Growing up playing rugby, Ben never thought he was good enough to be a professional player.

A move to Canberra in 2003 gave him opportunities he’d never dreamed of – advancing from local rugby competitions into the Brumbies Academy, and ultimately becoming the Brumbies most-capped player with 154 appearances.

“If I’d stayed in Sydney, I think it would have been very unlikely I’d ever have had that chance,” he says.

After spending hours per day during his teen years just getting to and from his Sydney school, Canberra’s easy lifestyle immediately appealed. 

“Really, it was awesome. Having everything within walking distance, walk up to classes, walk to the pub, or a 10-minute drive to footy training. That was just amazing for me,” says Ben.

The close-knit and nurturing community also made him feel right at home.

“I knew how to meet people in a new place, having moved around a lot as a kid, and that was through sport. I signed up to the local rugby club and made great friends.”

Ben’s career has taken him around the world – including a stint playing in the United Kingdom – but he says Canberra always called to him.

He felt it most acutely when playing in England after a severe injury derailed his professional rugby career in Australia.

“I was pretty homesick, and I remember coming back to Canberra and feeling such excitement,” says Ben.

“That excitement to come ‘home’ after being away for nine months, that was when I knew.”

After 10 years playing top-level rugby, Ben retired in 2018 and struggled to adjust to life outside professional sport. He’d lost faith that he could be a useful contributor to society and find another career that he enjoyed.

“Looking back, I’d let my whole identity become Ben the footballer. When that didn’t go well, I was in a bad way, from a mental health perspective, because all my identity was tied up into doing well from footy and getting praise from people,” says Ben.

He explored entrepreneurship and consulting, eventually settling into two jobs that he loves – co-owner of sports bar The Dock and co-founder of suicide prevention group Running 4 Resilience.  The common thread? They’re both about bringing people together.

“I really think Canberra is just the best place in Australia to start a business, to have a crack at something, to do that side project that you really enjoy, and get purpose from it.”

For Ben, that ‘side project’ is deeply personal – he’s focussed on achieving a suicide-free ACT by 2033 with Running 4 Resilience, helping others realise the mental health benefits of exercising together.

“Retiring from sport, I’ve had to find new ways of regulating my nervous system, because I was dealing with stress. I’ve heard Canberra described as a ‘city detox’ – the place to come when you need to get away from the pressure of big city life. It’s just the amount of nature and how stress-free it is – I think it is good for our nervous system, being so close to nature, in such a clean city with low crime.”

“We’ve had a few people credit that it helped them when they’re in their darkest moments, that getting out and exercising with friends regularly, which had really helped me during tough periods,” he says.

And it’s those small things that Ben values the most.

“It’s the little moments that I enjoy, and it’s also being able to leave home at 7:45 am and make my 8 am Parkrun in plenty of time, whereas in Sydney, I’d have to leave an hour early. It’s the convenience, the quality of the people and the environment,” he says.

“As I’ve lived here longer, I’ve seen pretty much every corner of it now, and just love it more and more and more.”