World Masters Ultimate Championships 2024 | Cal Easton

Cal first started playing ultimate with Blaze at Stirling University, in 2008. He’s a key player in Alba’s squad and previously played for Black Eagles. Cal’s also had his fair share of prior GB experience; GB Open u23s in 2013, placing 5th at the World Championships in Toronto, winning the European Championships with GB Mixed in 2015 and coming 5th at Worlds in London in 2016 as D-line captain.

Unfortunately, Cal had to withdraw from the GB Mixed Masters team due to an injury. Thankfully for us, he was still keen to share his thoughts on his experience. Cal was interviewed by Mihael ‘Jimmy’ Dimitrov.

You’ve got a pretty hefty ultimate CV! What motivates you to keep going?

I have been extremely fortunate to not only represent GB on a number of occasions but also be part of a series of great squads within that, particularly with the GB Mixed team of 2015/16. Winning EUC was the highlight of my ultimate career, and losing to France in a horrible game in the QFs at Worlds the following year was a low point (for all of us involved). I have held onto both of those extremes ever since, and they’ve motivated me to keep playing – to try and achieve that high again and to make up for that QF loss.

I’m not getting any younger, though, and the situation around Covid didn’t help me. I was off the pace when Ultimate started back up, and I missed out on making the GB team. I had many occasions where I felt like it was time to hang up the boots. Ultimate has been a huge part of my life for 16 years now, and it’s hard to give that up, especially when you have a sense of unfinished business.

Now, onto the not so sweet part. Pulling out of a big tournament must have been a tough decision. Tell us more about what factors came into play?

It wasn’t an easy decision to withdraw from the Masters squad, but it was probably the sensible one. I keep telling myself that anyway. During one of our training weekends, I aggravated an old groin injury that kept me sidelined a few years ago for 6-8 months. It almost cost me my spot on the GB squad for Worlds in 2016, and eventually required a steroid injection to fix. Something I definitely would not recommend!

With that in mind, it would’ve been a big ask to be fully fit for LA, and I would’ve risked long-term issues if I’d made it worse out there. My job is extremely physical, too, so that was a factor – I need to keep a roof over my head! Not to mention, whilst there’d be worse places to be than LA, it would’ve been a lot of money to spend to potentially just stand on the sidelines for a week.

I’m also very fortunate to have been part of previous GB cycles, so I have those memories and experiences to look back on and soften the blow of missing out on this one. On the other hand, I know exactly what I’ll be missing out on. It’s a double-edged sword.

I’ll definitely still be following the team when they’re in LA. They’re a great bunch, and I enjoyed my time with them, even if it was shortlived. They have the potential to do well, so my fingers will be crossed for them, whilst trying to hide my jealousy.

This might apply to club ultimate more, rather than the GB cycle itself, but how do you approach the recovery process? We have all seen players eager to come back to it too early and get sidelined for ever longer.

In terms of recovery, it’s easier said than done, and it’s the obvious answer, but I have to be patient. It’ll just take time. I’m 34 now, and I don’t bounce back from injuries like I used to. I’d love to rush back onto the field and play some ultimate ASAP, but in the long run, that’s probably the worst thing I could do. I chose not to play in the Scottish Super League this year for that reason, so I won’t get the chance to retain the title. As disappointed as I am to miss out on it, I’m really glad it’s running again this year. It’s shaping up to be a good one, so I’ll be following that, too.

What does the future look like for you? Are there more GB cycles on the horizon?

I’m not sure what the future holds for me. I had started to feel like my ultimate career was winding down. I hadn’t been able to play an awful lot over the past couple of seasons for various reasons, and enjoyed spending my time trying a few different things this year. But being part of the GB fold again definitely relit a spark in me. So, who knows. Club Worlds is only 2 years away…

And I did quite like the thought of adding some Masters caps to my collection (I still just don’t like admitting I fit into that age category).

What advice would you give to people considering trialling for GB?

To anyone thinking about applying for Masters in the future, or any GB cycle, just go for it. Even if you’ve been unsuccessful in the past. The worst thing you can do is rule yourself out before you even try. You’ve got to buy a ticket to win the raffle. Even if you don’t end up making the team, there is still the opportunity to learn so much from the trial process, and training weekends, that would help make you a better player and be beneficial in the long run.

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Featured photo credit to Showgame.

The World Masters Ultimate Championships 2024 are taking place from 10th to 16th November 2024 in Irvine, California. Follow along with the event here.