The other Dan Biggar, his childhood sweetheart wife and the little boy who it’s all for

There are two sides to Dan Biggar.

Of course, there is the one that millions of people see under the uncompromising glare of the floodlights.

The fly-half who doesn’t give an inch, who puts his body on the line without hesitation, who demands the best out of himself and his team-mates.

And then there is Dan. The father, the husband. The one who comes home after training and tidies up his son’s play room, who likes his golf, who is just like me and you in many ways.

There’s a switch he flicks when he comes through the door. Rugby Dan stays where Rugby Dan belongs.

“If I wasn’t good at turning that off I think I’d drive myself, my wife and everyone around me crazy. I’m really good at that,” he tells WalesOnline.

“I think the family life has certainly put a different perspective on rugby. I’m still massively disappointed if we lose or if we don’t play well.

“When I’m in training and game mode on a Saturday afternoon, there is still nothing more important than wanting to win every moment, be the best you can be and be successful.

“But now when I come in through the door after training or a game, I’m able to completely switch off as opposed to sitting up worrying, rewatching the game.

“I’ve really just enjoyed coming home, switching off and putting my focus on my family because I don’t spend a huge amount of time with them.

“That’s the key for me, especially in the last couple of years.”

And there has been one particularly significant change in the last couple of years.

Three-and-a-half years ago, to be a little more precise, Biggar’s son James came into the world.

The 31-year-old has always given off the impression that the defeats live with him a little longer than other players.

Whether that was true or not before, it is certainly not the case now because when the door swings open, James doesn’t know if his dad won or lost.

“It’s really nice to have an outlet. I come home and he’s not aware of anything really. He knows I go away and I’m on the telly but he doesn’t understand things yet,” said Biggar, an ambassador for Dove Men+Care.

“He quite liked having the Six Nations medal around his neck a while back. He thought it was a reward for tidying up his playroom one evening. I went along with that.

“He’s been the best thing that’s happened to me.”

James may not understand what is going on around him just yet but one day he will.

One day he’ll realise that his father won multiple Six Nations championships, went on two Lions tours, played at a couple of World Cups and earned a boat-load of caps for his country.

Not that the man himself will be in a rush to tell stories about the good times.

“I’m going to keep all the bad press and there is plenty of it!” Biggar laughs. “I’ll get him to go through all that, which will be good entertainment for him. If he listens to some people his dad will have been pretty rubbish!

“It’s been quite difficult with Covid because games, particularly international ones, used to be a real family day out for lots of people.

“As he’s getting a little bit older and a bit more aware, it’s been sad that we’ve not been able to keep doing that.

“We played Wasps a couple of weeks ago with Northampton and he came to that with my wife Alex. That will have been the first game he’s been to since everything kicked off with Covid.

“I suppose when I finish or he gets old enough to realise, it’ll be quite nice to show him what I achieved.

“I really want him to be quite independent though and I don’t want to push rugby on him. I want him to be able to choose what he wants to do.”

One person who does understand everything Biggar has achieved and everything he goes through is his wife, Alex.

The pair have been together since they were in school, so she has seen the highs and the lows, the mental and physical price her husband has paid to get to where he is.

And now she is the one who is at home taking care of James when Biggar is away in Covid-secure bubbles at team hotels for weeks on end.

“Alex has been brilliant,” he says.

“Like with all the rugby boys, the partners and parents do a heck of a lot more than we do. They can sometimes get overlooked.”

Alex runs a successful baking business aptly named ‘Biggar Bakes’ and during the recent Six Nations some of her goods made it past the Wales team nutritionist.

They were on offer at the ‘Covid Cafe’ an in-house patisserie run by Jonathan Davies and George North to keep spirits high on days off.

“She was a primary school teacher before she gave birth to James,” Biggar explains. “Being a mum, she found herself being at home a lot and we were doing out a playroom for James.

“We thought we’d put a bit of an open plan kitchen in there for her as well. So she’s baking, doing wedding cakes, birthday cakes and bits and pieces while the little one is causing carnage around her.

“I come home after training sometimes and it’s like a bomb has gone off in that room.

“It normally falls to me to do the tidying up then as well!

“But she’s doing very well with that. She’s very independent, likes doing things for herself and keeping busy throughout the days.

“It’s hard for her to really rely on me around the house because of the hours we work and the time we spend away.

“So it’s good for her that she has a routine with James and her own life as well.”

And so to the future.

Around the corner is another trip. A big one.

Biggar heads into the 2021 Lions tour of South Africa as the front-runner to start in the Test series.

Of course, he is relishing the prospect to once again don a famous red jersey different to the one he has worn 92 times before.

But now he has arrived at the training camp in Jersey, he will not see Alex or James for eight weeks due to Covid restrictions.

There is still a chance the players will have to quarantine when they return from South Africa, which adds to the difficulties.

“It’s a very long time and he’s getting a bit more aware of the fact that I go away. It’s been really difficult,” he admits.

“I’m glad the tour is in South Africa because it’s only a one hour time difference for things like FaceTime. That’ll make things a bit easier.

“The biggest challenge I’ll face over the next eight weeks… Whenever I go away, it’s always the first couple of weeks that I find hard because it’s that adjustment period.

“I think Alex is the same as well but when you get through that initial stage, everyone gets into a routine.

“Then the first week I come home, she’s kicking me out of the house again because I’m messing up the routine, making a mess and things like that.

“The good thing is, we’ve got loads of good people going on tour, many of whom are in a similar position to myself.

“It’ll be a massive challenge but hopefully we’ll have lots of things to keep us occupied.”

*Dan Biggar is a Dove Men+Care ambassador. For more rugby and fatherhood stories, follow @DoveMenUK Twitter or @DoveMenCare Instagram*