Bateman brews in support of mental health

He refers to “significant life events” leaving him at rock bottom a few years ago, unable to escape the fog of what turned out to be severe depression. “I just thought I was really angry all the time,” he says.

Once they’d sat down together over, something happened. “I just lost it and was really honest with him about how I was feeling,” recalls Bateman. “He didn’t try to fix anything himself, but he said we’ll do what we need to do – find someone who can help.

“I’m just really lucky he took the initiative to make that happen.”

That life-changing day with his friend is the driving force behind the 31-year-old’s new business venture, the People’s Captain craft brewery – or, more importantly, its Foundation. “I’m interested in making products that make catching up with your mates count,” he explains. “It’s such a part of our culture to catch up over a pint or a cup of coffee, but I worry that we don’t make it count.”

Bateman started to see a therapist and was prescribed medication. He became better at verbalising what he was going through. “By talking to people about it, I soon found out that lots of people see therapists and take medication for depression,” says Bateman, who was playing for Leicester Tigers at the time. “I had no concept until then how big a problem mental health is in society.”

He took the brave decision to share a post on Instagram about his ordeal, before making an even bigger leap by speaking to David Walsh, chief sports writer of the Sunday Times. Baring your soul is tough; doing so publicly, when you’re an all-action professional prop, even tougher.

“I thought feeling a bit of embarrassment about putting myself out there would absolutely be worth it if it meant inspiring just one person to have a conversation they didn’t think they were going to have,” he says.

Around the same time, Bateman had just launched his first beer. A self-confessed “artisanal fiend”, the brewing had started purely as a hobby. “Everybody said they loved the beer, but that wasn’t the most important thing. The conversations I had were around the article, people telling me how it had helped their brother, nephew, or sister, and so on.”

People’s Captain’s unique branding – above – is a story in itself, with Bateman happening on a piece of street art in Hackney two years ago. “It stood out straight away as the style I was after,” says Bateman, who was in London working on an advisory board for a mental health app. “I found the artist, Nathan Bowen, and he agreed to do our artwork exclusively. The guy is a legend.”

Since launching People’s Captain in November of last year, Bateman has set a £1 million fundraising target for its Foundation. Two initiatives it currently supports are the Samaritans (“for the sake of a fiver, you’re putting someone on the phone who can save someone’s life”) and Young Minds (“because Covid has been catastrophic for our young people and they’re our future”).

A current fundraiser involves a prize of a year’s worth of beer, while another witnessed some of the most famous locks in Welsh rugby – his Dragons teammate Richard Hibbard’s – being clipped. The latter gave an insight into the camaraderie going on behind the scenes at the Gwent region, where the vision of Dean Ryan was instrumental in the recruitment of Bateman in the first place.

“Dragons is a place where they really care about you as a whole person,” he says. “Dean wants to know about the kids and everything that’s going on in your life, because he’s been there and he knows how important that is. I’m growing as a rugby player and as a person. That’s all you can ask for from your employer, isn’t it?

“I’m super frustrated I’ve ended up injured this season because I really want to be part of what Dean’s putting in place here. When I got back onto the field last time out, he said to me: ‘I think you played well, but you didn’t make any mistakes. How do I know your limits if you’re not making mistakes?’ I thought, he’s right there: you’ve got to try things.”

He’s been equally impressed with the young crop of players coming through at Rodney Parade, namechecking the likes of centre Aneurin Owen, second row Ben Carter and prop Chris Coleman – all of whom have recently committed their futures to the region.

Bateman is already looking forward to next season, with a first full pre-season under his belt with the Dragons. “Welsh fans are the most passionate on earth, and I’m desperate to have them back,” he says. “But also, personally, I’m looking forward to reaping the benefits of a good off-season and pre-season so I can be as available as I can for the new campaign.”