Ben John would likely be the first to tell you that he was never exactly a household name during his playing days.
That isn't to disparage John's achievements. Any player who makes a career out of rugby, regardless of how far up the ladder they get, does so through a tremendous amount of hard work and sacrifice.
During his 79 appearances for the Ospreys, John always did what was asked of him and forged some special memories as a result. He represented his country in the U20s World Championship, played alongside some childhood heroes and even emerged as a dark horse for Warren Gatland's 2015 World Cup squad after some late-season form.
Perhaps the highlight, certainly from John's point of view, was crossing for a score in front of around 50,000 fans at Judgement Day in 2015.
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Bizarrely, 50,000 watching John now is something of a daily occurance. Having stepped away from rugby at the start of 2019 following a series of concussions, he's now back involved in the sport - albeit in a different guise.
Under the name 'The Rugby Trainer', John has grown a sizable online following in a relatively short space of time - producing videos on social media that aim to help players of all ages and all levels improve their skills.
He also runs an online skills academy, where players sign up to and they get access to different programmes from himself and different rugby players.
"Sam Warburton recently put together a four-week plan to improve ruck skills," John tells WalesOnline.
"It's just drills people can do on their own. The focus is what you can do away from team sessions to improve. We used to call it our 'extras'.
"Just 10-minute drills you can do to help you progress. I used to spend half my life down the park with my dad and brother.
"I just thought how cool would it be to have something more rugby-specific for players to go down the park with family or friends and work on their skills."
As the videos and their reach have grown, so too has the supporting cast of players who have helped out John with his training drills. Rugby legends like Warburton and Brian O'Driscoll have offered their expertise, while John has also linked up with the likes of Leinster, Saracens and his former club Ospreys for training ground videos.
The result is around five million interactions on Instagram a month, while the Rugby Trainer hashtag on TikTok has picked up around 45 million views in the last year. John, undoubtedly, on social media is now a household name and the appeal of his efforts to help is only growing.
"I've been blown away by it all," he said. "The videos are getting a lot of views.
"My following across Instagram, TikTok and YouTube is nearly up to 300,000. It's pretty cool.
"It's incredible and what's really exciting is I can see where the followers are. The majority are UK-based, but there's people from all over the world. Rugby is really starting to pick up in India.
"Then there's Europe, South America and Asia. I do challenges for people to send in their efforts. A rugby team from Azerbaijan sent in one which was amazing. I get a lot of interaction from male and female players in India and Africa."
Calling the growth of his channel "crazy" and something he didn't expect at all, John still places an importance on the simple ethos at the heart of it all is improving people on an individual basis.
Before turning back to rugby, John was working post-retirement as a personal trainer in central London. However, the first Covid-19 lockdown turned everything virtual.
With a bit more time on his hands, he sought to find a way to get people involved in activities that would be more appealing than just simple press-ups and sit-ups. So, having been away from the sport in football-mad central London for a while, he picked up the rugby ball again and hasn't really looked back since.
Starting as a weekly live session on Instagram either down the park or in his back garden, it soon grew into something bigger. The realisation that his former peers in the sport were stuck without games at the start of the pandemic meant that the likes of Leigh Halfpenny, Rhys Webb, Ashley Beck and Alecs Donovan were all early contributors.
But as things have changed massively, that simple ethos has remained.
"I used to run a club with the gym and I always used to say that as long as one person turned up, I was happy because then I'm helping somebody," he said. "Every video I do, I just think as long as I can help one person improve, I've done my job.
"But to see some of the numbers is mad. My intentions are to help and share as much as I can, so people want to grab a ball and head outside and learn something. I also like to keep things simple.
"The viewer isn't a professional and it's hard for them to attach themselves to it. That's what I try to put in my videos."
It would be a little strong to say John's second life as an individual skills coach and social media presence has seen him fall back in love with rugby, but there was a period when John didn't really want anything to do with the sport he'd dedicated much of his life to.
Understandably, the nature of being forced out of the game through multiple concussions is a tough pill to swallow.
"When I finished, I was in the centre of London," he said. "There's zero rugby and it's all football.
"I was totally out of rugby for three or four years. I was gutted I had to retire, so I thought 'stuff rugby' and just focused on the next thing. But lockdown made me focus on what I love most and I got the ball back in my hands.
"I do love rugby and this is why I used to love turning up every day as a professional rugby player. I don't play anymore, but I get to try and better myself every day with what I do.
"I meet coaches and players and, even though I'm filming content. I'm actually learning along the way as well. I probably love rugby now more than ever. I see it as a player and a fan. I went to watch the Ospreys a few weeks ago with my nephew and my brother and I loved it.
"The same with the Women's Six Nations. I get a real excitement to watch it."
John, who admits he's had a bit of a shock learning new skills like filming and editing videos, has been largely ahead of the curve when it comes to finding a big rugby audience on social media. Brands and governing bodies have started to see the potential since, providing John with new-found opportunities.
Earlier this year, he attended the Six Nations launch in London - producing videos with each of the coaches and captains, be that Ken Owens' lineout tips or Owen Farrell's passing advice. But the former centre says he's still learning as he goes.
"Working in events like that was amazing," he said. "I've never been in anything like that.
"I was putting myself out there a bit as I don't interview people. I interviewed Steve Borthwick in the first interview and I forgot to press record!
"It was good knowledge that he shared, but only I know it unfortunately. I learned the hard way on that one."
After the rapid growth of John's social media stock, there's no long-term plan. A five-year goal isn't his style - rather, he'd sooner take things a few months at a time.
But with the emphasis continuing to be on getting as many people playing as possible, and those within the game willing to offer their own knowledge, the future of John's online presence looks healthy.
A household name? Certainly, if you look online.
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