Centre Stage

In a nation of rugby heroes, Jamie Roberts has become a legend.

Jamie Roberts is your quintessential hard man: a 6 foot 4, 17 stone slab of rippling muscle, conditioned to run hard into other huge men in an arena where physical dominance is the prime currency. Yet away from rugby, he's a mild-mannered and thoughtful man - a qualified doctor with a thirst for knowledge and a curiosity about the world around him. It's an intriguing contradiction.

In his first full season with the Cardiff Blues he was picked by new Wales coach Warren Gatland in the Grand Slam-winning side of 2008. He was still establishing his position in the national team when he toured with the 2009 Lions, emerging as Player of the Series. He went on to win 97 Test caps and play for clubs in Paris, London and Cape Town, yet his career has seldom been straightforward.

A fractured skull was one of many injuries he had to overcome, and from the start he had to juggle the competing demands of university life and professional rugby. The joy of Six Nations success with Wales was balanced by heartbreak in the World Cup and disappointment against southern-hemisphere teams, while major trophies at club level proved frustratingly elusive.

In this colourful and frank account of a sterling career, Jamie Roberts reveals all about life on tour, in boot camps and in dressing rooms filled with once-in-a-generation characters such as Mike Phillips, Andy Powell, Shaun Edwards, Martyn Williams, Brian O'Driscoll and Johnny Sexton. He also shares his views on concussion in rugby, the failings of the professional structure in Wales and the vital role of old-school team-bonding.

Jamie Roberts was born in Newport in 1986 and, during a glittering career, rose to the very top of his profession. He was crowned Player of the Series during the Lions tour of South Africa in 2009 and played a crucial role in the Lions series victory in Australia four years later. He won 97 international caps, experiencing Grand Slam glory twice with Wales, winning the Six Nations Championship in 2013 and reaching the World Cup semi-finals in 2011. All this was achieved while studying for a medical degree. His club career included stints in Cardiff, Paris, London, Bath and Cape Town. He is widely regarded as one of the finest centres of his generation.

Ross Harries is the award-nominated author of Behind the Dragon, a complete oral history of Welsh rugby, and Bomb, the autobiography of Wales centurion Adam Jones. He is also an experienced broadcaster and can regularly be seen presenting rugby coverage on the BBC, BT Sport, Amazon Prime and Premier Sports. He presented the BBC's Scrum V and Scrum V Live for a decade, and continues to present the Scrum V International Specials during the Six Nations and the autumn internationals.