Ross Skeate has a little extra truck since he hung up his crampons. A truck that he drives around the markets of Lot-et-Garonne to introduce his coffees like no other. Sitting behind the counter of his “coffee truck”, the South African has changed a lot since his professional years (2004-2017) spent between the Cape Stormers and the “Blacks” of Provence Rugby, after wearing the Toulon jersey ( 2008-2010), Agen (2012-2014) or Grenoble (2014-2015).
After wearing the SUA jersey (2012-2014), Ross Skeate played one season for FC Grenoble.
AFP
“It was very difficult to stop. You are no longer a professional player, you are no longer part of a team. That's why I needed to leave.”
If the beard of the second line warrior is still present, the long hair which flew above the Top 14 and Pro D2 alignments to capture or pilfer touches – an exercise in which he excelled – has shortened. The physique has also changed. “I lost 20 kilos,” explains the double-meter colossus.
Go far
It must be said that the Agenais (2012-2014), who finished captain of the SUA at the end of his first season with the blue and white, needed to “cut abruptly” with his career. So he went far away. Very far away, even in the forests of Costa Rica where he will attempt a first reconversion on a farm with a compatriot. “It didn’t work, but that’s when I was able to mourn” and overcome a “little depression”. “It was very complicated to stop,” he remembers. You are no longer a professional player, you are no longer part of a team. This is why I needed to travel. »
He came back changed, for the better. Firstly by having become the father of a little girl to whom he wishes, in agreement with his wife, to offer a quality living environment. The couple therefore decided to leave Savoie to return to Lot-et-Garonne. It is here that “Racine Coffee” now thrives, near Cancon, where the laboratory of this “coffee lover” is located.
Craftsman and scientist
A graduate of the London School of Coffee, Ross Skeate himself produces the beverages that he sells in the department's various markets or that he serves on board his “coffee truck”. “These are specialty coffees, nothing like those offered in stores. It’s a niche whose universe is exploding,” describes the former professional rugby player.
As much a scientist as an artisan, he masters the production of his grands crus from A to Z, roasting the beans whose origin is traceable back to the producer. “The roasting work has evolved, we base ourselves on data, we manage air flows, temperature… Coffee has more complex nuances than wine,” he concludes. He also provides all this during training for professionals or individuals.
Thriving in his new life, he can now look back on his old one in a more serene way: “Even the season when we went down with the SUA [2012-2013, NDLR]it remains a good memory.” How to bring it closer to the land? “Where I am, there is the 4 Cantons team [qui évolue en Fédérale 1, NDLR]I was asked to train there, or lend a hand… Who knows? »
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Ross Skeate, here with Ueleni Fono, inherited the captain's stripes at the end of his first season with the SUA in the Top 14.
