It was a study into Oxytocin – otherwise known as the Love Hormone – that led to Asher and David Opoku-Fordjour’s brotherly reunion at Sale Sharks this season.
Alex Sanderson, the club’s director of rugby, is one of life’s more curious characters and in his quest to become a better coach, he began exploring how chemicals in the brain impact performance. The Curry, Du Preez and James brothers have all featured in recent Sale squads and his research taught him how siblings bring the best out of each other.
‘When I came to Sale, we had quite a stoic group,’ Sanderson tells Daily Mail Sport. ‘We had a few South Africans who needed quantitative evidence, so we got a neuroscientist in who worked with the special forces.
‘I started to understand the chemistry five or six years ago after speaking to a few experts. We’ve always been a fan of brothers. At one point we had seven playing for Sale. There’s a connection you get with brothers.
‘Rugby, the beautiful sport that it is, is about more than technique. The pain thresholds you have to push yourself through sets it apart from a lot of sports.
‘We did a study where we quizzed the Curry twins, Tom and Ben, on what they give and take from each other. Brothers have this ability to support, love, cherish, play. Blood is thicker than water.
Asher (left) and David Opoku-Fordjour are playing together for Sale Sharks this season. The club proactively recruit siblings having enjoyed success with the policy before
David is put through his paces in training with Sale, having joined this summer from Coventry
‘On the other side, they’re able to challenge, test, push and be honest. It’s a challenge and support piece that is exemplified through sibling rivalry and love.
‘Oxytocin plays its part. You get it through childbirth, sex, breast feeding and really positive social connections. You’re more likely to put your body on the line and go the extra mile because of the chemicals that flood your brain for the love of your brother, than for a team-mate that you have mutual respect for.
‘Science and AI will have its part to play as sport moves forward but there’s an art in farming team spirit. With brothers in your team, it’s already there. I played alongside my own brother, so I’ve experienced it first-hand.’
Asher needs little introduction. The 22-year-old prop was part of England’s Junior World Cup-winning team and he has already represented club and country at senior level. He was awarded one of Steve Borthwick’s central contracts this summer and is on track for next year’s World Cup.
David is a year older but he is relatively unknown outside of rugby’s second division. He was a prolific try-scorer for Coventry in the Championship but he has been made to wait for his opportunity in the top flight.
‘I dropped a few hints about David to our recruitment guy, Hugh Jenner,’ reveals Asher. ‘He watched his stuff and he liked what he saw. I was always leaving his name in the air.’
‘I got a call from my agent saying, “You’ve got a meeting”,’ adds David. ‘I was gassed. I told my mum and I called Asher straight away. Playing at Coventry, you want to get into the PREM.
‘Mum was like, “Praise the Lord, this has been coming”. I always had a hope that we would get a chance to play together again. Now I’ve just got to keep grafting until we get on the pitch together.’
The Curry brothers Tom (left) and Ben have been together at Sale since 2016
The Du Preez bothers (from left) Jean-Luc, Robert and Dan all used to play Sharks together too
You do not have to spend long in the company of the Opoku-Fordjours to see where Sanderson is coming from. They arbitrarily switch between praising one another and squabbling as we talk through their childhood journey to the Sale dressing room.
‘We’ve got two older brothers so that’s where the sibling rivalry started,’ explains David, a wing. ‘They never played rugby. One teaches people with special needs in Coventry and the other one, Sam… what does he do? He does a lot. He’s got a media company, a clothing company and he owns a music studio.’
‘He’s a musician, too,’ reveals Asher, pointing to David. ‘His name is Paps… because his middle name is Papa. This man’s talented. He can produce music. He can sing. He can rap.’
‘Asher’s made a couple of songs…’ adds David.
‘Nah, nah, nah,’ Asher shakes his head. ‘Be quiet, bro!’ You get the gist.
The only place where they have never butted heads is on the rugby pitch. They played local rugby in Coventry as schoolboys, starting out at Broadstreet, before they moved to Kenilworth.
‘We weren’t from a rugby family,’ explains David. ‘Our older brothers played football. Asher was a big child so dad signed him up at the rugby club. I was quick so I went along as well. We both turned up on the same day. The coaches were like “Who is quicker?” and they made us race.’
‘David’s always been quicker but I wasn’t miles behind him,’ admits Asher. ‘I was stronger. At that age, strong and quick does the trick. We were just tearing it up.
‘The last time we played a game together was at Kenilworth Under 15s. I played up a year and we played in the same age group. It was carnage. It was dark for the opposition. We were both rapid and strong.’
‘David’s always been quicker but I wasn’t miles behind him,’ says Asher. ‘I was stronger though’
Asher and David playing together as kids for Broadstreet Rugby Club in Coventry
They have had a front-row seat for the highs and lows of each other’s career. Asher found himself on the England age grade pathway, transitioning from the backs to the front row. David was released by Worcester’s academy as a teenager and took on a job in a pub.
‘I worked behind the bar at The Fizzy Moon in Leamington Spa for a bit,’ explains David. ‘Asher came for one shift and was like, “No, this isn’t for me!”’
‘I got a pay cheque of like £300 so how did I do just one shift?’ snaps Asher. ‘I was too young to pour drinks so they had me by the dishwasher, stacking the glasses. My back started hurting and I was like, “Nah, this isn’t good for my career!”’
‘I joined Coventry and did a coaching degree,’ David continues. ‘I got into their first team and I’ve been there ever since. There was probably still hope that I could do it. I didn’t really know what else I wanted to do. It was my dream so I never gave up. Now I’m here, you just throw yourself into it.’
David must earn his stripes before he is handed his first-team debut. Tom Roebuck, Arron Reed and Tom O’Flaherty are already established at the club. Flying Fijian Ponepate Loganimasi has also been signed up.
‘We signed David on his own merit,’ says Sanderson. ‘He’s a talent and he’s been dominating the Champ. They are both exceptional athletes and I look forward to seeing him grow.
‘I was having a chat with David and we were laughing at Asher’s ability to shirk stress. He’s so young but he just gets on with it. Brothers tend to have similar values and do not go far from what’s hardwired into them between the age of four to 10 years.
‘We already know what Asher can do. He could be a British Lion. He could go that far. He’s nowhere near maxed out his potential. He knows and we know what he’s got left in him. He’s not one to be complacent.
‘I started to understand the chemistry five or six years ago after speaking to a few experts,’ says Alex Sanderson, coach of Sale. ‘We’ve always been a fan of brothers’
‘I dropped a few hints about David to our recruitment guy, Hugh Jenner,’ reveals Asher. ‘He watched his stuff and he liked what he saw’
‘The scrum is an art. He’s already dominating at PREM level and he can hold his own at international level. That’s only going to improve.
‘The Springbok scrum will always be more of a challenge because it’s about weight. Asher’s not the heaviest of tightheads but, given where he is now, he could be world dominating.
‘If it was just a flat-out scrum race across three inches then I’d already back him every time. But it’s not. His technique is good but it’s those dark arts of being able to manage a scrum when the referee’s not managing it. There’s a lot of skullduggery that you need to master.
‘He’s reading the game a lot better so you’ll see more involvements this season. Ally that to his physical dynamism and he’s got a capacity that other tightheads haven’t.’
Asher and David now live together in Manchester, where they do battle on computer games and spend the evenings watching Netflix series like Breaking Bad and The Gentlemen. They have created a home away from home, much to the delight of their mother, Rebecca, who is back in Coventry with their younger foster brother.
‘Our mum is a busy woman so she’s not been up to visit more than normal,’ explains Asher. ‘She’s a foster carer now and she’s enjoying that. We’ve had a foster brother for a couple of years now. He’s a good kid. He’s autistic and it’s sometimes challenging but I’ve seen him grow massively.
‘He didn’t used to have an understanding of what’s right and we’ve helped him a lot with that. He’s learning a lot and it’s good to have him around.’
‘I always had a hope that we would get a chance to play together again,’ says David. ‘Now I’ve just got to keep grafting until we get on the pitch together’
‘I don’t think he quite understands what we do,’ adds David. ‘He’s only eight. He’s been to a couple of games and he just wants to run around.
‘He understands that we’re his foster brothers and we’re playing rugby. He’ll be like “Ooh, Asher on TV!” and he’ll get excited but he’s got a short attention span.’
‘It gives you the appreciation of being able to live your life freely,’ says Asher. ‘We can do as we please without support, here playing rugby together for Sale. He’s always going to need support so it makes us grateful for what we’ve got.’
Sale have spent big over the summer. David is one of 12 new recruits, much to his brother’s delight. Time will tell how much impact the Oxytocin effect has on the club’s fortunes.
