Amateur rugby player who worked at Sainsbury’s drafted into NFL

Earlier this year, Clayton was working for an employment background screening company, and before that he was a customer service assistant at Sainsbury’s.

Clayton showed sporting promise growing up, playing football for Fulham’s academy while also having trials at Reading, Southampton and Chelsea, and trying his hand at rowing and boxing before taking up rugby.

He later joined his home club, Basingstoke, a team in the eighth tier of domestic rugby union.

He said having played a team sport “helps tremendously” with his new American football career, adding: “More importantly, playing the wing in rugby helps with the physicality side and with agility.”

Clayton ran a 40-yard dash in 4.79 seconds in an NFL draft event that collects data from aspirant players.