Leinster vs Scarlets

ISSUE 3 | LEINSTER RUGBY OFFICIAL MATCHDAY PROGRAMME 

LEINSTER 

VS 

scarlets 

SAT 16 TH OCT 

RDS ARENA 

KO 5.15PM

Newstead Building A, 

UCD, 

Belfield, 

Dublin 4 

#LEIVSCA 

The Line up 

Telephone: 

012693224 

Fax: 

012693142 

E-mail: 

information@leinsterrugby.ie 

www.leinsterrugby.ie 

6 

24 

EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT 

President: John Walsh 

Chief Executive: Michael Dawson 

Honorary Secretary: Stuart Bayley 

Honorary Treasurer: Michael McGrail 

RUGBY MANAGEMENT 

Head Coach: Leo Cullen 

Senior Coach: Stuart Lancaster 

Head of Rugby Operations: 

Guy Easterby 

Assistant Coach: Robin McBryde 

Backs Coach: Felipe Contepomi 

Kicking Coach: Emmet Farrell 

Contact Skills Coach: Denis Leamy 

14 

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Editorial Team: Marcus Ó Buachalla 

& Ryan Corry 

Advertising: Gary Nolan 

Design: Julian Tredinnick, 

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Photography: Sportsfile 

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Ambulance: St. John’s Ambulance 

Medilink 

Event Control & Safety Services: 

Eamonn O’Boyle & Associates 

62 

86 

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CONNECTED 

& KEEP 

UP-TO-DATE 

www.leinsterrugby.ie | 3

PRESIDENT, LEINSTER RUGBY 2020/22 

john walsh welcome 

We extend a warm welcome to 

rugby fans joining us for tonight’s 

game at the RDS Arena for our 

fourth round fixture in the United 

Rugby Championship against 

Welsh visitors Scarlets. 

On behalf of Leinster Rugby we welcome 

the Scarlets management team of the 

legendary wizard Phil Bennett (President), 

Simon Muderack (Chairperson), Dwayne 

Peel (Coach), club captain Jonathan 

Davies and his team. They are the 

proud representatives of the counties 

of Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, 

Caerdigion and Llanelli and a region that 

is steeped in the history of Welsh Rugby 

and their scarlet red jersey has been 

associated with the side since 1884. 

Notable Irish international players Tadhg 

Beirne and brothers Simon and Guy 

Easterby have also played for Scarlets. 

Many of our Leinster clubs have long 

established touring links with the Welsh 

clubs from the region and I take the 

opportunity to extend a warm croeso to 

their clubs and members. 

This season marks the 31st edition of the 

Energia All-Ireland League which was 

introduced belatedly by comparison to 

the other home unions by the IRFU for the 

1990/91 season. To date the premier 

title of the league has been won by 10 

individual clubs headed by Shannon with 

nine victories. The competition has been 

dominated by Munster clubs who have 

19 wins accumulated while the Leinster 

based clubs have nine wins headed by 

Lansdowne (three), Clontarf (two), St 

Mary’s College (two) and Old Belvedere 

(one). 

The Ulster clubs of Ballymena and 

Dungannon have each recorded a win 

while a Connacht based club has yet to 

record a win. With 50 clubs competing 

in the five divisions, 10 clubs in each 

division, the league has proved to be 

a very competitive competition with 

promotion and relegation very much up 

for decision right up to the final round of 

the fixture list. Leinster are represented by 

18 clubs, Munster with 15, Ulster with 12 

and finally Connacht with five clubs. 

The Bank of Ireland Leinster League 

provides a pathway to the All-Ireland 

League competition and this season we 

have 39 clubs playing in five divisions, 

eight clubs in Divisions 1 to 4 while seven 

teams are in Division 5. Like the Energia 

All-Ireland League the Leinster League is 

a competition that provides our players 

and supporters with the passion and 

enjoyment that is so much associated 

with our game. Thank you to all those 

individuals and companies that have so 

generously supported our Leinster clubs 

during the pandemic period, it is much 

appreciated by Leinster Rugby. 

Developing the Energia Women’s All- 

Ireland League is another key project 

for the IRFU. The Irish Women’s Rugby 

Football Union was only affiliated to the 

IRFU in 2001 and fully integrated into 

the IRFU in 2008 with the Women’s All- 

Ireland League established in 2009. The 

Women’s Interprovincial Championship 

competition was also introduced in 2011 

by the IRFU with Leinster and Munster 

sharing five victories each in the 10 

competitions staged to date. 

This season’s Energia Women’s All- 

Ireland League will consist of 10 clubs 

playing in the top division. These include 

five clubs from Leinster (Blackrock, Old 

Belvedere, Railway Union, Suttonians 

and Wicklow) two clubs from Munster 

(Ballincollig and UL Bohemians), two 

clubs from Ulster (Cooke and Malone) 

and Galwegians from Connacht. 

The IRFU Annual Report for the 2018/19 

Season indicated that there were 1,340 

women actively playing rugby with 

2,500 girls playing and a further 550 

girls playing in the third level colleges 

and universities. 

In Leinster we have made considerable 

progress in developing the game with 

36 Leinster clubs fielding in the Bank of 

Ireland Women’s Leinster League and 

a total of 44 Leinster clubs now fielding 

over 70 teams at girls level. The five 

Leinster Women’s Rugby Development 

Officers that are serving our province 

have worked with our clubs to promote 

the women’s and girls game and to 

ensure that the facilities provided by 

our clubs are in place to advance their 

participation and I wish to acknowledge 

the outstanding work that they have 

undertaken on behalf of Leinster Rugby. 

I would urge all of our clubs in Leinster 

to become involved in the development 

of the game for girls and women as it 

will ensure that your club is a club with a 

future as a community and inclusive club. 

Club rugby in Leinster is the bedrock 

on which we can continue to develop 

our sport and I would urge all rugby 

supporters to get involved in supporting 

your local clubs for the future of Leinster 

Rugby. 

On behalf of Leinster Rugby, I wish all 

involved a happy, healthy and enjoyable 

season. 

‘Keep the faith’ as ‘the future belongs 

to those who believe in their dreams’ 

(Eleanor Roosevelt) 

JOHN WALSH 

President Leinster Rugby 2020/22 


Leo Cullen 

head Coach Welcome 

It’s great to be straight back at the RDS 

Arena after soaking up the atmosphere of last 

weekend’s game here against Zebre Parma. 

It had been such a long time since 

we played in front of so many 

spectators here – there are still 

some restrictions in place, of 

course, but to have a crowd of 

over 10,000 people gives such 

a lift to everyone involved with 

the team. I believe we are sold 

out today (in terms of numbers 

allowed) so again a huge thanks 

to everyone for being here and 

supporting us. 

We will need your backing today 

against a Scarlets team that is no doubt 

hurting from defeat last week at home to 

Munster. And of course, Scarlets have a 

few familiar faces in their coaching ranks 

who know us well! 

On that note, a very warm welcome 

to Dwayne Peel and his team, and in 

particular Hugh Hogan who came 

through the system here at Leinster. 

People often talk about the player 

pathway in Leinster Rugby but Hugh has 

come through the coaching pathway 

to take up his current role as Defence 

Coach. We wish Hugh every success… 

just not today! 

It was fantastic for everyone to see Adam 

Byrne back out on the RDS pitch last 

weekend. Adam has had such a tough 

run with injuries, which are an unfortunate 

part of the business we’re in, but he has 

shown an incredibly positive mindset to 

get back to where he is. We were all 

thrilled for him that he got in for a couple 

of tries to cap off his return. 

Speaking of the RDS, a big thanks to 

everyone who had the stadium looking 

so well, especially groundsman Richard 

Doyle. 

We are also very appreciative of all the 

work the OLSC put in to turn the ground 

blue for us. 

This group of volunteers do great work 

on behalf of all supporters and I would 

like to wish their new President, Bebhinn 

Dunne, the best of luck in her new role. 

A tough act to follow after a great two 

seasons under Laura Lysaght’s leadership 

but no doubt one that Bebhinn is looking 

forward to. 

The OLSC’s efforts on match day make 

such a difference and that sea of blue 

is without doubt the final piece of the 

jigsaw that we have missed over the last 

18 months. 

I would also like to formally acknowledge 

on these pages the sudden loss of Hazel 

Browne who passed away during the offseason. 

Hazel was a valuable member of 

the OLSC Committee and I know she is 

missed hugely. I saw it was her birthday 

during the week and those ‘firsts’ bring 

back home the loss even more. 

Hazel’s family and friends are very much 

in all our thoughts this week. 

Elsewhere, it has been hugely 

encouraging to see domestic and schools 

rugby come back so strongly in recent 

weeks. Granted, it’s slightly strange 

seeing Junior Cup rugby at this time 

of year but the very best of luck to this 

year’s finalists. They have had to do it the 

hard way! 

Thank you to Bank of Ireland for your 

support of the Junior Cup and all the 

domestic rugby programme in Leinster 

Rugby. As we begin to take those first 

steps towards a full season of games, that 

support at a grassroots level is vital for 

the club. 

A word also to our other sponsors and 

partners for their continued support and I 

hope to be in a position to meet with you 

all in the coming months at a game. As 

supporters, anything that you can do to 

support these companies is appreciated. 

We must all come out of this pandemic 

together and they are a vital part of the 

Leinster Rugby family. 

On the Energia All-Ireland League front, 

each week I get sent footage from all 

the games where Leinster Academy and 

some Senior players have been in action, 

and it’s fantastic to see the contribution of 

coaches, referees, volunteers, supporters 

and others all around the province and 

further afield. We wish all AIL teams 

success on and off the field for the rest of 

the season. 

Next week, we travel to Glasgow to 

finish this short five-game ‘block’ in 

the United Rugby Championship but 

when we return after the November 

international window, we have a hugely 

exciting and challenging block of games 

to look forward to. 

We’re going to need all the support we 

can get and I hope to see you at some 

point along the way. The first game of 

the next block will hopefully be in front 

of a full house – at long last – when 

we take on Ulster for the first of the 

season’s interpros. 

Get your tickets ordered early! 

Many thanks once again 

for being here this evening 

and for cheering the 

team on. 

Enjoy the game, 

Leo 

6 | www.leinsterrugby.ie

The OLSC’s efforts on 

match day make such a 

difference and that sea of 

blue is without doubt the 

final piece of the jigsaw 

that we have missed over 

the last 18 months. 


Joann 

Hosey 

PROVINCIAL DIRECTOR 

BANK OF IRELAND DUBLIN 

You’re all very welcome back to the RDS Arena 

for this evening’s game against Scarlets. 

It is a huge credit to Leo Cullen, 

his coaches and the playing 

squad that they arrive at this 

juncture with a 100 per cent 

record after making a strong 

start to the United Rugby 

Championship. 

Those early season games may not 

define the season, but they help to build 

crucial competitive momentum, and it is 

very encouraging to see Leinster racking 

up the early-season wins against the 

Bulls, Dragons and last weekend against 

Zebre. 

The win over Zebre saw Dan Leavy back 

from injury and starting a game again in 

the RDS, while Jordan Larmour started 

the same game and also scored a try. 

Added to that was Rob Russell making 

his RDS debut and of course the long 

awaited return of Adam Byrne on the 

wing – it was an occasion to savour for a 

number of reasons. 

For Adam, scoring two tries on his first 

game back after so long out was brilliant 

to see and having a number of his family 

and friends in attendance made it all 

the more special. Family and friends are 

what make these games and occasions 

so special. Having them at matches 

again creates a wonderful atmosphere 

that we greatly missed during the 

pandemic. 

It was also heartening to see over 

10,000 supporters at the game and 

hopefully we will continue to see even 

bigger crowds rumbling through the 

turnstiles every week as people get more 

and more comfortable with the new 

normal that we are all living in. 

Congratulations to the two teams 

contesting the Bank of Ireland Leinster 

Rugby Schools Junior Cup final this week. 

Ahead of the final next Friday, I want 

to wish both the Newbridge College 

and Blackrock College squads the 

very best of luck - I’m sure there will be 

some thrilling rugby on show. Following 

another delay, it has been wonderful to 

see the recent action in Energia Park and 

it certainly whets the appetite for both the 

club and schools rugby action that lies 

ahead over the course of the season. 

For now though all eyes are on Scarlets, 

who will be looking to bounce back 

from a loss to Munster last weekend. No 

doubt a rapturous home crowd in the 

RDS will be in fine voice this evening, 

willing the Leinster team on as they look 

to keep their winning start to the season 

going. 

JH 

Enjoy the game, 


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Did you 

know? 

• Leinster have lost just one of 

their last seven United Rugby 

Championship matches: 12-15 

away to Glasgow in the Rainbow 

Cup on 4 June. 

• The Leinstermen’s most 

recent defeat at the RDS Arena 

was when Munster were the 

visitors in the Rainbow Cup in 

April. 

• Leinster have lost only 

once to a Welsh region since 

September 2018: 19-24 at home 

to Ospreys in the PRO14 on 19 

March. 

• Scarlets have won just one 

of their last five United 

Rugby Championship matches 

(excluding unplayed games): 

36-13 at home to the Lions in 

Round 2. 

• Scarlets most recent away 

win was 27-25 on a visit to 

Edinburgh in the PRO14 at the 

end of February. 

• The Scarlets only three 

victories over Irish provinces 

since they lowered Munster’s 

colours in March 2019, were all 

against Connacht. 

• Leinster have lost just once 

to Scarlets since the 2018 

semi-final at the RDS Arena: 

21-23 at Parc y Scarlets in the 

PRO14 in September 2018. 

• Scarlets have won just 

twice in fifteen previous 

visits to the RDS Arena in all 

competitions. 

COMPARISON 

Overall URC head-to-head record: 

Played 35, Leinster won 21, Scarlets won 12 with 2 matches drawn. 

Last 3 URC results 

25 Sep - Bulls (H) W 31-3 25 Sep - Edinburgh (A) L 22-26 

3 Oct - Dragons (A) W 7-6 1 Oct - Lions (H) W 36-13 

9 Oct - Zebre (H) W 43-7 10 Oct - Munster (H) L 13-43 

URC 2021/22 

Shield IR: 3rd - W3 D0 L0 - 14pts Shield WA: 4th - W1 D0 L2 - 6pts 

WWW (14pts) 

URC form 

LWL (6pts) 

Top try scorer 

2 - Adam Byrne 2 - Steff Evans, Tom Rogers, Johnny 

McNicholl 

Top points scorer 

17 - Johnny Sexton 26 - Sam Costelow 

Date Venue L S Leinster scorers Scarlets scorers 

Sat 17 Feb 18 RDS Arena 20 13 James Lowe(2T) Ciaran Frawley(C/P) Luke 

McGrath(T) 

Sat 26 May 

18 

Aviva Stadium (F) 40 32 James Lowe(T) Jack Conan(T) Joey 

Carbery(C) Sean Cronin(T) Jordan 

Larmour(T) Johnny Sexton(2C/3P) Devin 

Toner(T) 

Sat 8 Sep 18 Parc y Scarlets 21 23 James Lowe(T) Ross Byrne(3C) Rhys 

Ruddock(T) Fergus McFadden(T) 

Fri 25 Jan 19 RDS Arena 22 17 James Lowe(T) Ciaran Frawley(2C/P) Barry 

Daly(T) Rory O’Loughlin(T) 

Sat 30 Jan 21 Parc y Scarlets 52 25 Harry Byrne(6C/P) Max O’Reilly(T) 

James Tracy(T) David Hawkshaw(T) Cian 

Kelleher(T) Dan Leavy(T) Luke McGrath(T) 

Penalty Try(T) 

Johnny McNicholl(T) Dan Jones(C/2P) 

Fri 9 Mar 18 Parc y Scarlets 10 10 Ross 

Byrne(C/P) Ed Byrne(T) Paul Asquith(T) Dan 

Jones(C/P) 

Johnny McNicholl(3T) Dan Jones(C) Leigh 

Halfpenny(2C/2P) Werner Kruger(T) 

Gareth Davies(T) Ken Owens(T) Leigh 

Halfpenny(2C/3P) 

Kieran Hardy(2T) Dan Jones(2C/P) 

Angus O’Brien(T/C) Will Homer(T) Sam 

Costelow(C/2P) Dane Blacker(T) 


14 | www.leinsterrugby.ie 

F

Ciarán 

rawley 

the big interview 

With a second 

RDS Arena game 

in as many weeks 

to look forward 

to, Leinster 

Rugby back 

Ciarán Frawley 

is excited for 

the possibilities 

that lie ahead. 

But as he looks 

back on a 

tumultuous 18 

months, he can’t 

help but feel that 

he was one of the 

lucky ones. 


“It’s been brilliant the last few 

weeks getting back and in front 

of fans. I missed the Quins game 

in the Aviva but since then it’s 

been home or away, fans in the 

stadium and it’s been class. 

“But the reality is that we’ve been lucky. 

OK, the stadiums have been empty but 

we’ve been able to play. I look around 

the clubs and the schools game and the 

impact there and it’s been massive. Boys 

and girls and more senior players not 

able to go out and play the game that 

they love. 

“Those communities are the foundation 

of rugby in Leinster and it’s been 

really, really tough for them.” 

Like most of the players plying their 

trade for Leinster Rugby in the United 

Rugby Championship, Frawley started 

out in a club, Skerries RFC to be exact. 

His journey continued to Skerries 

Community College where he played in 

the Bank of Ireland Vinnie Murray Cup 

and his development continued back with 

Skerries RFC before the Leinster Rugby 

and Irish Rugby age grade sides and 

eventually the Academy came calling. 

But his roots are firmly based in the north 

Dublin seaside town. 

“You can see how much it means to them 

all to be back. I’d have a lot of mates 

still playing, playing senior rugby and 

I’d have an eye on their games regularly 

and try to get to the games. 

“But they’ve had nothing for well over 

a year, which was very frustrating so 

it’s been brilliant to see them back there 

the last few weeks. Training and playing 

games. 

“They had a great 18-17 win on the 

road at the weekend against Bruff in the 

AIL. The celebrations after it just looked 

incredible! I was delighted for them. I just 

know they missed it so much. We thought 

we had it hard but at least we could play, 

but these lads couldn’t even do that and 

even the training was all on their own for 

so long. 

“It’s brilliant to see them back. It’s great 

for the game to see those young lads 

back and involved because that’s what 

keeps all our clubs going.” 

He loved and still loves Skerries. 


And he rattles off the names of lads that 

he used to play with that are still involved. 

“I loved playing with Skerries and I’ve 

said it before I want to get back to 

Skerries when this is all done with Leinster 

and hopefully play there again. It was 

the best of both worlds. It was serious 

enough about the rugby but then great 

craic as well. 

“A lot of my mates are still playing. 

Rory Woods, Conn Marrey who was a 

hooker in my time but he’s playing in the 

back row now, Tom Mulvany is a serious 

player, Lorcan Jones in the centre, it’s just 

great that there are so many of them still 

there and pulling on the jersey. 

“Another fella, Robert McKey, is no 

longer with the squad but it’s gas his 

younger brother Oisín is now with the 

team. It’s mad because I remember going 

to see Oisín’s games with Robert when 

we were younger and you could see that 

he had a bit about him. 

“He’s a brilliant up and coming winger. 

I remember him growing up he was a bit 

like myself, playing a load of different 

sports, but he has turned the focus to 

rugby now and he’s doing really well. 

I remember chatting to my folks 

before the game and you could just 

tell the excitement in their faces 

and their voices. They’d have been 

there for the game all things going 

well but obviously with Covid that 

wasn’t possible. 

“And now here he is playing and scoring 

in the AIL with Skerries so yeah we’ll see 

how he goes but it’s great to see him and 

all the lads back out there and playing.” 

The Bruff win and mention of Oisín 

McKey is timely as the IRFU match report 

is all about McKey’s impact in that same 

game. 

‘Skerries overturned a nine-point deficit 

to win a real rollercoaster of a game 

at Bruff. The Goats prevailed 18-17 

thanks to a late Oisin McKey try and the 

decisive penalty from Paul O’Loghlen. 

‘Winger McKey was involved in the 

build-up to Skerries’ opening score, 

gobbling up Eoghan Carron’s chip kick, 

stepping inside a defender and sending 

captain Kevin McGrath over to the right 

of the posts.’ 

His reference to the McKey brothers and 

watching the ‘younger brother Oisín’ 

a few years ago also brings us back to 

his own journey and the fact that, in the 

blink of an eye, he has gone from Leinster 

Rugby novice to five years a professional. 

The Australian-born centre turns 24 in 

December so he is far from veteran status 

just yet but he has been building his 

playing CV and getting more and more 

game day exposure from Leo Cullen. 

There has also been talk of where best to 

play him. Out-half. Centre. And there has 

even been whispers of possible call-ups 

by Andy Farrell. 


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So back to the playing CV. 

His debut was in February 2018 off the bench 

against today’s opposition, Scarlets, and a 

start against the Southern Kings wasn’t far 

behind. 

Since then he has kept adding experience and 

minutes and while a few niggly injuries have 

hampered his progress he is also realistic and 

more than happy with his trajectory. 

“It’s been good. For me, it’s not like I just 

landed into PRO14 games or European 

games and started, I had to be patient and I 

had to earn those opportunities. 

“It started with being a sub for B&I Cup 

games, then I started in the B&I Cup. Then 

from there it was off the bench in the PRO14, 

then a start against the Kings. 

“All the time building the level of exposure and 

experience. Of course you want more and you 

want to kick-on but there is also the realisation 

that the steps are there for a reason. 

“Hopefully when the chances come your way, 

you can take them.” 

And the chances did come. 

Three PRO14 appearances in his first season. 

Then 11 caps in the 2018/19 season. And 

then to the 2019/20 season and his European 

debut against Northampton Saints and two 

conversions to his name for good measure. 

Covid-19 put a sudden halt to everyone’s 

plans that season. 

But then to 2020/21 and the final step on the 

Leinster Rugby ladder and a real coming of 

age moment for all players. 

The European start. 

This was no ordinary Heineken Champions 

Cup fare either with qualification maybe 

secure already. 

This was Round 1 and away in France to 

Montpellier. A tough litmus test for the most 

experienced of professionals. 

It couldn’t have gone much better for him 

though. 

He played well in the 12 jersey and scored 

Leinster’s second try on the way to a 14-35 

win in the Altrad Stadium. 

Good times. But missing those that make them 

great times. 


“I remember chatting to my folks before 

the game and you could just tell the 

excitement in their faces and their voices. 

They’d have been there for the game 

all things going well but obviously with 

Covid that wasn’t possible. 

“But I was straight onto the phone to them 

after the game to share in the moment. 

Where would any of us be without our 

folks and I wanted to just chat to them 

straight after.” 

You just know that mum, Siobhán, and 

dad, Tony would have been bursting with 

pride on that call. Younger sister Alanna 

not far behind. 

Thankfully that has all changed now 

and for the game in the RDS Arena last 

weekend against Zebre Parma, Frawley 

was able to share the joy of being back 

at the Ballsbridge venue with close family 

and friends. 

“You have to be hugely resilient in this 

game at times and it tests you and we 

were all so happy for Adam that he 

could celebrate that moment with his 

family. 

“We all could. We missed it definitely.” 

It will be a similar situation this week 

for Frawley and the search for tickets 

as family and friends join the rest of 

the Leinster faithful at the RDS Arena 

for the visit of the Scarlets. 

Their result last weekend against 

Munster caught everyone by 

surprise. Not the fact that 

Munster won, but more 

the manner and the 

margin of the win. 

But of course with supporters being back 

comes the added pressure of the search 

for tickets! 

“Yeah I hadn’t missed that bit of it! Ah no, 

it was great. In the end I think I managed 

to sort out 12 tickets for people and it 

was brilliant. 

“We have all missed having those people 

around us and you see what a day it 

was for Adam (Byrne) and the images of 

him after the game with his mum and his 

mates in the stand. 


This is our 

last home game 

of this block, 

then we head 

away to Glasgow 

and then the 

next block sees 

us into the 

interpros and 

hopefully a full 

RDS for those 

games and then 

into Europe. 

Frawley is expecting a reaction come 

5.15pm in the RDS. 

“You could see it and hear it from the 

players after the game talking to media. 

They were at a loss to understand what 

went wrong. Going in to the game, 

with their Lions back, people thought it 

would be a close game and with them 

being at home you could understand the 

perception that people had of Scarlets as 

favourites. 

“As we know well, Munster are a very 

tough team to play and to beat, but any 

time you lose a game, you look for that 

reaction and I’m sure that Scarlets will 

look for that reaction this week. 

“They would know quite a bit about us 

as well given that Hugh Hogan is now 

working with them so it’s hard to get a 

read on the impact that will have on them 

or what impact that might have on the 

game. 

“For us, we just have to bring the focus 

right back to ourselves. We stepped up 

the performance levels last week against 

Zebre and we just need to look to do that 

again. 

“Scarlets are a team littered with Welsh 

and Lions experience. They have won at 

club level and at international level but 

again, we have that excitement our side 

with a few lads coming in this week as 

well and looking to kick on. 

“They’ll be looking for a reaction but we 

have plenty to focus our minds too.” 

This will be Frawley’s fourth game in a 

row of the new season and while he is 

quick to take it each week as it comes, 

he also know that there is an opportunity 

there for all the players this weekend. 

“Absolutely. For me I never look too far 

ahead but I’m enjoying my rugby and my 

role at the moment. 

“This is our last home game of this block, 

then we head away to Glasgow and then 

the next block sees us into the interpros 

and hopefully a full RDS for those games 

and then into Europe. 

“So over the next month and a half there 

are massive games there for us all but our 

focus right now as players is to get the 

most out of this block of games. 

“It’s gone well so far but we know too 

that Scarlets – and a Scarlets team 

wounded after last weekend – are a very 

different proposition and we have to stay 

focused on them.” 

Still learning his trade but long enough at 

it now to know to stay in the moment and 

to enjoy it for what it is. 

As we have all learned over the last 

18 months, so much can change in an 

instance, so we might as well live for the 

now. 


Action 

replay 43 7 

LEINSTER 

Jimmy O’Brien; Adam Byrne, Jamie 

Osborne, Ciarán Frawley (Rob Russell 

50), Jordan Larmour; Harry Byrne 

(Johnny Sexton 22), Luke McGrath (Nick 

McCarthy 55); Ed Byrne (Peter Dooley 

50), Seán Cronin (Rónan Kelleher 50), 

Michael Ala’alatoa (Cian Healy 50); 

Ryan Baird, Devin Toner; Dan Leavy 

(Max Deegan 50), Scott Penny (Ross 

Molony 70), Rhys Ruddock. 

SCORERS: 

Tries: Scott Penny, Jordan Larmour, 

Adam Byrne (2), Ed Byrne, 

Seán Cronin, Rónan Kelleher. 

Cons: Johnny Sexton (4). 

SATURDAY, 9 OCTOBER 

RDS ARENA 

UNITED RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP 

ZEBRE 

Jacopo Trulla; Pierre Bruno, Erich Cronje, 

Enrico Lucchin, Mattia Bellini; Antonio 

Rizzi (Giovanna Licata 58), Nicolo 

Casilio (Guglielmo Palazzani 65); 

Andrea Lovotti (Danilo Fischetti 55), 

Oliveiro Fabiani (Massimo Ceciliani 

55), Ion Neculai (Matteo Nocera 55); 

Nicolae Cristian Stoian (David Sisi 62), 

Andrea Zambonin; Jacopo Bianchi 

(Paolo Pescetto 48), Luca Andreani 

(Tommaso Boni 71), Renato Giammaroli. 

SCORERS: 

Try: Pierre Bruno. 

Con: Paolo Pescetto. 


We started 

with good intent. 

It was the same 

in the second 

half but maybe a 

little disjointed 

after that with 

all of the substitutions 

from 

both teams. 

Leo Cullen 

I feel 

great. It 

meant a lot 

to be back 

out there 

with the 

lads. It felt 

like it was 

my first cap 

again. 

Adam Byrne makes a tryscoring 

return following a 

22-month injury lay-off 


Women’s Beginners 

Rugby at 

Monkstown FC 

Monkstown 

FC was 

formed in 

1883 and 

is one of 

the oldest 

clubs in 

Irish rugby. 

Originally 

located in 

Monkstown, 

as the name 

suggests, 

it moved to 

Sandymount 

in 1901 

acquiring 

the Sydney 

Parade 

grounds from 

the Earl of 

Pembroke. 

24 | www.leinsterrugby.ie 

A club known widely for its tough 

and uncompromising players on 

the pitch and its comradery and 

hospitality off the pitch. It boasts 

a charming clubhouse in the 

heart of Dublin 4 and what some 

consider as possibly the best 

natural grass pitches of all sports 

clubs. 

While March 2020 is widely accepted 

as a significant date in relation to the 

pandemic it was also when the spark of 

developing women’s rugby in Monkstown 

FC burst into flame. 

The inaugural season got off to a great 

start with 25 women learning core rugby 

skills and taking their fitness to a new 

level. Sadly, however, Covid intervened

and Monkstown’s season, like 

those of all clubs, stuttered to 

an abrupt halt. 

The flame continued to flicker 

as Monkstown remobilised 

for the 2021/22 season, 

but a number of players had 

moved out of the area and 

a fresh recruitment drive was 

undertaken. Now back to a 

full complement of 25 female 

members training each week 

with a clear desire to double 

that number over the coming 

months. 

The support and 

encouragement received 

throughout the club and the 

local Sandymount community 

has been uplifting. The 

diversity of the group is 

fantastic comprising those 

trying rugby for the first time, 

some experienced players 

and everything in between. 

The women’s squad has 

developed a wonderfully 

positive culture and is rooted 

in the local community with 

many mothers of Monkstown’s 

mini players partaking demonstrating the 

multi-generational aspect of this familyorientated 

club. 

The whole club are committed to the 

growth of women’s rugby and are 

fortunate to have a hugely experienced 

coaching team dedicated to the success 

and development of the women’s game. 

Training is every Tuesday night and 

sessions last for 90 minutes. Sessions 

comprise a mix of strength and 

conditioning (S&C), skills development 

and match scenarios where the skills 

are put into practice. Throughout the 

emphasis is on ‘Fitness and Fun’ and the 

sessions are clearly enjoyable. 

Monkstown recognise that they are on a 

journey and have the clear ambition to 

expand female participation in all rugbyrelated 

activities. 

The club’s focus is on getting women of 

all ages involved with minis, youths and 

adults across Tag, Tip, Sevens and XVs. 

Age is not a barrier and everyone is 

welcome to join in. 

For further information contact: 

MonkstownWomensRugby@gmail.com 

If you are 

interested in 

taking up rugby 

or you would like 

to follow our 

updates, check out 

our social media 

channels: 

Leinster Women’s Rugby 

LeinsterWomensRugby 

@LeinsterWomen 

womenspro@leinsterrugby.ie 


SHOP THE 2021/22 LEINSTER RUGBY RANGE NOW, 

EXCLUSIVELY AT LIFE STYLE SPORTS 


leo 

the lion’s 

kids 

corner 

IN A BLUR! 

Can you name this 

leinster player? 

spot the difference! 

Can you find all six? 

ANAGRAMS 

Can you un-jumble the names of these players? 

RESIN 

CANON 

RADICAL 

ONES 

how did you do? 

IN A BLUR? 

JORDAN LARMOUR 

ANAGRAMS 

SEAN CRONIN 

CAELAN DORIS 

ZOOMED IN! 

PETER DOOLEY 

zoomed in! 

WHo is this leinster 

player having an 

extreme close-up? 


AJ Products provides unique 

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environment 

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AZTO 

with 

JAMES LOWE 

A – Action: If you could be a 

superhero, which would you be? 

Batman 

B – Boyhood: Who was your favourite 

sporting idol growing up? 

Jeff Wilson 

C – Childhood: What is your favourite 

childhood memory? 

Christmas time at the beach! 

D – Dish: What’s your go-to pre-match 

meal? 

Spaghetti Bolognese and Carbonara 

E – Education: What was your 

favourite subject in school? 

Math 

F – Film buff: What’s your favourite 

film? 

Stepbrothers 

G – Groove: Who is the best dancer in 

the squad? 

Ed Byrne, its crazy how limber he 

can be for such a big man 

H – Holiday: What’s your favourite 

holiday destination? 

Kaiteriteri 

I – Inside: Who is the worst to sit 

beside in the dressing room? 

James Ryan 

J – Joker: Who is the funniest in the 

squad? 

Nick McCarthy, he’s got a lot of 

jokes for a traitor 

K – Kick-off: What’s your favourite 

time of the day to play a match? 

3pm 

L – Languages: How many languages 

can you speak? 

Three 

M – Music: Your favourite artist and 

song right now? 

Six60 - Finest Wine 

N – Number: Do you have a lucky 

number? 

No 


O – Others: What’s your favourite 

sport outside of rugby? 

Basketball or cricket. 

P – Pal: Who is your best mate in the 

squad? 

I find all of them annoying 

Q – Quirky: Who has the most 

interesting fashion sense? 

Jack Dunne 

R – Red Carpet: Who is the most 

famous contact in your phone? 

Johnny Sexton 

S – Superstitions: Do you have any 

matchday routines? 

No 

T – Trim: What’s the worst haircut 

you’ve ever had? 

I had a blonde fringe and a blonde 

rats-tail at the same time 

U: Under pressure: Who in the squad 

would be the best in a bad situation? 

James Tracy 

V – Verified: How often do you use 

social media? 

Every day 

W – Worst fear: What are you most 

scared of? 

Folding the washing 

X – X-ray: Have you ever broken any 

bones? 

Yes 

Y – Youth: Where did you grow up? 

Nelson, New Zealand 

Z – Zoo: What’s your favourite 

animal? 

Elephant 


THE SPIRIT OF 

UNITED RUGBY 

CHAMPIONSHIP. 

Enjoy responsibly 

DISCOVER THE SPIRIT WITHIN | 

#SAVOURTHEMOMENT

The Rugby Mums of 

Arklow RFC 

As Claire 

Nicholson 

packs her 

sports bag 

for Arklow’s 

senior 

women’s 

home fixture 

against 

New Ross 

on Sunday 

morning, 

items such as 

baby bottles, 

nappies 

and other 

essentials 

needed for 

seven-monthold 

twins are 

also added. 

Today she will be accompanied 

to the game with Allie and Ryan, 

both snuggly wrapped in their 

carriers as Claire closes her front 

door and leaves for the 10-minute 

drive to The Oval, home to Arklow 

RFC. 

While a rugby mum was once considered 

to be on the side-lines cheering on their 

children while grasping a warm coffee 

to prevent hypothermia, nowadays she 

is more likely to be found at the bottom 

of a ruck while the youngsters entertain 

themselves close by. 

According to Emer Dillon, captain of the 

Arklow Ladies team, there are currently 

16 mothers playing with Arklow out of 

a full squad of 28 players, with children 

ranging from Leaving Cert year right 

down to the twins mentioned above. 

fitness side that attracts many, but once 

the players get involved, they soon realise 

there is far more than just the competitive 

side. 

It’s a network of support, meeting new 

friends and of course the social aspect 

that all becomes apparent once they get 

involved. 

With more families moving into 

provisional towns than ever before, 

rugby clubs provide opportunities for all 

to become involved in the community 

whether it is as a player, coach, 

manager, referee or in a supporting 

volunteering role. 

“My only regret is that I did take up 

rugby sooner,” says Claire as she puts 

the twins back into the car and makes her 

way home following the game. 

Arklow had six babies born to the group 

within the last 12 months. 

With the growth of women’s rugby in 

recent years, many of today’s players 

are late comers to the game. Yes, it is the 

Now don’t let that become a regret of 

yours. 

Robert Kelly 

PRO – Arklow RFC 

Photo by Lauren Messit 


leinster 

squad 

2021/22 season 

Vakh Abdaladze #1263 

PROP 

DOB: 06/02/1996 

HEIGHT: 1.88m 

WEIGHT: 121kg 

Michael Ala’alatoa #1301 

prop 

DOB: 28/08/1991 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 

WEIGHT: 127kg 

7 

CAPS 

Ryan Baird #1278 

LOCK 

DOB: 26/07/1999 

HEIGHT: 1.98m 

WEIGHT: 103.18kg 

5 

CAPS 

Adam Byrne #1213 

WING / FULL BACK 

DOB: 10/04/1994 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 


1 

CAP 

Ed Byrne #1222 

6 

CAPS 

Harry Byrne #1280 

1 

CAP 

Ross Byrne #1236 

13 

CAPS 

Thomas Clarkson 

PROP 

DOB: 09/09/1993 

HEIGHT: 1.8m 


FLY HALF 

DOB: 22/04/1999 

HEIGHT: 1.9m 

WEIGHT: 95kg 

FLY HALF 

DOB: 08/04/1995 

HEIGHT: 1.9m 

WEIGHT: 92kg 

PROP 

DOB: 22/02/2000 

HEIGHT: 1.85m 

WEIGHT: 118kg 


Jack Conan #1223 

20 

CAPS 

7 

CAPS 

Will Connors #1264 

9 

CAPS 

Sean Cronin #1202 

72 

CAPS 

Max Deegan #1256 

1 

CAP 

NO. 8 

DOB: 29/07/1992 

HEIGHT: 1.93m 


BACK ROW 

DOB: 04/04/1996 

HEIGHT: 1.96m 

WEIGHT: 100kg 

HOOKER 

DOB: 06/05/1986 

HEIGHT: 1.78m 


NO. 8 

DOB: 01/10/1996 

HEIGHT: 1.93m 

WEIGHT: 110kg 

Peter Dooley #1230 

Caelan Doris #1268 

9 

CAPS 

Jack Dunne #1276 

Ciaran Frawley #1265 

PROP 

DOB: 04/08/1994 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 117kg 

BACK ROW 

DOB: 02/04/1998 

HEIGHT: 1.93m 

WEIGHT: 107kg 

LOCK 

DOB: 21/11/1998 

HEIGHT: 2.03m 

WEIGHT: 120kg 

FLY HALF 

DOB: 04/12/1997 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 

WEIGHT: 98kg 

Tadhg Furlong #1220 

PROP 

DOB: 14/11/1992 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 125kg 

49 

CAPS 

13 

CAPS 

Jamison Gibson-Park #1247 

SCRUM HALF 

DOB: 23/02/1992 

HEIGHT: 1.75m 

WEIGHT: 80kg 

10 

CAPS 

David Hawkshaw #1290 

FLY HALF / Centre 

DOB: 03/07/1999 

HEIGHT: 1.75m ) 


Cian Healy #1142 

PROP 

DOB: 07/10/1987 

HEIGHT: 1.85m 


109 

CAPS 

2 

CAPS 

Robbie Henshaw #1251 

52 

CAPS 

9 

CAPS 

Dave Kearney #1158 

19 

CAPS 

Hugo Keenan #1253 

13 

CAPS 

Ronan Kelleher #1277 

13 

CAPS 

CENTRE 

DOB: 12/06/1993 

HEIGHT: 1.9m 



DOB: 19/06/1989 

HEIGHT: 1.8m 

WEIGHT: 90kg 

FULL BACK 

DOB: 18/06/1996 

HEIGHT: 1.85m 


HOOKER 

DOB: 24/01/1998 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 105kg 


Jordan Larmour #1258 

30 

CAPS 

Dan Leavy #1231 

11 

CAPS 

WING 

DOB: 10/06/1997 

HEIGHT: 1.78m 

WEIGHT: 90kg 

FLANKER 

DOB: 23/05/1994 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 


for full squad profiles 

please click here 

James Lowe #1262 

6 

CAPS 

Nick McCarthy #1241 

Luke McGrath #1206 

19 

CAPS 

Michael Milne #1279 


DOB: 08/07/1992 

HEIGHT: 1.88m 

WEIGHT: 105kg 

SCRUM HALF 

DOB: 25/03/1995 

HEIGHT: 1.8m 


SCRUM HALF 

DOB: 03/02/1993 

HEIGHT: 1.75m 


PROP 

DOB: 05/02/1999 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 115kg 

Jimmy O’Brien #1272 

Conor O’Brien #1260 

Josh Murphy #1261 

Ross Molony #1233 

LOCK 

DOB: 11/05/1994 

HEIGHT: 1.96m 

WEIGHT: 113kg 

FLANKER 

DOB: 17/02/1995 

HEIGHT: 1.98m 

WEIGHT: 110kg 

CENTRE 

DOB: 06/02/1996 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 

WEIGHT: 100kg 

CENTRE 

DOB: 27/11/1996 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 88kg 

Tommy O’Brien #1283 

Rory O’Loughlin #1248 

1 

CAP 

Scott Penny #1271 

Andrew Porter #1246 

37 

CAPS 

CENTRE 

DOB: 28/05/1998 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 95kg 

CENTRE 

DOB: 21/01/1994 

HEIGHT: 1.88m 


FLANKER 

DOB: 22/09/1999 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 104kg 

PROP 

DOB: 16/01/1996 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 



Garry Ringrose #1237 

34 

CAPS 

Rhys Ruddock #1167 

27 

CAPS 

James Ryan #1259 

37 

CAPS 

Johnny Sexton #1127 

99 

CAPS 

14 

CAPS 

CENTRE 

DOB: 26/01/1995 

HEIGHT: 1.85m 

WEIGHT: 96kg 

BACK ROW 

DOB: 13/11/1990 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 


LOCK 

DOB: 24/07/1996 

HEIGHT: 2.03m 

WEIGHT: 115kg 

FLY HALF 

DOB: 11/07/1985 

HEIGHT: 1.88m 

WEIGHT: 90kg 

Dan Sheehan #1286 

HOOKER 

DOB: 17/09/1998 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 


Devin Toner #1128 

LOCK 

DOB: 29/06/1986 

HEIGHT: 2.11m 

WEIGHT: 127kg 

70 

CAPS 

James Tracy #1211 

HOOKER 

DOB: 02/04/1991 

HEIGHT: 1.83m 

WEIGHT: 106kg 

6 

CAPS 

Josh van der Flier #1228 

FLANKER 

DOB: 25/04/1993 

HEIGHT: 1.85m 

WEIGHT: 103kg 

32 

CAPS 

Coaching 

Staff 

2021/22 season 

LEO CULLEN 

HEAD COACH 

STUART LANCASTER 

SENIOR COACH 

ROBIN MCBRYDE 

ASSISTANT COACH 

FELIPE CONTEPOMI 

BACKS COACH 

EMMET FARRELL 

KICKING COACH AND 

LEAD PERFORMANCE ANALYST 

GUY EASTERBY 

HEAD OF RUGBY OPERATIONS 

DENIS LEAMY 

CONTACT SKILLS COACH 


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My Rugby Story 

BY NAAS RFC’S CAITRÍONA SHERIDAN 

I vividly remember the 

match that got me hooked 

on rugby. It was the first 

test of the 2001 Lions 

Tour, and Brian O’Driscoll 

was cutting through the 

Australian defence to score 

the second try of the game. 

I was 12 years old. 

Fast forward 20 years and I’m 

starting my first game for Naas 

Rugby Club on the wing. 

I had always believed I was far too small 

to play. I had joined UCC rugby when 

I started college, but sadly suffered a 

minor injury that stopped me playing. 

Well, being honest, it more scared me off 

playing, given my small build. 

I still wanted to play and I found tag 

rugby during college placement and 

decided this was how I could feed my 

rugby addiction! Then, when I moved 

to London I played tag several times a 

week. It was a fantastic way to meet new 

people and make great friends. 

While in London I had great opportunities 

to watch the Ireland men’s team play. I 

was lucky to get to Stade de France in 

2014, to see Ireland win the Six Nations 

title and give O’Driscoll a wonderful send 

off. In 2015, I attended two of Ireland’s 

world cup games, against Canada and 

Romania. At the Romania game the 

volume at which Ireland’s Call was sung 

was remarkable. 

Then in 2017, my dreams came true 

when I travelled to New Zealand for the 

2017 Lions tour. It was a dream come 

true as it was the Lions that had inspired 

my passion for the sport and also New 

Zealand is possibly the most passionate 

rugby nation! 

On moving home in late 2017, it was a 

delight to be in offices where I was not 

the only rugby fan. I kept up the tag, 

playing for both work and social teams. 

I went to the Ireland Women’s Six 

Nations game against Scotland in March 

2020 to support these inspirational 

women with my mam. She and I attend 

the interprovincial games each Christmas, 

this is our present to each other. After the 

game I saw the team come out to interact 

with supporters, friends, and family to 

celebrate the win. It was a great scene 

and I thought maybe I could try this 

again! 

I started playing tag again in Naas last 

summer as lockdown lifted, this was cut 

short with the local Kildare lockdown. As 

it got into August, I saw that Naas were 

starting up training for the next season. 

The local lockdown had highlighted that I 

had very little of a personal community in 

my local area. So, I signed up, and went 

to training. 

I immediately felt very welcome and 

loved being in a team environment again. 

I was nervous when it came to the contact 

parts of training, but those who hadn’t 

done contact before were coached and 

shown exactly how to make and take a 

tackle. Sadly, training was cancelled from 

October, but in May we were back with 

non-contact training to get us all used to 

passing the ball again! 

I choose Naas for a couple of reasons; 

I knew that they had great coaches and 

set up for the women’s team. The second 

was that a friend from secondary school 

plays there, so at least there was one 

familiar face! 

I now look forward to every Wednesday 

evening where I can play the sport 

that has brought me so much joy and 

opportunity to make new friends. I am 

keen to give back to the sport and hope 

to get involved as a referee soon. 

The real call for me to join my local 

club was watching the Ireland Women’s 

team play in 2020. I can only hope that 

they know that we appreciate all their 

commitment and dedication to the game. 

The importance of seeing role models 

play the game cannot be underestimated, 

no matter what your age! I encourage 

you to get in touch with your local club 

and give rugby a try, and if you’re local 

to Kildare definitely get in touch with 

Naas RFC. 


Strong roots 

delivering fruit 

Wexford Wanderers producing success 

at underage level as centenary nears 

Whisper it quietly and speak in 

hushed tones, but something is 

happening on Slaneyside. 

As Wexford Wanderers kick off their 

98th season, there is an air of optimism 

around Park Lane that has lifted the spirits 

and indeed the ambitions of the club. As 

their centenary draws nearer the club has 

begun work on a major redevelopment 

plan which will develop and enhance 

their facilities and secure the long-term 

future of the club. 

Coupled with the ambitious development 

plans, on-field the club has experienced 

one of their most successful seasons in 

recent years. Over the past decade, 

the club has invested, developed and 

restructured its coaching and underage 

programme, which has recently produced 

a bumper crop of representatives at 

regional, provincial and Ireland U-20 

level. 

Wexford Wanderers President Kevin 

Byrne spoke with pride at the recent 

successes; “It’s the hard work and 

dedication of many volunteers, coaches 

and parents which has been coupled with 

a batch of highly driven, talented and 

focused young rugby players. 

“We are a proud club, like many 

throughout the country, we work hard 

and strive to be the best we can, so when 

Father and son 

Nick and Ben 

Poppawell 

one of our own, a young lad or girl who 

has been about the club from minis or 

youths does well, gets called into any 

representative team, a Leinster squad or 

even an Ireland team, it lifts the entire 

place, we are all on a high with them, it 

drives on the rest of the teams, its gives 

them an example to aim for and it fills 

us older members with pride. We are a 

community, a big family of a club.” 

Indeed, this year has seen the club send 

representatives to every underage level, 

from South-East squads to provincial and 

Ireland U-20s. 

“We have Jack Stafford in Harlequins, 

Greg McGrath has signed up for 

Connacht, young Josh O’Connor who 

played for the Ireland U-20s in the Six 

Nations this year has joined him out 

west in their academy, then we have Ben 

Popplewell, who was also called into the 

Ireland U-20 camp for the Six Nations, 

he is making waves now in the Leinster 

set up where we have Brian Deeny who 

played his first senior Leinster match only 

a few weeks back and his brother Paul 

Deeny who is in the Leinster set up also. 

In fact, a few weeks ago there was a 

Connacht Eagles v Leinster Development 

game and four of our players featured, 

two on each side, Greg and Josh for 

Connacht and Ben and Paul with Leinster. 

I believe that it is just a matter of time 

before one of our players will make the 

jump to full international, which will be 

another proud day of our club.” 

The club has sent a large number of 

underage members to representative 

sides in the past few months. 

Director of Rugby, Des Dempsey, spoke 

of his delight at the numbers making 

the step into South-East and Leinster 

sides: “We had three of our girls in the 

South-East team, Melissa Quirke, Naoise 

McManus and Rachel Dempsey, and our 

girls and women’s section is going from 

strength to strength. 

“And when we talk of the boys, the club 

was delighted when our U18.5 won the 

Leinster Premier League in 2020, it was 

just a shame that covid restrictions ended 

the season early before the team could 

make an attempt at the All-Ireland. 

“Recently, we had four boys called into 

the Leinster U-18 Clubs and Schools 

squads. Kaylem Codd, Luke O’Connor 

and Grant Palmer were named in the 

U-18 Clubs squad after a fantastic season 

for the club, with Kaylem and Grant also 

Wexford 

Southeast Girls 


Wexford Youths Interpros 

Wexford 

Southeast Boys 

being key members of the successful 

Wexford CBS team last year and in fact 

this week we received the fantastic news 

that Grant Palmer had been selected as 

part of the Ireland U-18 Clubs squad. 

“Harry Rogers, who played with us at 

underage was called into the Leinster 

Schools U-18 squad after a fantastic year 

with Kilkenny College. Luke and Grant 

played in the interpro series and were 

part of the victorious Leinster team. In the 

last year, at U-16 level and below we 

have another good batch of lads coming 

through; Conor Fahy, Daniel Furlong, 

Bobby Connolly, Ke Young, Paudie 

Doyle, Sam Turner, Rian Ormonde, Sean 

Logue, Ronan George, Hugh Roche, Jake 

McGuire, Josh Rossiter and Jack Cullen. 

They have all been involved at different 

levels and we are confident that we 

Greg 

McGrath 

Brian 

Deeny 

will see them continue to develop in the 

coming years.” 

In recent years, Wexford has experienced 

an exponential growth in numbers 

attending minis, youths, girls and women’s 

sessions, with the club now offering girls 

teams at U-12, U-14, U-16 and U-18. This 

summer the club also started an Inclusive 

Rugby programme, offering welcoming 

training sessions for a diverse group of 

young people with a disability who were 

completely new to rugby. This was a 

major success and plans are in place to 

develop it further. 

This rapid and welcome influx of numbers 

has resulted in the club facilities operating 

at capacity and limiting their ability to 

support additional members. 

Jack 

Stafford 

Club Chairman, Tony Connolly outline the 

plans to expand on those facilities: “This 

is an exciting time for the club with our 

centenary approaching and, on the field, 

we are going from strength to strength, 

we can see the hard work paying off and 

its fantastic to see the players getting the 

rewards. 

“But we need to improve our facilities. 

We are operating above capacity; the 

increase in membership numbers at 

underage level both male and female, 

means the club desperately needs to 

provide additional dressing rooms and 

toilet facilities especially with our growing 

numbers of children and women. We 

need to ensure we can keep these new 

players and our facilities are a key part 

of that. 

“We have an ambitious plan, we 

are looking beyond this centenary 

celebration and looking to secure the 

long-term future of our club.” 

By Noel Cullen 

Wexford Wanderers RFC PRO 

Josh O’Connor 


compiled by stuart farmer 

media services limited 

Leinster Player 

Statistics 

SQUAD 

CAP 

NO 

DEBUT 

2021/22 SEASON FOR LEINSTER LEINSTER CAREER 

ALL GAMES URC EPCR ALL GAMES PRO14/URC EPCR 

App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts 

SINCE LAST TRY 

CAPS 

VAKH ABDALADZE 1263 2 DEC 17 - - - - - - - - - 0+12 1 5 0+12 1 5 - - - 11 - 

MICHAEL ALA'ALATOA 1301 25 SEP 21 3 - - 3 - - - - - 3 - - 3 - - - - - - WS 7 

RYAN BAIRD 1278 27 APR 19 1+2 - - 1+2 - - - - - 13+17 6 30 12+13 6 30 1+4 - - 4 IR 5 

ADAM BYRNE 1213 29 DEC 12 1 2 10 1 2 10 - - - 50+8 22 110 40+8 16 80 10 6 30 1 IR 1 

ED BYRNE 1222 9 FEB 14 1+2 1 5 1+2 1 5 - - - 20+53 11 55 20+42 10 50 0+11 1 5 1 IR 6 

HARRY BYRNE 1280 28 SEP 19 1 - - 1 - - - - - 15+10 6 154 15+9 6 149 0+1 - 5 4 IR 1 

ROSS BYRNE 1236 4 SEP 15 1+1 1 9 1+1 1 9 - - - 71+35 7 659 59+19 3 480 12+16 4 179 2 IR 13 

THOMAS CLARK- 

1285 29 AUG 20 - - - - - - - - - 2+8 - - 2+8 - - - - - - - 

SON 

JACK CONAN 1223 20 FEB 14 - - - - - - - - - 80+25 23 115 59+15 16 80 21+10 7 35 1 IR 20 

WILL CONNORS 1264 9 FEB 18 - - - - - - - - - 17+6 2 10 16+6 2 10 1 - - 10 IR 9 

TIM CORKERY 1298 12 MAR 21 - - - - - - - - - 0+2 - - 0+2 - - - - - - - 

SEAN CRONIN 1202 28 OCT 11 1 1 5 1 1 5 - - - 121+75 43 215 77+54 26 130 43+19 16 80 1 IR 72 

MAX DEEGAN 1256 3 DEC 16 1+2 1 5 1+2 1 5 - - - 36+32 19 95 33+24 17 85 3+8 2 10 2 IR 1 

PETER DOOLEY 1230 31 OCT 14 0+1 - - 0+1 - - - - - 40+54 5 25 38+48 5 25 2+6 - - 9 - 

CAELAN DORIS 1268 28 APR 18 1 - - 1 - - - - - 33+8 5 25 27+6 3 15 6+2 2 10 10 IR 9 

JACK DUNNE 1276 16 FEB 19 - - - - - - - - - 2+13 - - 2+13 - - - - - - - 

CORMAC FOLEY 1299 24 APR 21 - - - - - - - - - 0+1 - - 0+1 - - - - - - - 

CIARAN FRAWLEY 1265 17 FEB 18 2+1 - - 2+1 - - - - - 19+19 4 143 18+15 3 132 1+4 1 11 8 - 

TADHG FURLONG 1220 1 NOV 13 - - - - - - - - - 73+41 8 40 42+33 3 15 31+8 5 25 3 IR 49 

JAMISON GIBSON-PARK 1247 2 SEP 16 1+1 - - 1+1 - - - - - 50+53 17 85 45+29 14 70 5+24 3 15 7 IR 10 

MARCUS HANAN 1295 19 FEB 21 - - - - - - - - - 0+3 - - 0+3 - - - - - - - 

DAVID HAWKSHAW 1290 2 NOV 20 - - - - - - - - - 0+8 1 14 0+8 1 14 - - - 4 - 

CIAN HEALY 1142 5 MAY 07 0+3 - - 0+3 - - - - - 156+78 27 135 90+51 13 65 64+26 13 65 5 IR 109 

ROBBIE HENSHAW 1251 8 OCT 16 - - - - - - - - - 56+1 11 55 25 5 25 31+1 6 30 1 IR 52 

DAVE KEARNEY 1158 16 MAY 09 - - - - - - - - - 147+22 51 255 121+15 44 220 25+6 7 35 7 IR 19 

HUGO KEENAN 1253 5 NOV 16 2 - - 2 - - - - - 29+3 4 20 24+3 4 20 5 - - 5 IR 13 

RONAN KELLEHER 1277 22 FEB 19 0+1 1 5 0+1 1 5 - - - 20+6 10 50 14+4 9 45 6+2 1 5 1 IR 13 

JORDAN LARMOUR 1258 2 SEP 17 1 1 5 1 1 5 - - - 53+10 20 100 32+7 15 75 21+3 5 25 1 IR 30 

DAN LEAVY 1231 31 OCT 14 1+1 - - 1+1 - - - - - 44+30 17 85 36+20 13 65 8+10 4 20 3 IR 11 


SQUAD 

CAP 

NO 

DEBUT 


ALL GAMES URC EPCR ALL GAMES PRO14/URC EPCR 

App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts App Try Pts 

SINCE LAST TRY 

CAPS 

JAMES LOWE 1262 2 DEC 17 1 - - 1 - - - - - 53 34 170 35 25 125 18 9 45 4 IR 6 

NICK MCCARTHY 1241 19 DEC 15 0+2 - - 0+2 - - - - - 6+32 4 20 6+26 4 20 0+6 - - 7 - 

LUKE MCGRATH 1206 5 MAY 12 2 - - 2 - - - - - 104+49 39 195 71+43 31 155 33+6 8 40 4 IR 19 

MICHAEL MILNE 1279 28 SEP 19 - - - - - - - - - 1+15 2 10 1+15 2 10 - - - 14 - 

MARTIN MOLONEY 1300 24 APR 21 - - - - - - - - - 0+1 - - 0+1 - - - - - - - 

ROSS MOLONY 1233 20 FEB 15 2+1 - - 2+1 - - - - - 66+53 4 20 64+38 4 20 2+15 - - 5 - 

JOSH MURPHY 1261 3 NOV 17 - - - - - - - - - 42+7 5 25 41+6 4 20 1+1 1 5 9 - 

JAMIE OSBORNE 1294 30 JAN 21 1+1 - - 1+1 - - - - - 3+5 1 5 3+5 1 5 - - - 3 - 

CONOR O'BRIEN 1260 3 NOV 17 1 - - 1 - - - - - 17+7 6 30 17+6 6 30 0+1 - - 10 - 

JIMMY O'BRIEN 1272 23 NOV 18 1 - - 1 - - - - - 27+9 7 37 25+9 6 32 2 1 5 2 - 

SEAN O'BRIEN 1297 12 MAR 21 - - - - - - - - - 0+2 - - 0+2 - - - - - - - 

TOMMY O'BRIEN 1283 20 DEC 19 - - - - - - - - - 4+5 3 15 4+5 3 15 - - - 5 - 

RORY O'LOUGHLIN 1248 2 SEP 16 2 - - 2 - - - - - 66+23 21 105 59+15 18 90 7+8 3 15 32 IR 1 

MAX O'REILLY 1291 2 JAN 21 - - - - - - - - - 6+1 1 5 6+1 1 5 - - - 6 - 

SCOTT PENNY 1271 23 NOV 18 1 1 5 1 1 5 - - - 24+6 17 85 24+6 17 85 - - - 1 - 

ANDREW PORTER 1246 2 SEP 16 2 1 5 2 1 5 - - - 30+49 12 60 25+30 9 45 5+19 3 15 2 IR 37 

GARRY RINGROSE 1237 12 SEP 15 2 - - 2 - - - - - 86+2 27 143 54+1 16 88 32+1 11 55 3 IR 34 

RHYS RUDDOCK 1167 6 DEC 09 3 - - 3 - - - - - 146+45 11 55 109+31 9 45 36+12 2 10 7 IR 27 

ROB RUSSELL 1302 3 OCT 21 1+1 - - 1+1 - - - - - 1+1 - - 1+1 - - - - - - - 

JAMES RYAN 1259 2 SEP 17 2 - - 2 - - - - - 46+6 3 15 24+1 1 5 22+5 2 10 12 IR 37 

JOHNNY SEXTON 1127 27 JAN 06 1+1 - 17 1+1 - 17 - - - 149+26 26 1524 88+20 13 850 59+6 12 643 15 IR 99 

DAN SHEEHAN 1286 23 OCT 20 2 - - 2 - - - - - 5+10 6 30 5+10 6 30 - - - 7 - 

ANDREW SMITH 1292 2 JAN 21 - - - - - - - - - 1+1 - - 1+1 - - - - - - - 

ALEX SOROKA 1296 28 FEB 21 - - - - - - - - - 1+1 - - 1+1 - - - - - - - 

DEVIN TONER 1128 27 JAN 06 1 - - 1 - - - - - 207+60 4 20 141+42 4 20 63+18 - - 50 IR 70 

JAMES TRACY 1211 4 NOV 12 0+2 1 5 0+2 1 5 - - - 57+74 15 75 50+46 14 70 7+28 1 5 2 IR 6 

LIAM TURNER 1287 23 OCT 20 - - - - - - - - - 4+2 - - 4+2 - - - - - - - 

JOSH VAN DER FLIER 1228 11 OCT 14 2 1 5 2 1 5 - - - 77+23 12 60 47+17 8 40 30+6 4 20 2 IR 32 


ALL GAMES URC EPCR ALL GAMES PRO14/URC EPCR OVERALL 

KICKING 

SUCCESS 

RATE 

C PG DG C PG DG C PG DG C PG DG C PG DG C PG DG ATT Career 

% 

- - - HARRY BYRNE 0.00% - - - - - - - - - 53 6 52 5 1 1 76 77.63% 

ROSS BYRNE 100.00% 2 - - 2 - - - - - 198 75 1 156 50 1 42 25 - 356 76.69% 

CIARAN FRAWLEY - - - - - - - - - - 51 7 - 48 7 - 3 - - 72 80.56% 

DAVID HAWKSHAW - - - - - - - - - - 3 1 - 3 1 - - - - 6 66.67% 

JIMMY O'BRIEN - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 - - - - - 3 33.33% 

GARRY RINGROSE - - - - - - - - - - 4 - - 4 - - - - - 6 66.67% 

JOHNNY SEXTON 88.89% 7 1 - 7 1 - - - - 241 293 11 127 170 7 107 119 4 669 79.82% 


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ig picture 

9 October 2021 

Seán Cronin on his way to scoring 

his side’s fifth try despite the tackle 

of Pierre Bruno of Zebre during the 

United Rugby Championship match 

between Leinster and Zebre at the 

RDS Arena in Dublin. 


Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile 


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Your 

Club 

Your 

Country! 

Leinster Rugby is delighted to be part 

of the IRFU Your Club Your Country 

annual draw initiative. This successful 

scheme allows clubs to raise funds 

through this draw, with 100 per cent of 

the funds going to the selling clubs and 

the prizes (listed below) are all funded 

by the IRFU sponsors. 

To both the sponsors and the IRFU 

we say thank you and it is over to 

our clubs to get behind the draw 

and sell the tickets. 

This IRFU initiative started several years 

ago and last year Leinster clubs raised 

close to €400,000 which helped with 

overcoming the Covid disruption. The 

process has gone online so it makes the 

transactions very simple, and it’s great 

to see how clubs have been innovative 

in how they promote and sell their tickets 

and there are many success stories out 

there. 

The Leinster Junior Committee formed a 

sub-committee chaired by Rory Fanning, 

to assist clubs in the promotion of these 

sales and assist with any advice clubs 

might need. The IRFU have also been 

excellent in their help. 

To clubs out there in Leinster, please 

promote and sell these tickets as it is 

funding straight into your club’s accounts, 

and you will be directly rewarded for the 

effort that is put in. 

Leinster supporters, go online and support 

a club near you! This is a great way to 

support grassroots rugby which is part 

of the pathway to developing players for 

Leinster and Ireland and your support will 

be truly appreciated. The club is one of 

the foundations of the province and one 

that needs all of our support. 

Tickets are on sale now and are €10 

each. They can be bought online through 

the above link and follow the instructions 

where you can ‘Find Your Club’ and 

purchase your tickets. The next key date 

is Wednesday, 1 December – when the 

online platform closes and the draw for 

Your Club Your Country will take place 

on Friday, 3 December. 

PRIZES 

1. Follow the Ireland team on their 

Summer Tour of New Zealand in 

July 2022 

Return flights, hotel accommodation, 

match tickets and spending allowance for 

two persons (Compliments of Vodafone) 

2. Win a €5,000 Holiday 

Holiday voucher worth up to €5,000 

(Compliments of Energia) 

3. France v Ireland 2022 Guinness 

Six Nations VIP Trip to Paris with 

the IRFU Patrons Club 


match tickets and spending allowance 

for two persons (Compliments of Opel 

Ireland) 

4. England v Ireland 2022 

Guinness Six Nations VIP Trip to 

Twickenham, London 


match tickets and spending allowance for 

two persons (Compliments of Canterbury) 

5. Experience Business Class 

Service with Aer Lingus 

Transatlantic business class return flights 

to East Coast routes with Aer Lingus for 

two persons (Compliments of Aer Lingus) 

6. 2022 Galway Races VIP 

Package 

Corporate hospitality at the 

Galway races and overnight hotel 

accommodation for two persons 

(Compliments of Guinness) 

7. Aldi Shopping Voucher 

Voucher to the value of €2000 

(Compliments of Aldi) 

8. Druids Glen Hotel & Golf Resort 

Voucher 


(Compliments of Lucozade Sport Ireland) 

9. Elverys Shopping Voucher 


(Compliments of Elverys) 

10. VIP package to 2022 Guinness 

Six Nations matches in Aviva 

Stadium 

Tickets & hospitality package for two 

persons (Compliments of The Hospitality 

Partnership) 


offical leinster 

supporters club 

What a return we had to the 

RDS Arena last week and we 

don’t know about you but 

we’re delighted that we get to 

experience it again so soon. 

Round 4 is upon us and this 

weekend we welcome Scarlets for 

what we hope will be a highly 

entertaining and fast paced 

game of rugby. 

Leinster 

Scarlets 

81 Points Scored 71 

12 Tries Scored 8 

33 Offloads 33 

1,711 Metres Gained 1155 

81 Defenders Beaten 32 

16 Clean Breaks 14 

334 Tackles Made 467 

87% Tackle Success 85% 

18 Turnovers Won 17 

42 Total Tackles Missed 69 

48 Turnovers Lost 40 

Last weekend, we welcomed 

Zebre and on a fantastic October 

afternoon in the sun, we ran out 

victors on a scoreline of 43-7. 

Given we were so strong and 

dominant throughout the game, 

to fall just short of the 50-point 

mark might have been seen as a 

little disappointing, however to 

come through injury-free after 

welcoming back the likes of Dan 

Leavy and Adam Byrne, is far 

more heartening. Adam certainly 

made his mark by getting his name 

on the scoresheet twice, and you 

could see he was hungry for a third 

try also. Not to worry though, the 

season is still young. 

This weekend, the focus shifts to Scarlets 

who are coming into this on a six-day 

turnaround as well as having suffered a 

heavy and some might say, unexpected, 

defeat at home to Munster. Munster 

went into the game with just four starting 

internationals to Scarlets’ 11, however 

credit where it’s due saw a very dominant 

performance from them as they proved 

too strong and left Parc Y Scarlets with a 

43-13 victory. 

Scarlets though are not to be 

underestimated even with a one day 

shorter turnaround than ourselves, and 

there is no doubt that they will quickly 

refocus, work on what went wrong last 

weekend and look to drastically improve. 

Facing a team fresh off the back of an 

unexpected defeat given their strength in 

the squad on that day is similar to facing 

a wounded animal and we need to be 

prepared for that. 

The crowd last week, just over 10,000, 

certainly made itself heard and we know 

what this means to both players and 

management alike and we thank you for 

this. It’s been a long and difficult road for 

us all over the last 18 months but we’re 

slowly getting back to where we want to 

be and we will get there. 

Returning to the RDS was a massive step 

in this journey and long may it continue. 

To those of you who joined us afterwards 

in the Laighin Out, it was lovely to see so 

many of the regular faces and we look 

forward to welcoming more of you back 

after the final whistle today. 

Here’s to another great evening of rugby!! 

C’mon you Boys in Blue. 

Yours in Rugby, 

OLSC Committee 


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GETTING 

We check social media 

for the latest views 

and thoughts across 

SOCIAL 

the 12 counties 



TWENTY-THREE METRO 

CLUBS TAKE PART IN 

RESET WORKSHOPS 

The Leinster 

Rugby Metro 

area reset 

workshops 

have concluded 

after enjoying 

great success 

throughout 

the last 

month. 

Metro development staff including 

CROs, CCROs and WDOs have 

been busy working with coaches 

throughout 23 metro clubs to help 

prepare them for the new season. 

The workshops have been aimed towards 

mini and youth coaches and the focus 

has been on coaching through the game 

and an introduction to tackle. 

The idea behind these workshops is to 

share ideas, content, forge relationships 

with the clubs and have some fun on the 

way with the club coaches but ultimately 

help the coaches get back into coaching 

before the season really kicks off. 

Rob Mullen, Leinster Rugby Community 

Rugby Officer, said, “Over 600 coaches 

amongst the mini and youths sections 

across metro have availed of these 

workshops and its great to see. After a 

very disruptive 18 months, seeing the 

amount of coaches back out on the pitch 

to share ideas and coach again really is 

impressive. 

“They are a testament to themselves, the 

players and their clubs and long may 

the great work continue between Leinster 

Rugby and the clubs in the community.” 

If you require any support throughout the 

season, please don’t hesitate to contact 

your local Club Community Rugby Officer 

(CCRO), Community Rugby Officer 

(CRO) or Womens Development Officer 

(WDO), contact details can be found 

here: 


Virtual Mascot 

Liam 

Leahy 

Age: 10 

School: Willow Park 

Interests: Rugby, Gaelic football and hurling 

Favourite player: Johnny Sexton 


WHERE ARE 

THEY NOW? 

CHRIS KEANE 

THEN: Chris 

Keane played 

28 times for 

Leinster Rugby 

between 2007 

and 2010. 

NOW: He lives 

in Skerries 

with his wife 

Sue Ann and 

three children 

Sean (11), 

Eimear (10) 

and Darragh 

(7), and works 

from his 

physiotherapy 

clinic. 


Chris Keane was a relatively 

late bloomer, failing to make 

the Belvedere College Senior 

Cup team in 1998 or any of the 

Leinster Rugby or Ireland age 

grade squads before finding 

favour to register a nine-year 

career as a professional. 

The Skerries man even made it back to 

Leinster, working for three seasons with 

Michael Cheika, long enough to earn 

a Magners League medal in 2008 and 

Heineken Cup medal in 2009. 

“Growing up, I never made a 

representative team, couldn’t even make 

my school team at Belvedere. It’s true. I 

was a B Team player all the way. 

“Kevin O’Malley was first-choice scrumhalf 

for the Senior Cup and I was on the 

bench. The thing about it was he was a 

really good player. 

“The way I look at it, I was probably 

a better rugby player. But, he had the 

confidence of being the man all through 

the years. He had a rapport with the lads 

and he was a really good player. 

“It was frustrating. It really was. At the 

time, I felt like I should have been in. 

Now, many years later, I can see why 

they picked him, why they didn’t pick 

me.” 

The move from being a back-up 

scrum-half for his school to becoming a 

professional player did not happen by 

accident. 

“I always trained hard all the way 

through, worked on my game,” says 

Chris. 

“I would pass against the wall, 100 off 

my right hand, 100 off my left. I would 

box-kick. I would break down videos of 

games, infatuated with players like Joost 

van der Westhuizen. 

“I had a chip on my shoulder to go 

along with that. I was determined to keep 

going, even though I wasn’t getting any 

look in. 

“I didn’t come close to the Leinster U-20s 

when I was playing AIL with Skerries on a 

Saturday and U-20s on a Sunday, when 

we made it to the JP Fanagan U-20 final 

in 2000.” 

An invitation to double up for Athlone 

Institute of Technology and Buccaneers 

prompted Chris’ move to the midlands 

in 2001. 

Connacht coach Steph Nel happened 

to get wind of the form of the new Buccs 

scrum-half in the Connacht Cup final and 

liked what he saw in pre-season. 

The man from nowhere made a positive 

impression to be named ahead of Eoin 

Reddan and Jimmy Ferris for the opening 

round of the Magners League. 

“It came as a bit of a shock to the other 

scrum-halfs and to myself when my name 

was called out on the Tuesday before 

the game. 

“It was in the old Cardiff Arms Park. It 

lashed rain and we won 6-3. The first 

representative match I played at any level 

was for Connacht’s first team. 

“I was shitting myself and I loved it. 

I was rooming and playing with Eric 

Elwood. I was in awe of him. He was an 

unbelievable professional. He set in stone 

for me what it meant to be one. 


“He was first to training, prepping before 

everyone else came, doing extras all the 

time, on top of his usual training sessions. 

“I often took to doing sessions with John 

Fogarty on my day off, like I had done 

as a kid, practising my passing, my 

box-kicks, the basics, just working on the 

elements of my game.” 

By the end, Chris had made 89 

appearances for Connacht over six 

seasons in what was the making of him as 

a player and a man. 

When Cheika made contact in 2007, it 

came as a shock to rival that selection 

when Nel made him Connacht’s starter 

in 2001. 

“I loved Connacht. I absolutely loved it. 

They were the ones that gave me my first 

opportunity to be a professional. To this 

day, I still feel very loyal to them. 

“The chance to move to Leinster was just 

too good to pass up, even though I had 

never been a part of their plans at any 

stage when I was younger.” 

Chris took a flight to Dublin and met with 

Cheika at the Leinster Branch to hear 

what the Australian had to say. 

“He laid out his expectations. He felt I 

could fit in,” he says. 

“I thought he was a brilliant coach, but 

he was very scary. He was intimidating, 

in a good way. He got the best out of his 

players.” 

There were no first-choice promises made. 

How could there be with a Wallaby at 

the club? 

“When I looked at Chris Whitaker, 

I was in awe of him as a player, his 

game management, his passing, how he 

commanded respect from the players. 

“On the other hand, I would back myself 

in terms of having a go when Cheika just 

wanted the scrum-half to pass, pass, pass. 

It took me a while to adapt to that. There 

was more freedom at Connacht to make 

a decision.” 

Gradually, he won the right to sit on the 

bench as Whitaker’s back-up, playing 

11 times in 2007/08, starting three of 

them. 

In 2008/09, it was the same again, three 

starts from 11 caps, including involvement 

in the Heineken Cup all the way up to the 

semi-final against Munster at Croke Park 

when, without any explanation, he was 

dropped to travelling reserve. 

“Don’t get me wrong, I was delighted to 

be part of it all. When the final whistle 

sounded at Edinburgh, I was over the 

moon. I have a Heineken Cup medal 

and a Magners League medal. I am very 

proud of them. 

“It was an amazing experience to play 

with Rocky Elsom, Isa Nacewa, Gordon 

D’Arcy, Brian O’Driscoll with Luke 

Fitzgerald and Rob Kearney coming 

through. 

“The skill levels of the backs you were 

training with were high class. They were 

all British and Irish Lions.” 

He has even rounded out his medal 

collection to include All-Ireland League 

medals at 1A (2011) and 1B (2010) for 

Old Belvedere and promotion from 2B 

(2014) for Skerries as well as the All- 

Ireland Junior series (2012). 


When all was said and done, 31-yearold 

Chris decided to walk away from 

the game in 2010, despite interest from 

Northampton Saints and a couple of 

French clubs. 

Back then, Chris was settling down with 

Sue Ann, his wife, and the first of three 

children Sean (now 11) before Eimear 

(10) and Darragh (7) came along. 

He wasted no time in studying 

Physiotherapy at the Royal College of 

Surgeons, making his way to the Lourdes 

Hospital in Drogheda for four years. 

From there, he turned a part-time private 

practice in the evening into a full-time 

professional life in his very busy clinic 

Chris Keane Physio. 

He is now back working in the same 

building he grew up in as the son of Dr 

John Keane with his brother Jack and 

sister Sarah, both doctors, taking over the 

practice from their father. 

“My Dad worked in the front of the house 

and we lived in the back of it. My clinic 

consists of two rooms and one of them is 

my old playroom,” he says. 

Like the move from Connacht to Leinster, 

he has returned home to where he 

belonged all along. 


Referees 

Corner 

BY DAN WALLACE 

Welcome to another edition of Referees 

Corner. It is great to be back in the RDS 

again and we look forward to seeing a full 

house soon. 

Today’s referee is Marius van 

der Westhuizen from South 

Africa, an experienced Super 

Rugby and Currie Cup referee. 

He will be assisted by USRFR 

referee Stuart Gaffikin and 

Shane Kierans of the MAR. The 

TMO is AJ Jacobs of SARU. 

Marius was born in Cape Town, South 

Africa. He started refereeing first class 

matches in 2011, making his debut in 

the 2011 Vodacom Cup match between 

the Free State Cheetahs and the Falcons 

in Bloemfontein and took charge of 10 

matches in the 2011 U-19 and U-21 

Provincial Championships. 

He became a referee on the IRB Sevens 

World Series circuit and was the man in 

charge of the 2013 Hong Kong Sevens 

final in just his third tournament. He was 

also named on the refereeing panel for 

the 2013 Rugby World Cup Sevens in 

Moscow. 

He was named on SANZAR’s referee list 

for the 2014 Super Rugby season and 

was in charge of his first Super Rugby 

match when the Lions met the Crusaders 

in Johannesburg. He also officiated 

at the 2014 Commonwealth Games 

in Glasgow. We wish him a warm 

welcome today. 

Want to get 

involved? 

Feel free to make contact with the Leinster Rugby Referees 

at hayley.whyte@leinsterrugby.ie. If you are interested 

in becoming a referee get in contact with us through our 

Facebook and Google + pages, our website www.arlb.ie 

or through twitter @leinsterreferee. 


What about advantage ref? 

A familiar cry across rugby 

pitches, sofas and commentary 

boxes. The advantage Law 

allows the game to be more 

continuous and have fewer 

stoppages. 

Sometimes, during a game, an 

infringement of the Laws may be 

committed where a stoppage in play 

would deprive the non-offending team 

of an opportunity to score. 

Even though the Laws state that the 

non-offending team should be awarded 

a penalty, free-kick or scrum, they are 

given the opportunity to continue with 

open play and attempt to score a try. 

In this instance, the referee will allow 

play to continue rather than penalise the 

offence but the referee cannot always 

do that. 

I was watching a URC game last week. 

The commentator, an experienced 

rugby spectator, and a former Irish 

international, expressed unhappiness 

when the referee blew up for a penalty 

as one team whipped the ball away. In 

this instance the referee was right, the 

commentators wrong, as the scrum had 

both gone through 90 degrees and the 

front row had popped up. 

Law 7.3 clearly states: 

3. Advantage must not be applied 

and the referee must blow the whistle 

immediately when: 

a] The ball or a player in possession 

of the ball, touches the referee and an 

advantage is gained by either side. 

b] The ball comes out of either end of 

the tunnel at a scrum. 

c] A scrum is wheeled through more 

than 90 degrees. 

d] A player in a scrum is lifted or 

forced upwards so that the player is no 

longer in contact with the ground. 

e] A quick throw, free-kick or penalty is 

taken incorrectly. 

f] The ball is made dead. 

g] It would be dangerous to let play 

continue. 

h] It is suspected that a player is 

seriously injured. 

Both c and d applied here. It is a 

short law but an important one. The 

World Rugby Law app is well worth 

downloading and is available at 

https://www.world.rugby/the-game/ 

laws/home I often find myself referring 

to it while attending games, mainly to 

make sure I am right and my mates are 

wrong. 

Finally, we have some great, live, 

in-person area meetings (under current 

guidelines) across the province in 

Lansdowne, Navan, Enniscorthy, 

Newbridge and Tullamore with Sean 

Gallagher. This month we focused on 

foul play and also took a look at some 

examples of the Global Law Trials in 

action over the last few weeks. Everyone 

is still getting used to them - more at 

https://www.world.rugby/the-game/ 

laws/global-law-trials 

We circulated some clips through the 

groups during each meeting so group 

discussions could take place. It was a 

very educational session. 


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LEINSTER WDOS RUN 

REGIONAL WORKSHOPS 

FOR U-14 GIRLS SQUADS 

Coming off the 

back of a very 

interesting 

18 months for 

female rugby 

the Leinster 

Rugby Women’s 

Development 

Officers (WDOs) 

are constantly 

innovating to 

adapt to the 

new situations 

they are 

facing. 

After experiencing a huge 

uptake in girls rugby during 

2020, while we were offering a 

non-contact form of the game, 

we now have new challenges in 

working with these girls to ensure 

their continued participation 

and enjoyment of the game 

as we try to merge back into 

playing regularly in competitive 

structures. 

Player confidence is key and the WDOs 

have been running regional workshops 

to ensure that the girls have that, as well 

as the competence to be able to continue 

their rugby development in a safe and 

enjoyable manner. 

Whilst participation is definitely still on 

the rise there are many clubs in their early 

stages of female rugby development with 

relatively small numbers training in U-8 to 

U-16 age groups, and community rugby 

is focusing on initiatives to keep them in 

the game. 

Jennie Bagnall, Lead Women’s 

Development Officer said, “The U-14 age 

group where the girls are coming out of 

‘mini rugby’ and playing on a full pitch 

in weekly competitive matches crucially 

needs support right now. 

“The girls born in 2009 sadly missed 

most of the end of their ‘minis’ phase of 

rugby, due to COVID-19. Many clubs 

organised tours for this age group which 

encourage social interaction and would 

go a long way towards keeping them 

playing with their friends as they move 

into girls age grade rugby. 

“Crossing over onto a full pitch rugby 

scenario can often be daunting for 

these players, and never more so than 

this season. All of our staff are working 

really hard to try to support clubs and 

coaches and provide opportunities for 

these players to be developed both in 

their confidence and competence on the 

field”. 


One of these opportunities has been the 

running of regional ‘Match Workshops’ 

where girls from different clubs have 

come together to play non-competitive 

rugby. In September, the coaches from 

Kilkenny RFC, Enniscorthy RFC, and 

Tullow RFC brought their U-14 players 

to County Carlow FC to play in the first 

Match Preparation Workshop run by 

Leinster Rugby. 

With over 30 players from the four clubs, 

after playing some fun warm up games 

and doing some individual ‘tackle tech’ 

for all the girls we were able to introduce 

the girls to their first official Branch 

Referee, Michael Carbury. 

In a new development form of training 

match, Michael and the coaches were 

able to run a flexible game allowing onpitch 

coaching and plenty of stoppages 

for the referee to explain to the girls what 

was happening and why – Michael 

commented that some adults that he 

referees don’t fully understand the game 

and that it was “fantastic to be able to 

teach these girls and help them learn and 

understand the game better at a young 

age”. 

The South-East workshop was so well 

received that we weren’t even off the 

pitch before coaches and players were 

asking when we can get the girls together 

to play again, as their small individual 

club numbers meant that none of them 

had ever had the opportunity to play 

13/15-a-side on a full pitch before and 

they absolutely loved it! 

Ciara Kinch, an experienced coach 

and player from Tullow RFC whose own 

daughter Roisin plays in this age group 

commented, “The session with the Leinster 

Development Officers in Carlow was 

a great opportunity for all the girls to 

brush up on their rugby skills of tackling 

and evasion after the long break due to 

Covid-19. It didn’t matter what club you 

came from it was all just about the U-14 

girls playing the game and having fun.” 

Due to the success of this pilot workshop 

we decided to extend the initiative into 

other regions. 

Last Saturday, the North Midlands teams 

from Clane RFC and Newbridge RFC 

came to MU Barnhall’s home ground 

in Leixlip to play in a similarly planned 

event. 

Mark McDonagh, an experienced 

Leinster Branch referee, managed the 

second part of the session once all the 

players were confident and coaches had 

signed off on their competence to play 

in a full-contact, full-pitch situation, and a 

fantastic 15-a-side match ensued. 

Jojo Forde, coach of the U-14 girls in MU 

Barnhall explained how she felt the girls 

gained so much from the workshop. 

“I loved to see the integration 

throughout all the play and how the 

more experienced girls also helped 

the inexperienced girls along the way. 

The girls really got the benefits of 

understanding more about rugby by the 

end of the session.” 

With some of the more established teams 

beginning to get back to ‘normal’ by 

playing in regional and Leinster age 

grade competitions over the last few 

weeks, development initiatives like this are 

helping level the playing field and ensure 

all girls in all the clubs have maximum 

learning and development opportunities 

regardless of the size of their squads. 

Even for girls who have been playing for 

several years this type of non-competitive 

event is enjoyable. Ella Keogh has been 

playing rugby with Newbridge RFC since 

she was seven years old. Even with this 

level of experience she said “I really 

enjoyed the session. I loved the teamwork 

building game and the tackle games that 

we played”. 

Many years ago we used to see clubs 

run lots of ‘blitz’ events like this for smallsided 

teams to come together just to get 

game time, but as the club situation has 

developed we now have a large number 

of clubs with squads able to field full 

teams and play in competitions. 

This is obviously fantastic, but as a 

section, Women’s rugby needs to keep 

running development workshops like this 

for clubs who are still trying to attract 

young players into the sport and ensure 

they all get to experience playing the full 

pitch game. 

If you are interested in knowing more 

about rugby for girls or women, please 

contact your local Women’s Development 

Officer as detailed below: 

Jennie Bagnall: 

Lead Women’s Development Officer – 

South East and North Midlands 

jennie.bagnall@leinsterrugby.ie 

086-3322136 

Larissa Muldoon: 

Women’s Development Officer – 

Metropolitan Area (Dublin City Council) 

larissa.muldoon@leinsterrugby.ie 

083-8271213 

Emily McKeown: 

Women’s Development Officer – Dun 

Laoghaire/Rathdown 

emily.mckeown@leinsterrugby.ie 

085-1610396 

Niall Kane: 

Women’s Development Officer – North 

East and Midlands 

niall.kane@leinsterrugby.ie 

089-4785315 


TO MAXIMISE YOUR SPORTS AND EXERCISE 

PERFORMANCE THROUGH NUTRITION 

Optimum Nutrition and Leinster Rugby have partnered to help share good nutrition tips throughout 

the season to help you achieve your performance goals. Here are some simple tips and things to 

remember to help maximise your performance and help you recover quickly to come back stronger. 

Protein Rich. 

Protein provides your muscles with 

the building blocks to repair & grow. 

Carb-Up. 

Carbohydrate foods are king as they 

power high intensity play. 

Fuel-Up. 

Consume the majority of your 

carbohydrates around training to 

support fuelling and recovery. 

Recover. 

Quality rest & nutrition between 

training sessions is the key to 

recovery. Remember to: 

Repair with protein, 

Refuel with carbohydrate, 

Rehydrate with fluid. 

Hydrate. 

Dehydration can lead to a drop in 

exercise intensity & can impact your 

decision making. Drink 2-3 litres of 

fluid each day to ensure hydration. 

Game Day. 

To fuel performance on the field, 

consume a large carbohydrate rich 

meal 2-3 hours before kick-off, i.e. 

chicken & pasta, turkey bolognaise 

wraps. 

Get 20% off all Optimum Nutrition products 

using code Leinster20 on optimumnutrition.ie

KNOWING WHAT ADVICE TO TAKE 

IS ESSENTIAL IN THIS GAME. 

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OFFICIAL LEGAL ADVISOR 

Beauchamps LLP | Riverside Two | Sir John Rogerson’s Quay | Dublin 2 | D02 KV60

sea of blue 


Photos by Sportsfile 


COUNTRY 

WALES 

HOME GROUND 

PARC Y SCARLETS 

FOUNDED 

2003 

CHAMPIONS 

2 | 2016-2017, 2003-2004 

scarlets 

Scarlets slumped to a hugely 

disappointing 43-13 loss to 

Munster at a sun-kissed Parc y 

Scarlets in the third round of the 

United Rugby Championship. 

The home side never got going as 

Munster ran in six tries, three in each half, 

to a lone effort from Johnny McNicholl. 

Afterwards head coach Dwayne 

Peel admitted the performance was 

way below standards expected of his 

squad with the Scarlets needing to dust 

themselves down before they head to 

Dublin to take on defending champions 

Leinster. 

Despite having made a number of 

changes to their starting line-up, Munster 

started the game with real confidence 

and took advantage of some early 

Scarlets slumber with a try after just three 

minutes through No 8 Jack O’Sullivan. 

Out-half Ben Healy converted then 

added a penalty to push his side 10-0 

last time out 

Scarlets 13 

Munster 43 

Parc y Scarlets | Sunday, 10 October 

WORDS: SCARLETS.WALES 

Scarlets slumped to a hugely disappointing 43-13 loss 

to Munster at a sun-kissed Parc y Scarlets in the third 

round of the United Rugby Championship. 

ahead, a score which sparked the 

Scarlets into life. 

After a slick backline attack, wing Steff 

Evans dived in at the corner, but the score 

was chalked off after the TMO spotted 

a knock-on in the build-up. Replays also 

showed Evans’ foot in touch just before 

he touched down. 

Scarlets did get on the board on 

15 minutes through the boot of Sam 

Costelow after Munster had infringed at 

the breakdown, but it was the visitors who 

were celebrating again after centre Liam 

Coombes was worked away for his side’s 

second try. Healy’s conversion took the 

score out to 17-3. 

Back though, came the Scarlets and 

a smart piece of opportunism from 

Costelow paved the way for the first 

home try. 

Picking up a bouncing ball, the young 

out-half darted through the Munster 

defence then delivered a perfectlyweighted 

chip into the path of full-back 

McNicholl who gathered and dived over 

at the posts. 

Costelow’s conversion and a further 

penalty reduced the lead to 17-13, but it 

was Munster who were to have the final 

say of the half with a looping pass finding 

wing Calvin Nash out wide for his side’s 

third score of the afternoon. 

Needing a strong response straight 

from the restart, the Scarlets went further 

behind when prop Jeremy Loughman 


drove over from close range for the 

bonus-point score. 

Man of the match Chris Cloete, who 

bossed the breakdown area, added 

another, then Liam Coombes pounced on 

a loose ball for Munster’s sixth try. 

Scarlets had plenty of opportunities to 

add to their tally, but couldn’t find the 

finishing touch in the red zone and it was 

Munster who ran out comfortable winners 

to continue their unbeaten start to the 

URC season. 

SCARLETS – Johnny McNicholl; Tom 

Rogers, Jonathan Davies, Scott Williams 

(Johnny Williams 26), Steffan Evans; Sam 

Costtelow (Dan Jones 64), Gareth Davies 

(Kieran Hardy 55); Rob Evans (Wyn 

Jones 45), Ken Owens (Ryan Elias 45), 

Samson Lee (WillGriff John 45); Aaron 

Shingler, Lloyd Ashley; Blade Thomson, 

Dan Davis (Shaun Evans 45), Sione 

Kalamafoni (Tom Price 49). 

MUNSTER – Matt Gallagher; Calvin 

Nash, Liam Coombes, Dan Goggin, 

Shane Daly; Ben Healy (Jack Crowley 

64), Neil Cronin (Patrick Patterson 

64); Jeremy Loughman (Josh Wycherley 

63), Diarmuid Barron (Kevin O’Byrne 

63), Stephen Archer (John Ryan 51); 

Thomas Ahern (RG Snyman 51), Fineen 

Wycherley; Jack O’Donoghue, Chris 

Cloete (Alex Kendellen 69), Jack 

O’Sullivan. 


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scarlets squad 

Head Coach 

Dwayne 

Peel 

Former Welsh international scrum 

half Dwayne Peel is in his first 

year as head coach of Scarlets. 

Capped 76 times for Wales, Peel played 

for Scarlets, Sale Sharks and Bristol 

throughout his career, joining the Bristol 

backroom team upon hanging up the 

boots. 

After a year there as Backs and Skills 

coach, he moved to Ulster Rugby in an 

Assistant Coach role where he spent four 

years working under Jono Gibbes and 

Dan McFarland. 

Captain 

Jonathan 

Davies 

Wales centre Jonathan Davies 

was named as the club’s 

captain at the start of the 

current campaign, taking on the 

responsibility from Ken Owens. 

The 33-year-old also led Wales during 

the summer in three Tests against 

Argentina and Canada. 

He first appeared for Scarlets in 

2006/07 and has 170 caps either side 

of a stint with Clermont Auvergne in 

France. 

Davies has won four Six Nations titles, 

two Grand Slams, while was a touring 

Lion in 2013 and 2017. 

FORWARDS 

DOM BOOTH 

HOOKER 

RYAN ELIAS 

HOOKER 

ROB EVANS 

PROP 

SHAUN EVANS 

HOOKER 

JOSH HELPS 

LOCK 

DAFYDD HUGHES 

HOOKER 

ALEX JEFFRIES 

PROP 

WILLGRIFF JOHN 

PROP 

WYN JONES 

PROP 

MARC JONES 

HOOKER 

MORGAN JONES 

LOCK 

SAMSON LEE 

PROP 

TOMAS LEZANA 

FLANKER 

SAM LOUSI 

LOCK 

KEMSLEY MATHIAS 

PROP 

HARRI O’CONNOR 

PROP 

KEN OWENS 

HOOKER 

PHIL PRICE 

PROP 

TOM PRICE 

LOCK 

JAC PRICE 

LOCK 

LEWIS RAWLINS 

LOCK 

PIETER SCHOLTZ 

PROP 

JAVAN SEBASTIAN 

PROP 

STEFF THOMAS 

PROP 

BACKS 

DANE BLACKER 

SCRUM-HALF 

SAM COSTELOW 

FLY-HALF 

JONATHAN DAVIES 

CENTRE 

GARETH DAVIES 

SCRUM-HALF 

LUKE DAVIES 

SCRUM-HALF 

LEIGH HALFPENNY 

FULLBACK 

KIERAN HARDY 

SCRUM-HALF 

STEFF HUGHES 

CENTRE 

DAN JONES 

FLY-HALF 

JOHNNY MCNICHOLL 

FULLBACK 

TYLER MORGAN 

CENTRE 

IOAN NICHOLAS 

CENTRE 

ANGUS O’BRIEN 

FLY-HALF 

RHYS PATCHELL 

FLY-HALF 

JOE ROBERTS 

CENTRE 

TOM ROGERS 

FULLBACK 

LIAM WILLIAMS 

FULLBACK 

JOHNNY WILLIAMS 

CENTRE 

SCOTT WILLIAMS 

CENTRE 


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Club in Focus 

DUNDALK 

Everything seems just about 

right in the world again 

now that society is getting 

back to the new normal. 

The return of supporters to 

stadiums and locals flocking to 

grounds is just one of the reasons 

to celebrate a life we once took 

for granted. 

Just when Dundalk coach Dave Fearon 

and his team were getting used to 

winning in Leinster League Division 1A, 

Kilkenny took their unbeaten record last 

Saturday in a reminder of how things can 

change. And fast. 

“That 12-10 result has meant Kilkenny 

have leapfrogged us. We are joint-third 

on points. But, they are ahead on our 

head-to-head,” adds Dave. 

“We were 10-7 up with five minutes to 

go and we had them on the ropes. They 

came up with a breakout try from about 

60 metres. It was nice interplay by them, 

in fairness. Kilkenny are very hard to beat 

at home so leaving with a losing bonus 

point is certainly positive.” 

Fearon is a Dundalk clubman through 

and through, coaching when he finished 

playing, all in the hope of taking them 

back to the ‘Promised Land’, the Energia 

All-Ireland League. 

“I would have thought before the season 

started that we would have been most 

peoples’ favourites to go down, based 

on what happened to us in the previous 

season we played,” he adds. 

“We were in good shape, a point behind 

leaders Ashbourne just before Christmas 

2019 when we went there to play them. If 

we had won it, we would have gone top. 

Instead, we lost narrowly and, whatever 

effect it had on us, our confidence 

plummeted and we lost the next six to 

drop into the relegation zone. 

“In fact, only for Covid, we would 

probably have been in a play-off to stay 

up. But it turned out those matches were 

cancelled. That was about the best thing 

to come out of Covid for us.” 

This season, Adam Doyle passed the 

head coach responsibilities onto Dave, 

something he was very proud about. 

“It’s a great privilege to be able to coach 

your home club and I intend to give all 

I can to repay the committee and this 

group of players for their faith.” 

By Sunday evening, Dave was already 

planning the downfall of Suttonians at 

Station Road the following week. Life in 

this league waits for no one. The pages 

turn in a blur. 

The top-tier in Leinster League is full of 

clubs with aspirations of moving back 

up to the All-Ireland League. In 2015, 

Dundalk earned promotion for the first 

and only time, returning to the Junior 


anks after a single season, something 

that still rankles with Dave. 

“When we were promoted in 2015, it 

was all anyone wanted for the previous 

20 years. We got a taste of it only to fall 

straight back down the following year. It 

was a bitter pill to swallow.” 

It was a wake-up call to all in the club 

that it wasn’t just good enough to get 

there. Dundalk would have to add to their 

squad to absorb the jump in standards 

should they make it to the AIL again. 

“When we have had success in the 

past we have lost too many players to 

retirement. I don’t know if that is just 

a Dundalk issue. It takes us so long to 

capture that success that, maybe, people 

burn out getting to that point,” he states. 

“We hadn’t won the Towns Cup in 24 

years and it had been a target for so 

many, for so long, that it became the 

natural endpoint for them. 

“That has been a disappointment, not 

being able to hold on to experienced 

men and build out the squad underneath 

them. You need serious depth in your 

playing pool. You need to have a first, 

second and third team to compensate 

for injuries and other reasons for 

unavailability. We didn’t have that in 

2015 and we paid the price.” 

As a club, Dundalk has been making 

strides in the right direction. The 

committee has had an injection of fresh 

blood with added vigour and new ideas. 

A development plan is in the works with 

plans to improve the training pitches, 

add additional lighting and upgrade the 

clubhouse bar. 

“Our club is full of fantastic people, far 

too many to mention individually but 

our president John McKevitt is a great 

believer in promoting from within. It was 

under him that Adam Doyle became 

the first homegrown coach in almost 20 

years.” 

Dave now follows in his footsteps. 

With past players Kieran McCabe, 


Chris Scully, Paul Meegan, Shane 

O’Reilly, Paddy Sheehy and the vastly 

experienced Hendrick Kruger all part of 

the coaching ticket the future looks bright 

for this trend to continue. 

They bounce up off the ground 

when they get knocked down and 

their energy levels are infectious. 

The coaching team looks healthy. What 

of the player group? “It is a revamped 

squad, a different team. Covid has 

prevented us from bringing in overseas 

players. We have committed to promoting 

from within,” he says. 

“Like most teams, we have lost a number 

of players through the Covid period. The 

shift in perspective that people have had 

meant that some of our Dublin based 

players decided to play locally instead 

of making the trip home and some of the 

older lads got too used to being retired.” 

There is a core of experienced players 

still there though. In Conor Williams, 

Sean Arrowsmith, Robbie Farrell we have 

a formidable front row and the arrival of 

Stephen McGivern and Simon O’Shea 

only bolsters this further. 

Enda Murphy adds ballast and 

experience in the second row, while 

club captain Tiernan Gonnelly leads 

by example at No 8. In the backline, 

Ultan Murphy and Johnny Williams both 

remain from our success in 2015. 


“Mostly, we have benefitted from the 

promotion of some of the younger 

players from the youths system, like 

tighthead Darragh Maher, scrum-half 

James O’Connell, wing Jack Cassidy, 

flanker Ryan McShane, who has put in 

the work all through pre-season, to start 

at blindside and not look back.” 

The exuberance of youth brings more 

than new blood to the body of the squad. 

It also introduces an attitude of energy. 

“It is always a thing to behold. They are 

mad to train, mad to play matches. They 

bounce up off the ground when they get 

knocked down and their energy levels 

are infectious. 

“That has been the most pleasing part 

of this season, seeing those lads making 

the step up to adult rugby They have all 

bought into what we are trying to do. 

This will give the club the bones of a 

very good team now and long into the 

future.” 

It is the one reason, above all others, that 

gives Dave the hope Dundalk can make it 

back to the AIL one day. 

He aims to be around when it happens. 


Martin 

Moloney 

THE ACADEMY 

INTERVIEW 

BY RYAN CORRY 

On the night of April 24, 

2021, Leinster Rugby played 

neighbours Munster in a 

Guinness PRO14 Rainbow Cup 

game at the RDS Arena. 

The result went the way 

of the southern province 

and attention was quickly 

turned to an upcoming 

European semi-final in 

France. 

A defeat like that is not a result 

to dwell on but for one player, it 

was a game that was worth so 

much more than the Rainbow Cup 

points on offer. 

With 10 minutes remaining, Kildare man 

Martin Moloney was introduced from the 

bench for his first appearance in the blue 

of Leinster. 

And with that introduction, he became 

the 1300th player to play for the 

province, a milestone cap that documents 

the numbers to have represented the 

province since that first day out back at 

the Ormeau Ground in 1875. 

The Leinster Rugby Branch then held their 

first official meeting four years later at 63 

Grafton Street and the rest, as they say, 

is history. 



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For Moloney though, this was his start, 

the end of one journey and the beginning 

of another. 

Two years in the Academy, much of 

which had been hampered by injury, on 

top of the years with Athy RFC, regional 

squads and the province’s age-grade 

teams all geared towards that moment 

in April. 

“That April night would have followed 

on from a seriously frustrating period of 

injury, long-term injuries, 

short-term injuries, just following each 

other so it was a massive honour, firstly,” 

Moloney explains. 

“On that day was a massive derby 

against Munster so, as a result, there 

were players with a huge level of 

experience playing in that game. To 

make my debut in such an experienced 

and strong squad, packed with 

internationals was a real honour. 

“And then to be able to do that with 

another Academy player, Cormac 

(Foley), was just really special. I met 

Cormac in an Irish U-18 camp and then 

to come on in the same 10 minutes as 

him was special. It was either going 

to be myself or Cormac who became 

the 1300th. It’s funny, definitely wasn’t 

thinking about it going on, I only found 

out after but it’s nice to have. 

“But then, you couple that with huge 

disappointment as well because to lose 

like that to Munster is probably one 

of the worst losses you could possibly 

experience.” 

That he made his bow the same night as 

Foley highlights the gradual levelling of 

the playing field between the two key 

pathways in Leinster, Youths and Schools. 

Moloney’s journey was through the 

Youths with Foley, a past pupil of St 

Gerard’s School, coming through what 

was once considered the more traditional 

route. 

“The split of youths and schools is 

evening out more every year,” Moloney 

says. 

“And that’s as a result of the incredible 

work going on in the youth pathway that 

I experienced. It was really good. You’re 

constantly getting exposed to really good 

coaches and every time you’re playing, 

there’s eyes on you in the club. 


“With the Shane Horgan Cup, the 

fact that you get in there so early is a 

huge help. I think it’s at U-15s is the 

first exposure to Leinster training and 

the quality of coaching there is so high. 

Straight away, it’s great and I can see it 

with the Athy lads, I know a few of them 

coming into that system now as well. You 

get to work with Leinster S&Cs on top of 

that high-quality coaching. 

“And then as well, the effort going 

on in the clubs like Athy is incredible. 

You can see that now in more clubs. In 

Athy, they’re running position-specific 

bootcamps so every Saturday, they’re 

working with the nines, working with 

second rows on the lineouts, poaching 

with the back row, contact skills, it all 

seems to be coming up a level and it’s 

great to see it being put in place.” 

That exposure to high-level coaching, the 

training, the game-time is all so important 

for player development, confidence and, 

at the core of it all, happiness. 

Players want to play games. What 

happens when those games are taken 

away? In Moloney’s case, he outlines 

his injury troubles but when you add a 

global pandemic to the mix, how do you 

stay keen and involved? 

“That was a very difficult period when 

there was limited game-time. We 

would have spoken about it a lot as an 

Academy. It would have been Noel 

(McNamara) speaking about it then but 

the emphasis was on how much there 

was that we still could do. 

“We designed trainings differently so 

that we’d get more match similarities 

to replace the fact we weren’t playing 

games. We reached a balance well in 

terms of being ready to play games if we 

were called upon but also making sure 

that we were getting enough exposure in 

the right areas of the game,” he adds. 

“On the other side of that, I have to say, 

something that preps you very well is 

that both the Academy and Senior staff 

are constantly keeping the injured lads 

involved. 

“While everyone else is on the pitch, 

you’ll have an indoor skills session 

which is all the injured players from the 

Academy and Senior squads who are not 

at that pitch level yet, training together. 

“Number one, it’s keeping morale 

high, and number two, it’s keeping you 

involved. You try to avoid the feelings of 

‘this opportunity is escaping’. The systems 

that are in place for the injured lads, I 

think, helps you to avoid those feelings. 

They do creep in, of course they do, but 

the fact that you then have those systems 

in place for the injured players means 

that you can stay focused on what you 

have to do, and it gives you hope. 

“When you’re doing skills with top-end 

international players who are also 

injured, it puts it into perspective that we 

all have these issues at different times.” 

It’s like a fresh start for the flanker, in the 

last number of weeks he’s been part of 

the Leinster Development team, featured 

against Harlequins in the pre-season 

friendly at Aviva Stadium, and then 

helped Clontarf FC to a two from two 

start in the Energia All-Ireland League. 

The highlight of those few weeks was the 

chance to have his family seeing him run 

out at the Aviva, a symbol of thanks for 

the support that was given to him at home 

throughout the difficult months. 

“It was the first time playing a game there 

and it was incredible. The atmosphere 

with the crowd there too, it was just 

class. My family’s first time at a game 

post-Covid too so to get them there was 

quite special. 


“The support I got from them in that 

period of injury was massive so to finally 

then get to have a nice evening for 

them in the Aviva and then a nice night 

together after the game was very special, 

to hopefully thank them for all their 

support during the injury. Family support 

is huge.” 

Closer to the field, he’s been seeing 

support from all of the coaches and 

backroom team within Leinster Rugby 

but one well-known flanker in particular 

has imparted some of his wisdom during 

his two-and-a-bit years working with the 

province as an Elite Player Development 

Officer and now Contact Skills coach. 

“When Denis Leamy came into the 

Academy staff, I was obviously delighted 

because he’s the same position as me. 

He’s so intelligent in the contact area 

which is an area that I’m constantly 

looking to get better,” he states. 

“Denis would have sat down with me a 

huge amount in his first two years, and 

even still now since he became Contact 

Skills coach, just going through clips and 

analysing the small details of the contact 

area. 

“From a broader perspective then, we 

looked at my positioning as a six or a 

seven, my positioning off set-piece, my 

positioning in phase, he’s helped me 

hugely with that. General game prep too, 

It was the first time playing a 

game there and it was incredible. 

The atmosphere with the crowd 

there too, it was just class. My 

family’s first time at a game post- 

Covid too so to get them there was 

quite special. 

he’s helped hugely, he’s been very good 

for me personally and for the group.” 

It all adds up. From the injury experience 

to the first cap to the additional hands-on 

coaching, it would be accurate to say 

that there’s much more to come from 

Moloney. 

For now though, he wants to keep striking 

the right balance between his Business 

and Law studies in UCD and his training, 

which previous Academy Manager 

McNamara and now Simon Broughton 

have both been putting strong emphasis 

on. 

With his 22nd birthday coming up on 

Tuesday, the big wish, he says while 

knocking on wood, is to stay healthy and 

available this year. 

“The balance is going well right now. 

Simon has just come into the Academy 

Manager role. He’s quite keen that we 

keep on top of our college work so a lot 

of us are working hard to get into our 

lectures and be here in the mornings for 

training. Everyone is working on that 

balance always. 

Here’s hoping that the coming year is one 

injury-free and with a good handle on 

that balance. 


Leinster Rugby Academy 

Year Three 2021/22: 


Year two 2021/22: 

Second Row 

Brian Deeny 

DOB: 02/03/2000 

HEIGHT: 1.99m WEIGHT: 121kg 

HONOURS: Ireland U20 (8 caps) 

Did You Know: Brian played youth rugby with Wexford 

Wanderers RFC. He got his first Irish cap playing for 

Ireland Under-18 Sevens. Brian played midfield for 

his school St Peter’s College in Gaelic football and 

reached the All-Ireland Colleges Final in 2017. He is 

currently studying Science in Trinity and lives in Abbey 

House B&B, Wexford...if you are looking for a room?! 

Instagram: brian_deeny 

wing 

Niall Comerford 

DOB: 06/04/2000 


HONOURS: Ireland U20 

Did You Know: Niall played both hurling and Gaelic 

football with Kilmacud Crokes for 14 years. He also 

represented Dublin in Gaelic football in the U17 

Leinster Championship. He is currently studying 

Commerce in UCD. 

Instagram: niall_c123 

Cormac Foley #1299 

DOB: 24/10/1999 



& Leinster Rugby (1 cap) 

Marcus Hanan #1295 

DOB: 03/10/2000 

HEIGHT:1.8m WEIGHT:110.91kg 

HONOURS: Leinster Rugby (3 caps) 

Scrum Half 

Did You Know: Started playing rugby with Greystones 

RFC when he was nine. Growing up, Cormac did a lot 

of show jumping and he is now studying Economics and 

Finance in UCD. 

Instagram: cormacfoley6 

prop 

Back Row 

Martin Moloney #1300 

DOB: 19/10/1999 


HONOURS: Ireland U20 (5 caps) & 

Leinster Rugby (1 cap) 

Did You Know: Martin played hurling for Kildare and 

played GAA and basketball for his secondary school, 

Knockbeg College, and local GAA club, St Laurence’s. 

He played his youth rugby with Athy RFC. He is now 

studying Business and Law in UCD, He also enjoys 

working on the family farm. Instagram: martin_moloney 

Second Row 

Joe McCarthy 

DOB: 26/03/2001 



Did You Know: Joe started playing rugby with Blackrock 

College RFC at the age of six before moving to 

Willow Park and then Blackrock College. He was also 

on the Blackrock swim team for five years. He’s currently 

studying Global Business in Trinity College Dublin. 

Instagram: joetmmcc 

Second Row 

Charlie Ryan 

DOB: 03/02/1999 



Did You Know: Charlie played youth rugby at Blackrock 

College RFC while also attending the school since 

Senior Infants. He captained Ireland to the U20 Grand 

Slam in 2019 and again for the U20s World Cup. His 

friends call him Chuck! He is currently studying Business 

and Legal Studies in UCD. 

Instagram: chuck_ryan5 

hooker 

John McKee 

DOB: 15/02/2000 



Did You Know: John grew up in Belfast going to school 

at Campbell College where he won a Senior Cup. He 

was involved with Ulster at age grade level until moving 

to Dublin after school. He also has multiple medals 

from Northern Irish Schools Judo competitions. 

Instagram: johnmckee_ 

Centre 

Liam Turner #1287 

DOB: 14/07/1999 



& Leinster Rugby (6 caps) 

Did You Know: Liam started to play rugby at the age 

of six at Blackrock College RFC. He later joined 

Blackrock College and was part of the 2018 Senior Cup 

winning team. He was also part of the Ireland U20 team 

that went on to win the 2019 Grand Slam. Liam currently 

studys BESS in Trinity College. Instagram: liamtn123 

Centre / Full Back 

Jamie Osborne #1294 

DOB: 16/11/2001 

HEIGHT:1.93m WEIGHT:96.82kg 

HONOURS: Leinster Rugby (8 caps) 


Seán O’Brien #1297 

Lee Barron 

DOB: 31/07/2000 




DOB: 15/02/2001 


Back Row 

Did You Know: Seán started playing rugby at age 

six with Greystones RFC where he played up until Under-13. 

He then played on the Junior and Senior Cup 

teams in Blackrock College. He is currently studying 

Economics and Finance in UCD 

Instagram: seanobrien456 

Hooker 

Did You Know: Lee played golf growing up in the 

Castle Golf Club and in the end was playing off a 

handicap of eight. He has family roots in Carlow but 

went to school in Dublin and attended St Michael’s College. 

As well as rugby with his school, he also played 

GAA and even lined out in Croke Park. 

Max O’Reilly #1291 

Chris Cosgrave 

Full Back 

DOB: 26/02/2000 



Leinster Rugby (7 caps) 

Did You Know: Max is currently in his third year of 

Business and Management in DIT. His preferred sport 

was soccer until about the age of 15, which he had 

played at centre midfield with Enniskerry FC for over 10 

years and also for Wicklow. 

Instagram: max_oreilly 

full back 

DOB: 24/07/2001 

HEIGHT:1.83m WEIGHT:85kg 

Did You Know: Chris is a member of UCD RFC, where 

he is also an Ad Astra scholar studying Agricultural 

Science. His athleticism is best highlighted by his feats 

in the field of Athletics with All-Ireland honours to his 

name in both the 4x100m relay and the Discus. Before 

the UCD and St Michael’s College days, he played at 

a young age with Old Belvedere RFC. 

Andrew Smith #1292 

Mark Hernan 

DOB: 21/07/2000 




DOB: 04/07/2000 


Back Three 

Did You Know: Andrew is currently studying Quantity 

Surveying and Construction Economics in TUD. In 

2019, he won the Leinster Schools Senior Cup with St 

Michael’s College. Andrew also played Gaelic football 

with his local club - Clanna Gael Fontenoy GAA Club. 

Instagram: andrew.sm1th 

Flanker 

Did You Know: Mark was coached by Ross Molony, 

Josh Murphy, Ross Byrne and Nick McCarthy when in 

St. Michael’s College. His grandfather Fergus O’Brien 

was Lord Mayor of Dublin and his father, Ray, played 

for Connacht seniors and Ireland u25s. 

Alex Soroka #1296 

Temi Lasisi 

Back Row 

DOB: 19/02/2001 

HEIGHT: 1.95m WEIGHT: 104.5kg 



Did You Know: Alex’s family moved to Ireland from 

Ukraine shortly before his birth. He was born in Cork 

before moving to Dublin. 

Instagram: alex._.soroka 

prop 

DOB: 09/05/2001 

HEIGHT: 1.78m WEIGHT: 115.8kg 

Did You Know: The TUD Mechanical Engineering 

student originally picked up the oval ball in Enniscorthy 

before later moving to Lansdowne FC. Temi rose 

through the ranks in the Youths system, his first outing 

with the province came at U-18 level against Northampton. 

He also describes himself as a ‘competent 

pianist’. 

Ben Murphy 

DOB: 23/04/2001 


Leinster Rugby (1 cap) 


Year one 2021/22: 

Scrum half 

Did You Know: Ben played all different sports growing 

up including football, GAA and golf and won an 800m 

gold in the U-14 East Leinsters. He is studying economics 

in UCD. Ben’s father Richie played for Leinster 

Rugby and has coached at all levels of the game and is 

the current Ireland U-20s head coach. 

Jack Boyle 

DOB: 10/03/2002 


Rob Russell #1302 

DOB: 13/01/1999 



Prop 

Did You Know: Jack’s father, Herbie, and uncles, Colon 

and Eric, all represented Old Wesley rugby club for 

years. His cousin Stephen Boyle also represented the 

Leinster Rugby youths. Jack is currently studying for a 

Commerce Degree in UCD. 

Full Back / Wing 

Did You Know: Rob is currently in his final year of 

Business and Management in DIT. He started playing 

rugby at the age of five with Wanderers RFC. He also 

played football up to minor level with Kilmacud Crokes 

and it took priority over rugby until he left school. 


Date 

KO/ 

Result 

25/09 W31-3 URC VODACOM 

BULLS 

03/10 W7-6 URC DRAGONS 

Opposiotion Venue 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 1 2 

Aviva 

Stadium 

Rodney 

Parade 

09/10 W43-7 URC ZEBRE RDS Arena J O’BRIEN 

16/10 17:15 URC SCARLETS RDS Arena 

22/10 19:35 URC GLASGOW Scotstoun 

Stadium 

27/11 20:00 URC ULSTER RDS Arena 

fixtures and 

results 2021/22 

KEENAN O’LOUGHLIN RINGROSE FRAWLEY LOWE 

SEXTON 

3C 1P 

MCGRATH 

PORTER 

1T 

SHEEHAN 

KEENAN RUSSELL RINGROSE C O’BRIEN O’LOUGHLIN R BYRNE GIBSON-PARK PORTER SHEEHAN 

A BYRNE 

2T 

OSBORNE 

FRAWLEY 

LARMOUR 

1T 

H BYRNE 

MCGRATH 

E BYRNE 

1T 

CRONIN 

1T 

03/12 19:45 URC CONNACHT RDS Arena 

11 Dec 15:15 HCC BATH 

17 Dec 20:00 HCC MONTPELLIER 

26/12 19:35 URC MUNSTER 

01/01 19:35 URC ULSTER 

Aviva 

Stadium 

GGL (Altrad) 

Stadium 

Thomond 

Park 

Kingspan 

Stadium 

07/01 19:35 URC SIGMA LIONS RDS Arena 

16 Jan 13:00 HCC MONTPELLIER RDS Arena 

22 Jan 13:00 HCC BATH 

28/29/30 

Jan 

18/19/20 

Feb 

04/05/06 

Mar 

25/26/27 

Mar 

01/02/03 

Apr 

22/23/24 

Apr 

29/30/01 

Apr 

20/21/22 

May 

TBC 

URC CARDIFF 

RUGBY 

Recreation 

Ground 

Cardiff Arms 

Park 

TBC URC OSPREYS RDS Arena 

TBC 

URC BENETTON 

tadio 

Monigo 

TBC URC CONNACHT Sportsground 

TBC URC MUNSTER RDS Arena 

TBC 

TBC 

URC CELL C 

SHARKS 

URC DHL 

STORMERS 

Jonsson 

Kings Park 

Green Point 

Stagium 

TBC URC EDINBURGH RDS Arena 


3 4 5 6 7 8 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 

ALAALATOA MOLONY J RYAN RUDDOCK 

VAN DER FLIER 

1T 

DORIS 

TRACY 

1T 

E BYRNE HEALY BAIRD DEEGAN GIBSON-PARK 

R BYRNE 

1T 1C 

OSBORNE 

ALAALATOA MOLONY RYAN RUDDOCK VAN DER FLIER 

DEEGAN 

1T 

TRACY E BYRNE HEALY BAIRD LEAVY N MCCARTHY C FRAWLEY 

S PENNY 

[UNUSED] 

ALAALATOA BAIRD TONER LEAVY 

PENNY 

1T 

RUDDOCK 

KELLEHER 

1T 

DOOLEY HEALY MOLONY DEEGAN N MCCARTHY 

SEXTON 

4C 

RUSSELL 


matchday 

Squads 

Hugo Keenan 

Jordan Larmour 

Garry Ringrose 

Ciarán Frawley 

James Lowe 

Johnny Sexton [C] 

Jamison Gibson-Park 

15 

14 

13 

12 

11 

10 

9 

FULL BACK 

RIGHT WING 

OUTSIDE CENTRE 

INSIDE CENTRE 

LEFT WING 

FLY HALF 

SCRUM HALF 

Ioan Nicholas 

Johnny McNicholl 

Jonathan Davies [C] 

Johnny Williams 

Ryan Conbeer 

Sam Costelow 

Gareth Davies 

officials 

REFEREE: 

MARIUS VAN DER WESTHUIZEN 

(SARU, 5TH COMPETITION GAME) 

ASSISTANT REFEREES: 

STUART GAFFIKIN (IRFU) 

SHANE KIERANS (IRFU) 

TMO: 

PAUL LARTER (SRU) 

Andrew Porter 

Rónan Kelleher 

Tadhg Furlong 

Ross Molony 

James Ryan 

Caelan Doris 

Josh van der Flier 

Jack Conan 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

LOOSE HEAD PROP 

HOOKER 

TIGHT HEAD PROP 

SECOND ROW 

SECOND ROW 

BLINDSIDE FLANKER 

OPENSIDE FLANKER 

NUMBER 8 

Wyn Jones 

Ken Owens 

WillGriff John 

Lloyd Ashley 

Sam Lousi 

Aaron Shingler 

Tomas Lezana 

Blade Thomson 

Dan Sheehan 

Cian Healy 

Michael Ala’alatoa 

Ryan Baird 

Rhys Ruddock 

Luke McGrath 

Ross Byrne 

Jimmy O’Brien 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

Ryan Elias 

Rob Evans 

Samson Lee 

Morgan Jones 

Shaun Evans 

Kieran Hardy 

Dan Jones 

Tom Rogers

At Sword we know how important the Game is. 

We know how important your memories are ....so relax 

and enjoy yourself, you're in safe hands. 

LEINSTER RUGBY FANS .... Secured by the team at Sword 

Dublin: 01-6688220 

info@swordsecurity.com 

www.swordsecurity.com 

Securing Sports Fans around the World.

Parting Shot 

9 October 2021 

Adam Byrne celebrates with his 

mother Gillian after their side’s 

victory in the United Rugby 

Championship match between 

Leinster and Zebre at RDS Arena 

in Dublin. 


Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

Leinster vs Scarlets

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