THE MAKING OF JAMES LOWE
BACK IN 2017, James Lowe talked to Rugby World about being diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis when he was 14. The Kiwi teenager went from being extremely active to “pretty much bedridden when I was at my worst”.
Finding the right medication allowed him to not only play sport again but go on to have a career as a professional rugby player. And now he’s on the brink of international honours with Ireland.
He qualifies on residency this month, having left New Zealand’s Chiefs to join Leinster three years ago, and the fact that Andy Farrell included him in last month’s training camps would suggest he is likely to make his Test debut in the Autumn Nations Cup.
Here we talk to those who have known Lowe, now 28, at different points in his life to discover more about him and his rugby journey…
The Teacher
Peter Grigg taught Lowe PE at Nelson College and also coached him in the school’s first XV from 2008 to
