JAKE Abbott gets a few strange looks when he gets up on stage for open mic nights: after all, not many budding musicians are 15 stone professional rugby players.

Indeed, to an outsider, the day job as part of the Worcester Warriors seems to be at odds with the hobby. Rugby players singing love songs? Ummm...

But Abbott is not worried - he knows he is not the only one.

“You would be surprised,” he said. “So many rugby players have got passions outside of the game. Josh Drauniniu is a fantastic guitarist and Adam Black was really good as well.”

You can’t, Abbott points out, be training or playing all the time. A hobby or sideline is therefore a good thing.

His fledgling music career started after he got injured just over two years ago, leaving him with a lot of time to learn the guitar.

And it’s now progressed to the point where he not only gets up on stage in front of people to sing a few covers, but also writes his own material.

“Someone made the mistake of telling me I could sing and I’ve taken it a bit further,” he joked. “I have been tagged as kind of soul and RnB acoustic. I quite like singing soppy songs, but I try to stay away from them.

“The go-to in the early days of song writing is always love - it’s easiest emotion to capture. I also had a writing masterclass with songwriter Benny Gallagher a couple of months ago.”

His songs and style are inspired by a number of people - including Jason Mraz and Ed Sheeran, although Abbott admits looks-wise he is about as far away from the skinny musician which that type of music seems to embody.

“Musicians, as such, don’t have to worry about their diet, weight, speed and power. I do.”

There are now plans to move on from open mic nights - he has had a few gigs already and is hoping to book more soon - and even a possibility of recording with friend and fellow Worcester musician Tina V, who fronts This Wicked Tongue.

“I will definitely do some recording now, it’s just a matter of finding the time and the money,” he said. “I’ll take it as far as I can - it is all about enjoyment at the moment though.”

- Watch Jake sing at the Worcester Music Festival: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfIPFy6whM0