Ashley Gibson has confirmed his retirement from the game after revealing he has been diagnosed with type one diabetes.
Gibson, a former player for Leeds, Salford, Castleford, Wakefield and Bradford, has officially hung up the boots aged 34 after a 16-year career.
In an exclusive interview with Rugby League Live, Gibson revealed that the diagnosis turned his life upside down back in 2019, with the news coming as a major shock to the centre.
"I lost a load of weight without any reason, my energy levels weren't right, I was really thirsty and constantly needed the toilet," he said. Gibson would soon learn that he was dealing with all the common symptoms of diabetes.
"I think even the coaches thought I wasn't right, I don't know if they felt I'd fallen out of love with the game. John Kear was the coach at the time and he could notice something wasn't right. But I kept it under wraps as I'm quite a private person.
"I ended up going to see my own doctor and getting some blood tests back. When they came back, my blood sugars were supposed to be between four and nine but they were 28.
"My blood sugars were really high which is pretty bad really. I don't know how long I'd been like that but it was why I was losing weight, because your body goes into keratosis and it makes you lose weight when. I lost about eight to 10 kilos. I was doing a bit of modelling and I don't know if people thought I was doing it on purpose for that, but it wasn't that, that was the reason why."
Gibson did briefly return to the field but has now decided to call time on his career.
"My headspace wasn't right. I had a couple of weeks off at Bradford and I was just getting used to it, trying to get the weight back on as I'd lost a lot of power and size, so I was getting thrown about a lot.
"But I'd gone off doing things I used to love doing. If I went for a run I'd have to take sweets with me, measure my blood and whether I was going to go hypo. I fell out of love with training. I thought it was time to call it a day.
"I love rugby, I've done it since I was nine years old, but it was around the right time and then with Covid and not playing for a year, the timing is right now.
"I've never really told anyone and I don't want people to pity me. I played with Rob Burrow and that's devastating, where I'm just living with diabetes, so I didn't want to say too much."
Gibson hopes that revealing his experience will help raise awareness.
"It still can be managed and people can play with it. I think Brett Stewart at Manly had it and dealt with it throughout his career. It's obviously manageable, but it was just the timing with me going part-time, my age, the injuries I've suffered.
"I've had a lot of support. Graeme, my agent, has supported me and been a friend throughout my career, I got in touch wit RLCares and Steve McCormack who was really supportive too."
Gibson, who made almost 200 career appearances, insists he has no regrets, and will now pursue his modelling career, along with other interests.
"Ever since I started down at Stanningley all I wanted to do was play for my hometown club, Leeds. I was making an impact there coming through the academies, playing for my country. I scored a hat-trick and kicked five goals on my debut so that's always a memory that will stick out. I was playing regularly then I did my ACL. Then I was out another year, so it was sort of just putting me back a bit. Leeds were always behind me, they offered me another contract, Gary Hetherington was always supportive of me and looked after me. I had a lot of support there.
"But I've enjoyed my time everywhere. I've made some best mates along the way. I think that's what people miss, being with the lads, you're going training with your mates. Everyone has their own journey and that was mine. I was fortunate to play for so many great clubs and everyone's career comes to an end at some point.
"Eventually, I want to start my own clothing label. I've put it on hold for the minute and when Covid settles down I'm going to get a long holiday, I love travelling so I'll probably do that."
To learn more about the signs and symptoms of diabetes, click here.
