Off-contract at season’s end, Panthers veteran Tyrone Peachey hasn’t made a decision on his future in the game as yet, but one thing is for certain – he doesn’t want to be digging ditches.
To avoid any manual labour on the side of a road, the 32-year-old is putting in the yard yards off the field now to make sure he is set up post-football.
From starting his own Indigenous transport business to launching his own podcast and interning at the RLPA under Clint Newton, Peachey has his fingers in many pies.
“I don’t have any qualifications outside of footy and I don’t want to be digging holes when I retire – that’s what I’m scared of – so I’m trying to dip my toe into a bit of everything and put myself in uncomfortable situations,” Peachey told the Weekender on Tuesday.
Last year, Peachey founded his own businesses called Nanima Care, which aims to be Australia’s number one Indigenous transport company.
With six buses and six employees, Peachey is thrilled with the impact it is having in the community so far.
“I know there’s a lot of players that don’t have much after football and I kind of find that inspirational in wanting to start something before I finish playing and hopefully transition straight into if I chose to retire,” he said.
“However, right now I am still playing and having Nanima Care on the side is keeping me busy off the field. I’m enjoying and loving every minute of it. Having my own business on the side… it’s pretty cool!”
When he’s not training with the Panthers, Peachey also works at the RLPA (Rugby League Players Association) in Balmain dabbling in player relations.
“I’m the little apprentice!” Peachey laughed.
“Clint Newton (RLPA CEO) has been awesome. Seeing what happens behind the scenes, it’s different to what I saw as a player coming to meetings.
“Everyone’s working really hard all day and it’s cool to see. I’m trying to put myself in different situations to see what I want to do after footy.”
Another different situation Peachey has thrust himself into of late is the wild world of podcasting. Billed as ‘laid-back chats and endless laughs’, the 209-game veteran launched the ‘Peached Podcast’ on YouTube back in April.
With his home equipped with a state-of-the-art recording studio, Peachey said he was always keen to have an outlet where he could share his thoughts about an array of topics.
“There’s a lot of people with a podcast these days and they’re doing a great job, but I take mine down a different path,” he said.
“I suppose I see things in a different aspect and try to get my point across. I like to have a bit of a joke and some fun and that’s kind of my avenue that I want to go down.”
Peachey has already scored Daine Laurie as a guest, but he’s a little wary of involving his other teammates.
“I try and get the boys on but most of them are shy or take the mickey out of it, but I still enjoy it,” he said.
“Hopefully the podcast continues to get bigger and will be a source of revenue, so I can make a living off it.”
As for his playing future, Peachey knows he needs to have a massive second half of the season to be offered a new deal at Penrith.
“I’ve probably been a bit scattered this year. I haven’t been playing consistent footy and that probably shows on the field,” he admitted.
“I need to put everything into this backend of the year and see where I’m at. If I get to the end of the year and I’ve had enough, then I’ve had enough, but I don’t think so, I think I’ll miss the game too much.”
Nathan Taylor
Nathan Taylor is the Weekender's Deputy Editor and Senior Sports Writer. He also compiles the weekly Chatter on the Box TV column. Nathan is an award-winning journalist, who has worked at the Weekender for a decade.