
Through mutual friends: "He wants to go pro. I'm terrified of saying the wrong thing and crushing his dream - or setting him up for heartbreak."
These weren't casual questions. These were parents lying awake at night, worried they were getting it wrong. And I realised I'd spent 15 years watching exactly what made the difference.
The Parent
Then I had kids. And everything I thought I knew got tested.
Suddenly I wasn't the expert. I was the dad lying awake at midnight, replaying everything I'd said after a tough loss.
Should I have pushed harder? Should I have backed off? Why did I feel so emotional watching them play?
Here's the honest truth: three Olympic Games didn't prepare me for this. Being a great athlete and being a great sports parent are completely different skills. And I'm learning them in real time, just like you.
That's why I built In Your Corner. Not to tell you what to do from a podium - but to figure this out together, sharing what I learned on the field and what I'm discovering at the school gate.
The Vision
What if you never had to face a tough sports moment alone?
Imagine your kid comes home devastated after getting dropped - and instead of panicking, you open In Your Corner and find a parent who went through the exact same thing last month. You read what they said. You see how it turned out. You know what to do.
That's what we're building. A community where parents at every level share openly. Real conversations, real experience, and guidance for the moments that matter most - not generic advice, but answers from people who've actually been there.
Because the parents who raise great athletes aren't the ones who have all the answers. They're the ones who know where to find them.
Philosophy
Three truths I learned the hard way
Your words land harder than you think
I can still hear what my parents said after my toughest losses. Every athlete can. What you say in the car ride home shapes how your kid feels about sport for years.
Nobody has this figured out
Not me. Not the coach. Not the parent on the sideline who looks like they have it together. The best sports parents aren't the most confident - they're the most willing to learn.
The relationship outlasts the sport
Trophies collect dust. Teams disband. But how your child feels about you after their sporting journey - that lasts forever. Protect that above everything else.
Career
15 years of watching what support does to an athlete
Rio Olympics
Rugby Sevens Debut
Tokyo Olympics
Second Games
Paris Olympics
Third Games
Sports Dad
Learning with you
Your Next Step
Come figure this out with us
I'm not here to tell you what to do. I'm here to share what I've learned and learn from you too. Join the community and see if it changes the next conversation you have with your kid.
Stay in the Loop
What sports parents are talking about right now
Community highlights, new articles, and conversations worth following - delivered when there's something that matters. No spam, just real talk from real parents.