Mike Waywell (born 25 September 1988 in

Maghull Maghull ( ) is a town and civil parish in Sefton, Merseyside (historically a part of Lancashire). The town is north of Liverpool and west of Kirkby. The area also contains Ashworth Hospital. Maghull had a population of 20,444 at the 2011 Census ...

, Liverpool, England), formerly of

Sale Sharks Sale Sharks is a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. Originally founded in 1861 as Sale Football Club, now a distinct amateur club, they adopted the n ...

is an English rugby union player who has represented England Counties XV and Lancashire. He currently plays inside centre but has previously played professionally at Fly-half. He has had most club level success at Fylde but his current club is Sedgley Park.

Rugby union career

A product of the

academy, Mike began his career by playing academy rugby for Sale as well as lower league club rugby for

Preston Grasshoppers Preston Grasshoppers Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union team from Preston, Lancashire. The men's senior team play in the RFU National League 2 North, a level 4 league in the RFU league pyramid. History The club was founded on 28 Se ...

and

Altrincham Kersal Altrincham Kersal Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union team based in Timperley, Trafford. The club runs three senior men's teams, and mini and junior rugby from age 5. The first XV currently plays in North 1 West, a level six league ...

before being signed by Fylde part way through the 2007–08 season. While playing for Fylde, Mike was part of a squad that won three consecutive Lancashire Cup titles as well as gaining promotion to National League 1 by becoming

National League 2 North National League 2 North is one of three, level four leagues in the English rugby union system and provides semi-professional competition for teams in the northern half of England, the North. The remainder of England is covered by the two counte ...

champions in 2010-11 playing alongside former England legend Jason Robinson. While at Fylde Mike proved to be a highly versatile and valuable player scoring both tries and being a reliable points kicker with 362 points scored in his seasons spent with the club. It was his performances for Fylde which led to Mike being called up by the Lancashire county team which he helped to win the prestigious Bill Beaumont in 2010 - a feat which also saw him be awarded the Lancashire Young Player of the Year. Further good performances for Fylde meant that Mike was also selected for the England Counties XV in 2012, playing an Irish Clubs XV in

Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...

. in 2012 Mike left Fylde to move to Hong Kong where he spent a season at

Kowloon Kowloon () is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. With a population of 2,019,533 and a population density of in 2006, it is the most populous area in Hong Kong, compared with Hong Kong Island and t ...

in the Hong Kong Premiership - a spell blighted by restricted game time due to Visa issues and the tragic death of his friend and fellow player,

David Tait David Tait (5 July 1987 – 12 December 2012) was a professional rugby union player for Sale Sharks in the Guinness Premiership. Career Tait played as a Number 8, although he could also operate as a Flanker. He also represented Scotland at ...

. After his brief experience abroad Mike returned to Fylde before switching to Sedgley Park a division below in

for the 2013–14 season. Mike made this move as he had just opened a gym in the summer and was unable to juggle his business with the increased travel demands of Fylde in National League 1.

Honours

Fylde * Lancashire Cup winner (3 times): 2009, 2010, 2011 * Lancashire Young Player of the Year Award winner *

champions: 2010-11 County/Representative *

Bill Beaumont Cup The County Championship is an annual rugby union competition in England between teams representing English counties. After restructuring in 2007 the top tier of the Championship has been known as the Bill Beaumont Cup, after the trophy awarded ...

winner with Lancashire: 2010 *Selected for England Counties XV: 2012

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Waywell, Mike 1988 births Living people English rugby union players Rugby union players from Merseyside Rugby union centres Preston Grasshoppers R.F.C. players Fylde Rugby Club players Sedgley Park R.U.F.C. players English expatriate rugby union players Expatriate rugby union players in Hong Kong English expatriate sportspeople in Hong Kong Rugby union fly-halves