Ollie Kohn Talks to TRF

[TRF_Olyy]

Great stuff!

TRF_Cymro Who's the longest in the shower?

Ollie - Ugo- enough said

:lol: I'm not sure how to interpret that question/answer

 

[lucky number 7]

Top work guys also the respect for Wallace endears me to this man

 

[Getofmeland]

The Rugby Forum is pleased to have spent some time with the Harlequins Second Row and Co-Owner of The Jolly Hog and Sausage Company, Ollie Kohn.

Ollie and his brother Josh run The Jolly Hog and Sausage Company, which now have stands at both the Harlequins and Bristol Rugby grounds, they have also been subject to some great promotion from Ollie's team mates over the last couple of years.

Ollie has taken time out of his preparation for the ERC Amlin Challenge Cup Final and making Sausages to answer a few questions from members of The Rugby Forum.

Feicarsinn - What's Conor O'Shea like to work with?

Ollie Kohn - Before Conor came to Quins I didn’t know much about him accept that he is well respected as an ex player and coach. He will fully admit that he is a very positive person and is great for the team..

Feicarsinn - The Aviva Premiership has a notoriously big calendar. Coupled with the Anglo Welsh cup and European competition, you could easily play 30+ games a season. Do you feel this is too much rugby? Does having such a long season diminish the quality and intensity of games?

Ollie - I don’t think having a long season diminishes the quality and intensity of the games. I do think it could have something to do with injury rates but at the same time having the different competitions can give clubs a chance to blood young talent and rotate the squad.

Lucky Number 7 - How much ribbing does Joe Marler get for his haircut?

Ollie - He gets a lot more for having a nose like a croissant! But I wouldn’t say anything about him as he has given us some big publicity and only in exchange for a free sausage from Jolly Hog.

Lucky Number 7 - Who was your biggest influence in rugby growing up as a kid?

Ollie - My Dad. He is a die hard Bristol Rugby fan and a season ticket holder for as long as I can remember. If you ask anyone that knows him they will tell you how much he loves to chew your ear off about rugby and his passion for the game. He cry’s at most of the national anthems before games.

MonkeyPigeon - What pack has the biggest Wind up Merchants (WUMs) that you've played against?

Ollie - Neil Best the Irish flanker made me laugh a few times. George Robson’s chat absolutely stinks!

MonkeyPigeon - Who do you think will win the Heineken Cup this year?

Ollie - I think if Leinster can hold their own in the scrum (a lot of that comes down to one of my good mates Mike Ross who has had a great year) then they will win. Because their style of play and the pace and intensity is hard to break down.

MonkeyPigeon - What was it like to beat Munster in Thomand Park?

Ollie - The atmosphere was incredible. As a squad we had a belief we could go into an arena and beat a top side in Europe and we were probably the only ones who believed it. But it was an amazing feeling and we know that we have to back it up in Cardiff at the final. Needless to say Limerick was a great night after.

MonkeyPigeon - Do you think Quins have the potential to challenge for the Premiership next year?

Ollie - Yes definitely we know we are able to beat any team in the premiership on our day and we have proven that this year but we know to win the premiership you have to be consistently good each week. We did lose a lot through injury through the middle of the season and that didn’t help us this year.

MonkeyPigeon - Which of your teammates is the biggest fan of your sausages?

Ollie - I’d say the biggest fans of the sausages are Matt Cairns, Mark Lambert and then the biggest fans of our hog roasts are Nick Easter and James Johnston. JJ ate 5 hog baps in one night that is good going!

GingerGenius - Do you ever mix it up with the League boys at Quins?

Ollie - A little bit when we trained at the same place but not at all anymore as we train in Guildford now. But they all seemed like top lads and they train really hard!

osulli mi - What’s the most significant match you’ve ever played in?

Ollie - Probably the Munster game a few weeks ago. Everyone involved put in a massive performance to upset the European giants.

Cmac95 - Who is the most influential player you have played with?

Ollie - Nick Evans has a huge influence on our team at Quins. But the most influential was probably Andre Vos. When I arrived he stepped down as captain for Paul Volley, Vossy was so well respected on and off the field and always led by example. He played and trained hard and was a top bloke off the pitch.

TRF_Olly - How did Jolly Hogg come about? Were you involved in the industry before becoming a pro-rugby player, or were the bangers and mash served in the Quins cafe not up to scratch and you had to take matters into your own hands?

Ollie - I have always loved food and for my 27th birthday my wife bought me a sausage making machine, from there I couldn't stop trying out new flavours and testing them on the boys. From there I convinced Mark Evans at Quins to let me have a stall at the ground and we have gone from strength to strength. I love making sausages and eating them!

TRF_Olly - How much free sausage did you have to give to Joe Marler for that haircut?

Ollie - Whenever he fancies a sausage he knows where to come. We also gave him a Jolly Hog chef's apron which are very sort after. We did an event where I set some of the boys a task of selling some ice cream for me to the general public. Mark Lambert sold the most, Chris Robshaw was okay but Joe struggled as he ate most of his instead of selling them and then gave me the cash for it!

TRF_Cymro - Who's the biggest joker in the Quins team?

Ollie - Danny Care a cheeky little dwarf, but the biggest Jon Andress, he's a clown. Not only does he have the body of a large fat baby he carries a lot round his cheeks.

TRF_Cymro Who's the longest in the shower?

Ollie - Ugo- enough said

TRF_Cymro - Who is your most admired player currently playing and of All Time?

Ollie - I think David Wallace is a cut above the rest. He's 34 and still extremely powerful in defence and with the ball.

Finally from me, Do you feel the gap between the Premiership and Championship is at its closest?

Ollie - It's definitely a lot closer than it was. When I was at Plymouth Albion about 7/8 years ago the difference was massive. It was a big step up and the what was called the Division one was a lot more forward orientated. I had a great time playing at Albion we had a monster pack with Will James, Dan Ward- Smith and Andy Perry plus Dawsy.

On behalf of The Rugby Forum, I would like to thank Ollie for spending some time with us and answering the array of questions from our members. Also I would like to wish him all the best on Friday Night in the ERC Amlin Challenge Cup Final against Stade Francais, and the Jolly Hog Sausage Company.

The Rugby Forum is pleased to have spent some time with the Harlequins Second Row and Owner of The Jolly Hog Sausage Company, Ollie Kohn.

Ollie has taken time out of his preparation for the ERC Amlin Challenge Cup Final to answer a few questions from members of The Rugby Forum.

Feicarsinn - What's Conor O'Shea like to work with?

Ollie Kohn - Before Conor came to Quins I didn’t know much about him accept that he is well respected as an ex player and coach. He will fully admit that he is a very positive person and is great for the team..

Feicarsinn - The Aviva Premiership has a notoriously big calendar. Coupled with the Anglo Welsh cup and European competition, you could easily play 30+ games a season. Do you feel this is too much rugby? Does having such a long season diminish the quality and intensity of games?

Ollie - I don’t think having a long season diminishes the quality and intensity of the games. I do think it could have something to do with injury rates but at the same time having the different competitions can give clubs a chance to blood young talent and rotate the squad.

Lucky Number 7 - How much ribbing does Joe Marler get for his haircut?

Ollie - He gets a lot more for having a nose like a croissant! But I wouldn’t say anything about him as he has given us some big publicity and only in exchange for a free sausage from Jolly Hog.

Lucky Number 7 - Who was your biggest influence in rugby growing up as a kid?

Ollie - My Dad. He is a die hard Bristol Rugby fan and a season ticket holder for as long as I can remember. If you ask anyone that knows him they will tell you how much he loves to chew your ear off about rugby and his passion for the game. He cry’s at most of the national anthems before games.

MonkeyPigeon - What pack has the biggest Wind up Merchants (WUMs) that you've played against?

Ollie - Neil Best the Irish flanker made me laugh a few times. George Robson’s chat absolutely stinks!

MonkeyPigeon - Who do you think will win the Heineken Cup this year?

Ollie - I think if Leinster can hold their own in the scrum (a lot of that comes down to one of my good mates Mike Ross who has had a great year) then they will win. Because their style of play and the pace and intensity is hard to break down.

MonkeyPigeon - What was it like to beat Munster in Thomand Park?

Ollie - The atmosphere was incredible. As a squad we had a belief we could go into an arena and beat a top side in Europe and we were probably the only ones who believed it. But it was an amazing feeling and we know that we have to back it up in Cardiff at the final. Needless to say Limerick was a great night after.

MonkeyPigeon - Do you think Quins have the potential to challenge for the Premiership next year?

Ollie - Yes definitely we know we are able to beat any team in the premiership on our day and we have proven that this year but we know to win the premiership you have to be consistently good each week. We did lose a lot through injury through the middle of the season and that didn’t help us this year.

MonkeyPigeon - Which of your teammates is the biggest fan of your sausages?

Ollie - I’d say the biggest fans of the sausages are Matt Cairns, Mark Lambert and then the biggest fans of our hog roasts are Nick Easter and James Johnston. JJ ate 5 hog baps in one night that is good going!

GingerGenius - Do you ever mix it up with the League boys at Quins?

Ollie - A little bit when we trained at the same place but not at all anymore as we train in Guildford now. But they all seemed like top lads and they train really hard!

osulli mi - What’s the most significant match you’ve ever played in?

Ollie - Probably the Munster game a few weeks ago. Everyone involved put in a massive performance to upset the European giants.

Cmac95 - Who is the most influential player you have played with?

Ollie - Nick Evans has a huge influence on our team at Quins. But the most influential was probably Andre Vos. When I arrived he stepped down as captain for Paul Volley, Vossy was so well respected on and off the field and always led by example. He played and trained hard and was a top bloke off the pitch.

TRF_Olly - How did Jolly Hogg come about? Were you involved in the industry before becoming a pro-rugby player, or were the bangers and mash served in the Quins cafe not up to scratch and you had to take matters into your own hands?

Ollie - I have always loved food and for my 27th birthday my wife bought me a sausage making machine, from there I couldn't stop trying out new flavours and testing them on the boys. From there I convinced Mark Evans at Quins to let me have a stall at the ground and we have gone from strength to strength. I love making sausages and eating them!

TRF_Olly - How much free sausage did you have to give to Joe Marler for that haircut?

Ollie - Whenever he fancies a sausage he knows where to come. We also gave him a Jolly Hog chef's apron which are very sort after. We did an event where I set some of the boys a task of selling some ice cream for me to the general public. Mark Lambert sold the most, Chris Robshaw was okay but Joe struggled as he ate most of his instead of selling them and then gave me the cash for it!

TRF_Cymro - Who's the biggest joker in the Quins team?

Ollie - Danny Care a cheeky little dwarf, but the biggest Jon Andress, he's a clown. Not only does he have the body of a large fat baby he carries a lot round his cheeks.

TRF_Cymro Who's the longest in the shower?

Ollie - Ugo- enough said

TRF_Cymro - Who is your most admired player currently playing and of All Time?

Ollie - I think David Wallace is a cut above the rest. He's 34 and still extremely powerful in defence and with the ball.

Finally from me, Do you feel the gap between the Premiership and Championship is at its closest?

Ollie - It's definitely a lot closer than it was. When I was at Plymouth Albion about 7/8 years ago the difference was massive. It was a big step up and the what was called the Division one was a lot more forward orientated. I had a great time playing at Albion we had a monster pack with Will James, Dan Ward- Smith and Andy Perry plus Dawsy.

On behalf of The Rugby Forum, I would like to thank Ollie for spending some time with us and answering the array of questions from our members. Also I would like to wish him all the best on Friday Night in the ERC Amlin Challenge Cup Final against Stade Francais, and the Jolly Hog and Sausage Company.

 

[Feicarsinn]

Seems like a nice guy. Big thanks to the mods, in particular Getoffmeland, for sorting this!

 

[TRF_Cymro]

Great stuff!

:lol: I'm not sure how to interpret that question/answer

Hehehe, got to be cheeky and ask these things :lol:

 

[Getofmeland]

Glad you like the answers they made me laugh, now anyone and everyone of Twitter please Retweet this - link using http://bit.ly/kGBUXV

 

[lucky number 7]

And off to Twitter I go!

 

[TRF C A Iversen]

Impressive series of questions and all credited to the people who asked them, very good. It's a great advert for Jolly Hog, I want to try some. Maybe he should make meat pies too?