#93: Beyond the Rugby Field: Chasing the Dream of Land Ownership with Lewis Holland
G'day and welcome to the A Place to Call Home Podcast, a podcast sharing the stories of people building a life in agriculture across rural Australia.
In this episode, I sit down with former Australian Rugby Sevens captain and two-time Olympian, Lewis Holland.
Growing up in Braidwood, NSW, Lewis always had a passion for agriculture, but it was rugby that took him around the world, spending over a decade representing Australia at the highest level.
Despite his success on the rugby field, Lewis never lost sight of his dream of building a life on the land.
While still playing professionally, Lewis and his now wife, Charlotte Caslick, purchased their first cattle property near Stanthorpe. What started as an ambition to establish a Speckle Park stud eventually evolved into a commercial cattle operation as they learnt the realities of balancing professional sport with running a farm.
Since hanging up the boots, Lewis has taken a different path, from exploring real estate and spending time droving cattle to working in rural construction before eventually backing himself to establish his own contracting business, Alcheringa Rural Fabrication.
Today, Lewis is working across Northern Australia, building cattle yards and rural infrastructure, while continuing to grow his cattle operation and work towards owning more country.
We dive into the realities of life after professional sport, the challenges of starting a contracting business, managing people, investing in machinery and the constant balancing act between growing a business and building long-term wealth.
We also explore how becoming a husband and father has shaped his perspective on work, family and what he wants to achieve.
This is a great conversation about taking opportunities, learning from setbacks, backing yourself and having a crack at building the life you want.
In this episode, we chat about:
🏉 Growing up in Braidwood and the journey from schoolboy rugby to captaining the Australian Sevens and competing at two Olympic Games
🇦🇺 Life behind the scenes as a professional athlete, the highs and lows, and lessons learnt representing Australia
🌾 Buying a first cattle property while playing professional rugby and balancing two very different careers
🐂 The ambition of building a Speckle Park stud and why Lewis eventually transitioned to a commercial Angus-influenced herd
🐎 Life after professional rugby, from droving cattle and exploring different opportunities to finding his feet in rural contracting
🚜 Building Alcheringa Rural Fabrication, finding work, managing crews and navigating the challenges of growth
💰 Buying machinery, taking on debt and balancing reinvestment in the business with the bigger goal of owning more land
👨👩👦 Becoming a father, supporting Charlotte's sporting career and finding the right balance between work, family and the future
Learn More about Lewis and What We Chatted About
🐂 Alcheringa Ranch — Instagram
🚜 Alcheringa Rural Fabrication — Instagram
🔨 Alcheringa Rural Fabrication — Facebook
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This season of A Place to Call Home is proudly brought to you by Rabobank Australia.
A big thank you to Rabobank Australia for supporting the podcast and helping us continue sharing the stories of people building their future in Australian agriculture.
At A Place to Call Home, we believe in the power of stories to connect, inspire, and shape a future grounded in purpose and place. These values guide everything we do — from conversations on the podcast to the community we’re building around it.