Leinster Rugby v Cardiff Blues

Where are
they now?
By Des Berry
John
McWeeney
THEN: JOHN MADE HIS DEBUT AGAINST CONNACHT
IN AUGUST 1997, EVENTUALLY WINNING 66 CAPS FOR
LEINSTER OVER EIGHT SEASONS, AND PLAYING ONCE FOR
IRELAND, FROM 1997 TO 2005.
NOW: NOW 44, JOHN LIVES IN TERENURE WITH HIS
WIFE AVRIL AND THEIR TWO CHILDREN, OLIVIA (8) AND
ALEXANDER (5) AND WORKS AS HEAD OF THE PRIVATE
CLIENT LENDING TEAM AT INVESTEC.
It was the summer of 1997.
Old school buddies escaped the city
for Brittas Bay where all subjects were
up for discussion. Daragh Coleman,
Stephen Molloy, Karl Jennings and John
McWeeney taking it in turn to slag off
Denis Hickie about the possibility of
facing Jonah Lomu in the Autumn.
By the time November 15 came around,
Hickie would have to deal with Glen
Osborne and McWeeney was on the
other flank coping with Jeff Wilson in
what turned into a 63-15 smashing at
Lansdowne Road.
It was a whirlwind time in the life of
21-year-old McWeeney for he had made
the outrageous climb from debuting in the
All-Ireland League in March to facing the
world’s best in eight months.
“What happened was I played my
first senior AIL game for St Mary’s in
1997, scoring six tries in six matches.
This prompted a call from Leinster
Manager Jim Glennon and the offer of a
development contract.
“At that time, Mike Ruddock had just
come in and there was the semblance of
a professional set-up. I spent that summer
as a professional for the first time. I had
never lifted a weight, never been to a
gym to workout properly.
“I was enthusiastic and kept my head
down and I think Mike liked my rawness
as a big wing. This led to my debut
against Connacht in Donnybrook. I went
straight from there into Europe where I
played against Toulouse for my Heineken
Cup debut and then we beat Leicester in
Donnybrook which was a phenomenal
achievement at the time.
“I will never forget that match against
Leicester. No one gave us a chance. They
were a force at the time and they had all
those big English names. That win stands
out from my time at Leinster.
“I had a really good game on the
wing and, somehow, found myself in
the Ireland squad a few weeks later.
From March to September, everything
happened so fast.”
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