Pat McCabe gets a real job with ACT Brumbies

By Chris Dutton
Updated April 23 2018 - 8:52pm, first published September 20 2014 - 2:35pm

A month after retiring from his third broken neck, Pat McCabe is back on the front line for the ACT Brumbies. McCabe has moved into the Brumbies office and is taking charge of special projects, which include generating sponsorship and being part of the club's negotiations with the ACT government. McCabe took just three weeks off after his playing retirement to gather his thoughts before getting behind the desk. "It's a huge change of pace, but it's good," McCabe said. "I'm in at about 8am until about 6pm. Having a real job is pretty tough compared to being a rugby player. It's nice because I'm still talking about rugby, but I'm not hands-on so that helps with the transition. I'm not missing rugby too much now. I think that will come when I get out of the neck brace. I didn't realise a real job would be so exhausting. It's been a shock, but I'm enjoying it. It's a hell of a lot better than moping around and feeling sorry for myself." McCabe will spend up to three months in a brace. He still had a year to run on his Brumbies and ARU contracts. The Brumbies will honour the deal. ARU boss Bill Pulver has floated the idea of McCabe becoming a referee and McCabe has spoken to the ARU's referee department. "But it's not really something that interests me at this stage," McCabe said. "I love the idea of referees being former players, but it feels a bit soon to be that close to the game to be honest."

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

$0/

(min cost $0)

or signup to continue reading

See subscription options

Get the latest Canberra news in your inbox

Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date.

We care about the protection of your data. Read our Privacy Policy.