Leinster vs Montpellier

ISSUE 7 | LEINSTER RUGBY OFFICIAL MATCHDAY PROGRAMME 

LEINSTER 

VS 

Montpellier 

SUN 16 th JAN 

RDS ARENA 

KO 1PM 

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10 

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 

PROGRAMME CREDITS 

Editorial Team: Marcus Ó Buachalla, 

Ryan Corry & Paul Cahill 

Advertising: Gary Nolan 

Design: Julian Tredinnick, 

Ignition Sports Media 

Photography: Sportsfile 

Chief Steward: Sword Security 

Ambulance: St. John’s Ambulance 

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Event Control & Safety Services: 

Eamonn O’Boyle & Associates 

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www.leinsterrugby.ie | 3

EPCR 

WELCOME 

MESSAGE 

A warm welcome 

to this Heineken 

Champions Cup 

pool stage 

match as we 

anticipate 

once again 

elite clubs and 

top players 

producing the 

brilliance 

and drama 

which have for 

long been the 

trademarks 

of our truly 

world-class 

tournament. 

The two fixtures this month will 

determine the eight clubs in each 

pool which will qualify for the 

knockout stage and continue on 

the road to the Marseille finals 

weekend, so the stakes are high. 

We can then look forward to an 

innovative Round of 16 with home and 

away legs, followed by traditional 

quarter-finals and semi-finals which will 

guarantee a further series of compelling 

matches culminating in the 2022 

showpiece final at the Stade Vélodrome 

on Saturday, 28 May. 

In addition, the three clubs ranked 

ninth to 11th in each pool will have the 

opportunity to compete for silverware by 

qualifying for the knockout stage of the 

EPCR Challenge Cup. 

We are delighted to be joined on this 

season’s journey to Marseille by our 

long-standing title partner, Heineken, as 

well as by our newest official partner, 

DHL, who are providing customised 

logistics solutions for both the Heineken 

Champions Cup and the EPCR Challenge 

Cup, and we would also like to thank 

Tissot, the Financial Times, Gilbert and 

Kappa for their continuing support. 

We acknowledge the superb coverage 

provided by our TV partners BT Sport, 

beIN SPORTS, France Télévisions, 

Channel 4, Virgin Media, S4C and Sky 

Italia whose output is complemented 

by the wide range of linear and OTT 

platforms which broadcast the Heineken 

Champions Cup globally. 

We recognise that these are particularly 

challenging times for players, club staff 

and supporters, however, rest assured 

that we are continuing to work with the 

leagues and unions so that as many 

fixtures as possible can be played safely. 

We remain optimistic that this season’s 

tournament will be completed 

successfully, and on behalf of all at EPCR, 

enjoy the match and best wishes to you, 

the fans, as well as to your club’s players 

and staff for what promises to be a 

compelling conclusion to the pool stage. 

Yours in rugby, 

Dominic McKay, 

EPCR Chairman (interim)

PRESIDENT, LEINSTER RUGBY 2020/22 

john walsh 

We welcome 


Herault to the 

RDS Arena for our 

third European 

fixture of the 

2021/22 season 

and we wish all 

involved a safe 

journey. 

As we seek a fifth gold star we 

once again encounter Montpellier 

for the second season in a row. 

welcome 

C 

M 

Y 

CM 

MY 

CY 

CMY 

K 

Sadly, Leinster fans have been unable 

to visit and give their side support and 

to enjoy the Montpellier experience for 

these past two Heineken Champions Cup 

seasons due to Covid-19. 

In particular we extend a warm welcome 

to visiting Club President Mohed Altrad, 

Coach Philippe Saint-Andre and the team 

captained by French international flanker 

Guilhem Guirado. 

Philippe Saint-Andre was a wing wizard 

of French rugby and was capped 69 

times and scored 32 tries. Any young 

aspiring back is advised to go on 

YouTube and take a look at ‘the try 

from the end of the world’ to view his 

mesmerizing skill as a player. He has 

also successfully coached France and 

this Montpellier side are enjoying an 

excellent TOP14 domestic season.

Every great match 

starts with 0.0

With just 13 games played they are well 

in contention for honours in fourth place 

having won eight games and drawing 

one to date. All of their losses have been 

by the tightest of margins and their four 

losing bonus points attest to this fact. 

21 January 2012: Jamie 

Heaslip is tackled by Vassili 

Bost, left, and Fulgence 

Ouedraogo of Montpellier. 

The club have enjoyed European success 

previously in winning the 2016 European 

Challenge Cup (defeating Harlequins) 

and the 2021 European Challenge 

Cup (defeating Leicester) as well as 

the European Shield. In addition they 

have finished runner up in the TOP14 to 

Castres in 2018 as well as in 2011 to 

Stade Toulouse. Against this background 

they will be formidable opposition for 

today’s encounter but we should take 

confidence that our record against them 

in the RDS is strong. 

This important European Cup fixture 

will mark the 70th game that we have 

played against French-based sides 

since the competition commenced in 

1995/96. During that period Leinster 

have encountered 16 French clubs 

with victories over 13 of them and 

have recorded 42 wins, two draws 

and 25 defeats. This fixture will also 

mark Leinster’s 183rd European Cup 

fixture that has resulted in 124 victories, 

five draws and 53 losses but more 

importantly with a total of four stars 

that proudly emblazon our shirt and a 

Challenge Cup victory also secured. 

Our fixture today against Montpellier will 

be the eighth in our European encounters 

with Montpellier and they are a club 

that have featured prominently on our 

journeys to two cup victories and four 

semi-final appearances. From our seven 

previous fixtures Leinster’s record has 

resulted in five victories, a draw and a 

defeat. 

Famously we played them on our way 

to an unbeaten European campaign in 

2017/18. A bonus try victory by 24-17 

in the RDS was followed by 23-14 in 

the GGL Altrad stadium which led us to 

winning the Heineken Champions Cup 

final later that season against Racing 

92 15-12 in the San Mames Stadium in 

Bilbao. 

Our most recent fixture with Montpellier 

was in December 2020 when Leinster 

won away 35-14 and in the process 

scored five tries. 

I also wish to acknowledge and thank the 

Board of Management of IT Carlow for 

generously providing their outstanding 

facilities to Leinster Rugby to stage the 

Bank of Ireland Leinster Girls Cup Finals. 

The day’s event was an outstanding 

success for all involved and it was 

great to be in attendance to witness the 

continued development of Girls and 

Women’s rugby in Leinster. A special 

word of thanks to all who made the finals 

day a success and to IRFU President Des 

Kavanagh for his attendance and valued 

support. 

Congratulations to Port Dara in winning 

the 18s Cup by a 22-19 score line over 

Wicklow. The 18s Plate Final was won by 

an impressive Navan side over a gallant 

Dundalk team. 

The U-16 Plate Final also went to Navan 

who overcame Enniscorthy while the 

U-16 Cup Final was won by Wicklow in 

a very tight final by a 26-20 score line 

from Naas. 

The U-14 Cup was won by a talented 

Mullingar side who overcame a never 

say die side in Sharks while the U-14 

Plate Final was decided on the First Try 

Rule with Arklow gaining victory over 

Dundalk following a full-time score of 

27-all. 

I hope you all enjoy the game and 

continue to play your part in keeping 

each other and us all safe and continue 

to wear your face masks and observe all 

he guidelines that are in place. 

On behalf of Leinster Rugby, I wish all 

involved a happy, healthy and enjoyable 

rugby season. 

“Keep The Faith” as the future belongs 

to those who believe in their dreams 

(Eleanor Roosevelt) 

John Walsh 

President Leinster Rugby 

2020-2022 

8 | www.leinsterrugby.ie


Leo Cullen 

head Coach Welcome 

Good 

afternoon 

and welcome 

back to a 

Leinster 

Rugby match 

at long 

last! 

Welcome in particular to Philippe 

Saint-Andre and his Montpellier 

team, to what should be the 

‘return’ fixture here in Dublin – 

we were all set to travel to the 

south of France in December but 

unfortunately the EPCR medical 

advisory group deemed that we 

were unable to play. 

That decision was really disappointing 

for both sets of supporters, who prefer 

to see rugby matches decided on the 

pitch rather than in the boardroom, and 

it was hugely frustrating for us as we had 

been (and continue to be) so rigorous in 

complying with all Covid-19 protocols. 

Our group may have been depleted, but 

we were well and truly up for that game. 

We’re still hopeful that the decision taken 

by EPCR can be looked at again. 

We’re here to play, to entertain, to attract 

new audiences to the game of rugby, 

and for the sake of a competition that we 

all love dearly, we hope common sense 

may yet prevail. 

In any case, with so little rugby played 

over the Christmas period, we have tried 

to create training scenarios that replicate 

match situations and the players have 

applied themselves fantastically. 

That said, we are all looking forward 

to seeing the players in action today 

as nothing beats the real thing! 

Montpellier have been going 

very well in the TOP14 lately, so 

we know today will be a big 

challenge. 

As we return to action, a 

huge thanks to all our 

sponsors, especially 

Bank of Ireland, for 

your continued support 

and engagement. If there’s a positive to 

be taken from having so many matches 

postponed over Christmas, it’s that we’ll 

have more fixtures to look forward to 

during the Guinness Six Nations window 

and will hopefully see more of you all. 

Every cloud! 

To the 5,000 supporters who are here 

today, we’re thrilled to have you and 

hope you make plenty of noise. 

Your support means everything to us and 

we’re already looking forward to the day 

– hopefully in the near future – when we 

will have a packed-out RDS with all the 

colour and noise that inspires the team. 

Congratulations to Tania Rosser on 

her recent appointment to the Leinster 

Rugby Women’s head coach role. Tania 

has many years’ experience in Leinster 

colours and with Ireland as a player and 

has been adding to her coaching CV 

since her retirement. 

While there is no doubt that she will 

target the Interpro Series of games, like 

all of us involved with and passionate 

about the game in Leinster, she will also 

look to inspire the next generation of 

players as we as an organisation look 

to grow the participation levels for girls 

and boys. 

I wish her well. 

Finally, belatedly, a Happy New Year 

to everyone! We’ve all been through so 

much, but hopefully 2022 will be the 

year we finally get back to normal. 

Stay safe and enjoy the game. 

Leo 


Joann 

Hosey 

PROVINCIAL DIRECTOR 

BANK OF IRELAND DUBLIN 

Happy new year to everyone in 

attendance today at the RDS Arena. 

In adherence with the latest 

round of public health restrictions, 

we can only welcome 5,000 of 

you for Montpellier’s visit, but 

nevertheless it is brilliant to be 

able to start the New Year with 

a big European game at the RDS 

Arena. 

The last few weeks have been extremely 

challenging for everyone in society and 

indeed Leinster Rugby was faced with 

challenges of its own, with a number of 

players and coaches falling ill. It goes 

without saying that we hope everyone 

is feeling better now and that the weeks 

ahead provide the coaches and players 

with a cleaner bill of health as the squad 

gets back into action. 

After nearly a month without any 

competitive action today’s game is 

very welcome. The visit of a powerful 

Montpellier side certainly focuses the 

mind on the major task at hand. No 

doubt Leo Cullen and his players will be 

steeling themselves to take on a team 

performing brilliantly in the TOP14 so far 

this season. 

And once today’s game is complete the 

focus will shift to the trip to Bath next 

weekend and the conclusion of this 

season’s European Champions Cup pool 

stages. What happens beyond that still 

remains to be seen, with decisions still 

to be taken off the pitch, but we wish 

everyone involved with Leinster Rugby 

the very best of luck in their games over 

the coming two weekends. 

The domestic rugby programme has also 

fallen foul of Covid-19 with the Bank 

of Ireland Leinster Rugby Schools ties 

pushed back by a fortnight, and similar 

schedule amendments in the club game 

too. Everyone wants to come through 

this tough period safe and well, and 

when the games do start back at the 

end of January, we wish all the players, 

teachers, Gamesmasters, parents and 

students the very best of luck as they go 

in search of victory. 

Finally, the very best of luck to Tania 

Rosser on her appointment as the new 

Leinster Rugby Women’s head coach. 

She has a wealth of experience and 

knowledge from her 10 years playing 

with Leinster and playing in three Rugby 

World Cups with Ireland, and I know 

she will excel in her new role and the 

challenge that lies ahead in winning 

back the interprovincial tophy! 

Enjoy the big game today and a very 

happy new year from us all in Bank of 

Ireland. 

JH 



Jimmy 

O’Brien 

the big interview 

BY RYAN CORRY 

Leinster Rugby’s 

Jimmy O’Brien found 

himself in uncharted 

territory this 

Christmas - not 

having to focus his 

attention on rugby 

fixtures. Now, he’s 

hungry to get back 

into the action. 

Saturday, 11 

December: The 

Leinster Rugby team 

take in a lap of Aviva 

Stadium, it’s close to 

5.30pm in the evening 

and the crowd is 

slowly starting to 

filter towards the 

exits. 


They’ve just beaten Bath Rugby 

45-20 in front of over 25,000 

people and it looks like the 

perfect start to what is generally 

considered an important window 

in every season. 

After a disappointing home defeat to 

Ulster at the end of November, wins over 

Connacht and now Bath have steadied 

the ship once more for the province. 

Next up is Montpellier, followed by 

back-to-back interprovincials on the road, 

first in Thomond Park and then Kingspan 

Stadium. 

Or so we thought… 

Despite naming a 23-man squad in 

line with all Covid protocols to go and 

take on Montpellier, the EPCR medical 

advisory committee deemed it would 

be unsafe for the team to travel and the 

decision was made to award a 28-0, fivepoint 

victory to the French club. 

On top of that, the St Stephen’s day clash 

with Munster was postponed before the 

New Year’s Day trip to Belfast fell by the 

wayside. 


With South African teams unable to 

travel, the early January meeting with 

Emirates Lions at the RDS Arena had 

already been rescheduled for late in 

February. 

Suddenly, this ‘defining period’ for the 

season had been reduced to rubble and 

there would be no action throughout 

Christmas – a rare five-week mid-season 

break from games for the squad. 

“A quiet one,” is how Jimmy O’Brien 

describes that spell over Christmas. 

“It was good but obviously a quiet one 

for most people with families or friends 

isolating. 

“I only really saw my immediate family 

so you were trying to avoid being a close 

contact. But, it was good to actually have 

a break over Christmas for once. 

“We used to do the Christmas day swim 

but that’s been canned now. We’d drive 

from Kildare up to the 40-foot for that 

but not anymore. It was actually the first 

Christmas since my brother moved so 

we weren’t all at home which was a bit 

strange. 

Everyone’s very excited about 

actually having a game again. 

We rarely go this long without 

a game mid-season so we’re all 

just looking to get back out 

there again. 

“A couple of the lads I live with were 

close contacts so I had actually moved 

home for about two or three weeks 

before to try and avoid becoming one 

as well. 

“I was driving up every morning and 

it made the day a little bit longer but I 

got used to it, the drive is only about 

40 minutes. We’re in early and with the 

Christmas break, there was no traffic. It 

wasn’t too bad at all.” 

After a stop-start beginning to his season, 

just three appearances so far for Leinster 

Rugby, pale in comparison to the eight 

he had racked up by the turn of the year 

last time around, the back was looking 

forward to refreshing his desire for a 

place in the squad following a couple of 

spells on the sidelines. 

Instead, he’s had to wait until today for a 

chance to re-stake that claim for a jersey 

with a very determined squad coming 

back from a lengthy and unforeseen 

lay-off. 

“The coaches were really good at just 

turning the page after each game that 

was cancelled. We kept training when we 

could and just looked to the next game. 

It was difficult to know what was going to 

happen but that’s just the way it is at the 

moment,” O’Brien explains. 

“It (re-fixtures) is giving an opportunity to 

other lads now who might not have had 

the chance to play over Christmas. If the 

games are played during the Six Nations, 

then you could have lads playing who 

might not have in the original fixture. 

Everyone has stayed ready in training. 


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“Training is definitely much fuller than it was 

and everyone is just hungry for a game. I 

think it was December 11 the last time we 

got to play so we’re all raring to go. 

“Everyone’s very excited about actually 

having a game again. We rarely go this 

long without a game mid-season so we’re 

all just looking to get back out there again.” 

From a personal point of view, the 

importance that today’s visit of Montpellier 

holds is elevated due to the nature of his 

season so far. 

‘Frustrating’ is the word he uses, it’s been a 

tough campaign for O’Brien to really get 

going with some false starts curtailed by 

injury. 

“It has been frustrating to be honest 

because I haven’t played as much as I 

would have wanted to. I played against 

Zebre at the start of the year and then got a 

knock so I missed a few weeks. 

“I was back in then and suddenly, out of the 

blue, I get Covid and have to miss another 

couple of weeks. Hopefully now that I’m 

back playing again, I can string a few 

games back-to-back and show a bit of form. 

“I really wanted to build on last year. It 

ended a bit disappointingly; I got an injury 

to the hammer and that ruled me out of the 

last few weeks but I felt it had gone well up 

until then. But I am happy to be back now, 

so hopefully I can push on for the rest of this 

season.” 

That starts today. O’Brien will line out on 

the wing, accompanied by Jordan Larmour 

and Hugo Keenan in the back three. 

Having spent a large part of last season 

in either of the 13 or 15 shirts, even a 

stint at 10, this is another example of the 

well-documented versatility that O’Brien 

possesses. 

That level of versatility can sometimes be 

viewed as a danger when you can often be 

filling into any position that could be made 

vulnerable by injuries or suspension rather 

than nailing down a berth for yourself. 

Luckily, for the Eadestown man, he never 

had to look far for a good example of why 

his flexibility is something to be considered 

an advantage rather than a hindrance. 

Former Leinster player, Isa Nacewa, 

donned every jersey from 9-15 at one 


point or another during his time with the 

province and O’Brien points out that 

there’s a lot of inspiration to be taken 

from that. 

“I have thought about this a lot because 

I’ve obviously been moved around a lot 

during my time with Leinster. I think I’ve 

played everywhere across the backline 

in my time here except for at nine,” he 

states. 

“I think about other guys who have been 

similar. The best example is Isa, when he 

first got here he was playing between 

nine and 10, later he would have been 

on the wing or at full-back and in his last 

season, he played a lot at 12 for us. 

“I do think about it a lot and I have to 

view it as a positive that I can be used in 

so many positions. It can be hard to nail 

one down if you’re covering another but 

it can open some windows too. 

“I didn’t have too much experience on 

the wing before coming into Leinster 

but have found myself out there a few 

times since. I suppose if I was to choose, 

full-back or 13 are where I would have 

always been most comfortable. 

“The thing being out on the wing is that 

you aren’t as involved sometimes while I 

feel like I can have an advantage being 

left-footed if we are using a right-footed 

out-half on the day. 

“The big thing is I’m always happy once 

I’m playing. As you say, the competition 

is so strong in there that once you’re in a 

team, you’re just delighted to be named. 

It doesn’t matter where it is that you’re 

playing,” he adds. 

As we get ready to face the French 

club today, the last meeting with them, 

in December 2020, will hold fond 

memories for O’Brien. 

A European debut and a try in a 

bonus-point win in the south of 

France. 

While it went Leinster’s way that day, 

he’s still expecting a battle on their 

hands this afternoon at the RDS. 


I think in 

European games, 

you notice 

the speed and 

physicality with 

some of the top 

French teams and 

how they play. 

But, the boys in blue lie in wait. 

O’Brien and Co have been gearing 

up for this with some behind-closeddoors 

games and he says intensity and 

concentration are as high as he has seen. 

“This is huge now for us. With the last 

game decided as a 28-0, it puts us on the 

backfoot a small bit. We’re really looking 

forward to it though and hopefully we 

can get back those five points today. 

“We play at a high standard in the URC 

so I think it prepares us well for the step 

up to this competition. You notice it in 

training during a Champions Cup week, 

everyone is hyper-focused. 

“I think in European games, you notice 

the speed and physicality with some of 

the top French teams and how they play. 

And it’s up to us then to match that. 

“Montpellier are really strong up front, 

they have some big lads. We saw it 

last year when we went over there how 

strong they are and what they can do but 

I’ve no doubt that our pack will be able 

to match them for the 80 minutes. 

“They’ve some good backs then as well 

so they’ll keep us on our toes.” 

Of course, a Sunday afternoon 1pm kickoff 

time is an unfamiliar one, a different 

proposition to the Friday or Saturday 

evenings with the week leading into the 

game tailored to suit such a time. 

This week has been different, but not too 

much, some small personal changes to 

sleep and nutrition is all it takes to be 

ready to go seven hours earlier than 

usual. 

“There are some small adjustments that 

need to be made. We might change 

what we do on particular days during the 

week and the day before but otherwise 

it’s only small things,” O’Brien says. 

“I might go to bed earlier on the 

Saturday night than usual and then 

change what and when I eat on Sunday 

compared to a more regular kick-off 

time.” 

Beyond today, the first hope is to get 

some games together for the province 

once more. 

This run out will be his fourth in the 

Heineken Champions Cup, two last 

season as well as an appearance from 

the bench against Bath just two weeks on 

from his 25th birthday. 

After that, who knows what could happen 

for the Newbridge College past pupil. 

His early performances last season 

had talks of an Ireland call-up doing 

the rounds but, unfortunately, it did not 

materialise. 

The hope still remains but O’Brien just 

wants to look after what’s in his control 

and that starts with performing for his 

province on a domestic and European 

stage. 

Off the field, he’s recently finished a 

degree in Financial Maths at UCD 

and was able to get some downtime in 

between graduation and the New Year, 

no longer having to put the head in the 

books. 

Now though, he’s also keen to start 

looking at life after rugby. 

“I took a couple of months away from 

it after graduating in the run-up to 

Christmas but now I’ll be looking at 

maybe getting into a financial company 

for a day a week or as often as I can. 

“When my time playing rugby does come 

to an end, you have to look ahead to that 

and not finish up with no plan of anything 

to do for the rest of your life.” 

Life after rugby is hopefully many years 

down the line for O’Brien and who knows 

what might come between now and then. 

But first, Montpellier. 


Action 

replay 45 20 

LEINSTER RUGBY: 

Hugo Keenan; Jordan Larmour, Garry 

Ringrose (Jimmy O’Brien 59), Ciarán 

Frawley, James Lowe; Ross Byrne 

(Tommy O’Brien 59), Jamison Gibson- 

Park (Luke McGrath 53); Andrew Porter 

(Cian Healy 48), Rónan Kelleher (Dan 

Sheehan 48), Tadhg Furlong (Michael 

Ala’alatoa 48); Ross Molony (Devin 

Toner 59), Ryan Baird; Rhys Ruddock, 

Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (Max 

Deegan 69). 

SCORERS: 

Tries: Jamison Gibson-Park (2), Tadhg 

Furlong, James Lowe, Hugo Keenan, 

Rónan Kelleher, Josh van der Flier. 

Cons: Ross Byrne (5). 

SATURDAY, 11 DECEMBER 

AVIVA STADIUM 

ATTENDANCE: 25,403 

HEINEKEN CHAMPIONS CUP 

BATH RUGBY: 

Tom de Glanville (Tom Prydie 67); 

Semesa Rokoduguni, Will Butt, Max 

Ojomoh, William Muir (Gabriel Hamer- 

Webb 70); Orlando Bailey, Ben Spencer 

(Joe Simpson 67); Lewis Boyce (Arthur 

Cordwell 67), Jacques du Toit, Will 

Stuart (D’Arcy Rae 59); Josh McNally 

(Will Spencer 51), Charlie Ewels; Tom 

Ellis, Richard de Carpentier, Josh Bayliss 

(Ewan Richards 59). 

SCORERS: 

Tries: Jacques du Toit, 

Gabriel Hamer-Webb. 

Cons: Orlando Bailey (2). 

Pens: Orlando Bailey (2). 


It was great to 

open with a win. 

We played lots of 

good stuff early 

in the game and 

it was great to 

have a big crowd 

there too. 

Head coach Leo Cullen 


2022 Bank of Ireland Paul 

Flood and Paul Cusack Cup 

First Round Draw 

The draw for the 2022 Bank 

of Ireland Paul Flood and Paul 

Cusack Cup competitions took 

place in December with 28 teams 

from around the province taking 

part in this season’s competition. 

Bank of Ireland Paul Flood Cup 

First Round Draw 

Old Belvedere J1 v Tullamore 

Railway Union J1 v DCU 

Current holders of the Paul Flood 

Cup, Blackrock College RFC welcome 

Edenderry RFC in the first round. 

Tullamore RFC, holders of the Paul Flood 

Plate, will travel to Dublin to face Old 

Belvedere RFC. 

In the Paul Cusack competition, MU 

Barnhall RFC, holders of the Paul Cusack 

Cup, will welcome Arklow RFC in the first 

round with Plate holders, Longford RFC, 

welcoming Portlaoise RFC. 

Eugene Noble, Women’s Committee 

Chairperson said: “In these very 

challenging times, it is wonderful to see 

28 teams participating in the Paul Flood 

and Paul Cusack Cup competitions. I wish 

all the clubs good luck in their campaigns 

and look forward to the Bank of Ireland 

Paul Flood and Paul Cusack finals day in 

Energia Park.” 

All first-round ties are scheduled to be 

played on Sunday, 20 March, 2022 with 

finals to be played in Energia Park. 

Port Dara Falcons v CYM 

Blackrock College RFC J1 v 

Edenderry 

Mullingar RFC v Clontarf 

Gorey v Clondalkin 

Tullow v Balbriggan 

Dublin University v MU Barnhall 

Bank of Ireland Paul Cusack Cup 

First Round Draw: 

South East Lions v Garda/CYM 

Longford v Portlaoise 

Wanderers v Naas 

MU Barnhall J1 v Arklow 

Byes for Greystones, Wicklow J1, 

Athy and New Ross 

PAUL FLOOD 

Paul was a stalwart of St Mary’s College 

rugby since his interest was piqued during 

his school days. This fascination with 

rugby was carried through his secondary 

school years in Templeogue College 

where he was a member of the team 

which reached the Senior Schools Cup 

semi-final in 1973. 

On leaving school he joined St Mary’s 

College RFC where he drew a legacy 

of rugby that spanned 35 years of 

dedication to the club. Paul was a very 

accomplished winger for a career 

lasting 33 years before hanging up his 

boots and lending his experience in the 

coaching of the clubs teams. 

Paul played for the first team on many 

occasions and competed for his place 

against international greats such as Tom 

Grace, Terry Kennedy and Jimmy Bowen. 

He was a prolific try-scorer at all levels 

and was almost unstoppable when he 


had the line in his sights, a consummate 

finisher. A key member of many cup and 

league-winning teams playing well into 

his 40s, Paul’s love for rugby showed 

no bounds and he managed to include 

refereeing, coaching and tag rugby 

organising as part of his routine while still 

continuing with his playing exploits. He 

was always only a phone call away from 

participating in any capacity. 

He took a keen interest in the 

development of women’s rugby in St 

Mary’s by helping out in whatever 

manner he could before assuming the 

mantle of coach when the call came. 

He fulfilled that role with the same 

enthusiasm he put into every other aspect 

of his rugby career and he was a strong 

advocate and promoter in improving the 

facilities, administration and coaching/ 

training support for the women’s game. 

He was dedicated to his squad and 

believed in trying to ensure that all 

members got their share of ‘game time’. 

Under his guidance St Mary’s women’s 

team made tremendous strides reaching 

the All-Ireland Women’s League Division 

2 semi-final in the year of his passing, 

2008, and going on from that to achieve 

success in the same competition the 

following year. 

Paul also guided the team to the 2008 

All-Ireland Bowl Final against UL and 

although defeated, Mary’s put up a 

storming performance against the AIL 

champions. Paul was immensely proud 

of the success and achievement of the 

team and the memories of the day and 

celebrations with Paul will be forever 

cherished by the women’s team. 

He was highly respected by opposing 

teams, his passion for the game still 

remains as an inspiration to those 

members of the squad who served under 

him. They and the club will forever be 

grateful to Paul for his input. 

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 


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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? 

A WISHBONE 

HERB 

CHAIN LIME 

ELM 

how did you do? 

IN A BLUR? 

HARRY BYRNE 

ANAGRAMS 

ROBBIE HENSHAW 

MICHAEL MILNE 

ZOOMED IN! 

DAN SHEEHAN 

zoomed in! 

WHo is this leinster 

player having an 

extreme close-up? 


AJ Products provides unique 

solutions for office, 

warehouse and 

environment 

www.ajproducts.ie

AZTO 

with 

Rónan Kelleher 

A – Action: If you could be a superhero, 

which would you be? 

Iron Man 

B – Boyhood: Who was your favourite 

sporting idol growing up? 

Roy Keane 

C – Childhood: What is your favourite 

childhood memory? 

Winning my first rugby blitz when I 

was 11. 

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

meal? 

Spaghetti Bolognese 

E – Education: What was your favourite 

subject in school? 

Geography 

F – Film buff: What’s your favourite film? 

The Lion King 

G – Groove: Who is the best dancer in 

the squad? 

Caelan Doris. His Party piece is doing 

the Worm! 

H – Holiday: What’s your favourite 

holiday destination? 

Mykonos 

I – Inside: Who is the worst to sit beside 

in the dressing room? 

Scott Penny. Very messy neighbour! 

J – Joker: Who is the funniest in the 

squad? 

Josh Murphy. Deadpan sense of 

humour! 

K – Kick-off: What’s your favourite time 

of the day to play a match? 

3pm 

L – Languages: How many languages 

can you speak? 

Four 

M – Music: Your favourite artist and 

song right now? 

Versatile - Prefontaine 

N – Number: Do you have a lucky 

number? 

No 


O – Others: What’s your favourite 

sport outside of rugby? 

Golf 

P – Pal: Who is your best mate in 

the squad? 

Caelan Doris 

Q – Quirky: Who has the most 

interesting fashion sense? 

Caelan Doris. Wore a mesh tank 

top in today. Was wild. 

R – Red Carpet: Who is the most 

famous contact in your phone? 

Ohfadabee 

S – Superstitions: Do you have any 

matchday routines? 

Listen to Flobots - Handlebars 

before heading out to warm-up! 

T – Trim: What’s the worst haircut 

you’ve ever had? 

Shaved head with a rat-tail 

mullet thing when I was 13. At 

the time it was key. Hindsight, 

probbaly too much. 

U: Under pressure: Who in the 

squad would be the best in a bad 

situation? 

Michael Milne. Thrives under 

pressure! 

V – Verified: How often do you use 

social media? 

Not too often! 

W – Worst fear: What are 

you most scared of? 

Heights 

X – X-ray: Have you ever 

broken any bones? 

Yes 

Y – Youth: Where did you 

grow up? 

Sandymount 

Z – Zoo: What’s your 

favourite animal? 

Friesian Cows 


Did you 

know? 

• Each of the seven 

previous meetings 

between Montpellier 

and Leinster have 

come in the pool 

stage of the Heineken 

Champions Cup, with 

the Irish province 

winning five of 

those seven matches 

(drawing one and 

losing one, excluding 

cancelled fixtures), 

including each of 

their three home 

games. 

• Leinster have 

recorded an average 

ruck speed of 2.3 

seconds in the 

Heineken Champions 

Cup this season, the 

quickest of any club; 

Montpellier (4.1) 

are one of six sides 

with an average speed 

of more than four 

seconds per ruck. 

• Montpellier are 

the only side with a 

100% lineout success 

rate in the Heineken 

Champions Cup this 

season, having won 

each of their eight 

lineouts; Leinster 

have the joint third 

best rate (94%, level 

with Connacht and 

Sale Sharks). 

COMPARISON 

LAST 3 MEETINGS 

28 16/12/2021 MONTPELLIER HÉRAULT RUGBY VS LEINSTER RUGBY 0 

14 12/12/2020 MONTPELLIER VS LEINSTER RUGBY 35 

14 20/01/2018 MONTPELLIER VS LEINSTER RUGBY 23 

head-to-head record: 

Played 8, Leinster won 5, montpellier won 2, draws 1 

PLAYED 

181 

(94 home, 87 away) 

WINS 

123 


LOSSES 

53 


DRAWS 

5 


AVERAGE POINTS 

26 

BIGGEST WIN 

92 - 17 

HEAVIEST DEFEAT 

10 - 51 

PLAYED 

53 


WINS 

20 


LOSSES 

31 


DRAWS 

2 


AVERAGE POINTS 

20 

BIGGEST WIN 

45 - 8 

HEAVIEST DEFEAT 

3 - 57 


leinster 

squad 


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 

6 

CAPS 

Adam Byrne #1213 

WING / FULL BACK 

DOB: 10/04/1994 

HEIGHT: 1.91m 


1 

CAP 

Ed Byrne #1222 

6 

CAPS 

Harry Byrne #1280 

2 

CAPS 

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 

22 

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 

12 

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 

52 

CAPS 

13 

CAPS 

Jamison Gibson-Park #1247 

SCRUM HALF 

DOB: 23/02/1992 

HEIGHT: 1.75m 

WEIGHT: 80kg 

12 

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 


112 

CAPS 

2 

CAPS 

Robbie Henshaw #1251 

53 

CAPS 

9 

CAPS 

Dave Kearney #1158 

19 

CAPS 

Hugo Keenan #1253 

16 

CAPS 

Ronan Kelleher #1277 

16 

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 

9 

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 

40 

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 

37 

CAPS 

Rhys Ruddock #1167 

27 

CAPS 

James Ryan #1259 

40 

CAPS 

Johnny Sexton #1127 

101 

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 


2 

CAPS 

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 

35 

CAPS 

Coaching 

Staff 


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 


looking after you always 

The Official Health 

and Wellbeing 

Partner to 

Leinster Rugby 

Always a beat ahead 

layahealthcare.ie

Your best support every season 

Managed IT Services IT Disaster Recovery 

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Delivering bespoke IT services from concept, delivery and support 

support@lantech.ie 

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TAG RUGBY 

BROADENING OUR COMMUNITY, 

As a club, 

the Emerald 

Warriors 

pride 

themselves 

on being an 

inclusive 

space for 

members and 

allies of 

the LGBTQ+ 

community 

in the 

participation 

of sport. 

They are passionate believers 

that diversity and inclusion 

makes a club a richer place. In 

early summer 2021, the Emerald 

Warriors launched a tag rugby 

offering called ‘Naoise’ meaning 

‘young warrior’. 

The introduction of this tag programme 

has had far reaching benefits for the club 

which we are still reaping as we look 

towards 2022. 

ENRICHING OUR CLUB 

From May 2021, the club began hosting 

Friday evening ‘Naoise’ tag sessions 

at TU Dublin’s Grangegorman campus 

which were open to people of any ability, 

experience level, sexuality or gender who 

were interested in playing tag rugby. 

The uptake and demand among the 

LGBTQ+ community was fantastic and 

made for a very special series of rugbyfilled 

Friday evenings during the summer 

at a time when we were emerging out of 

a long lockdown. 

Along with the obvious social and both 

physical and mental health benefits 

the Friday evening sessions offered a 

first introduction to rugby for many of 

the participants who up until this point 

had never considered playing any sort 

of rugby or had felt barriers to their 

participation because of their ability or 

sexuality. 

This first introduction fuelled a real 

appetite for tag amongst participants so 

much that the club extended their Friday 

sessions into August while also organising 

Emerald Warrior teams to participate in 

competitive tag leagues. 

During this period the club launched a 

tag membership option which allowed 

new tag participants to become full 

members of the Emerald Warriors club. 

The benefits that this new membership 

have brought to the club have been 

immeasurable both from the point of view 

of diversity and membership levels. 

a massive and welcome boost to their 

membership numbers which now stand 

at circa 190 with approximately 25 per 

cent being ‘Naoise’ tag members. 

This increased membership is also a 

more diverse and broader membership 

meaning that for the first time in Warriors’ 

history in June women’s players 

represented the club in navy and green 

club jerseys competing in summer tag 

leagues. 

Many of the tag players have continued 

to represent the club through the autumn 

and winter months in competitive weekly 

tag leagues with great enthusiasm. 

From a rugby union perspective the 

‘Naoise’ tag programme has provided a 

successful pathway to full contact rugby 

for some of the its participants with some 

players who joined as tag members 

progressing to represent the club in the 

Leinster Metro League this season. 

This has provided an invaluable player 

number boost to their two teams and 

is a welcome additional source of new 

players outside of our traditional yearly 

open day recruitment drive. 

In 2022, Emerald Warriors hope to 

further increase their membership 

numbers and diversity to help ensure the 

long-term viability of the club for future 

generations to watch, play and enjoy 

rugby in its various forms in an inclusive 

and safe environment. 

At a time when many clubs are struggling 

to field teams ‘Naoise’ has provided 

Tag rugby will undoubtedly be a key 

pillar in achieving this goal. 


Proudly Supporting 

Leinster Rugby 

Offices in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Mullingar 

Tel: +353 (0)1 266 6000 

Fax: +353 (0)1 266 6620 

Web: aon.com/Ireland 

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Services and Unity Insurances is a private company limited by shares and is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

Rest in Peace 

BY JOHN WALSH 

The wider 

Leinster 

Rugby 

family lost 

two fine 

men in the 

last few 

weeks and 

we would 

all like to 

take this 

opportunity 

of passing 

on our best 

wishes to 

the Sherwin 

and the 

Hickie 

families on 

their loss. 

JIM SHERWIN 

THE VOICE OF IRISH RUGBY 

On behalf of the Leinster Rugby family we extend our sincere 

condolences to the extended members of Jim’s family on their 

sad loss. 

A consummate and multi-talented professional of his craft as a sports 

commentator he brought enrichment and joy into our sport and lives during 

his years with RTÉ. 

He introduced new audiences and generations to share our love and 

passion for the game of rugby as a commentator and he was also 

involved with Video on the Net, pioneers of the behind the scenes footage 

associated with Irish and Leinster Rugby. 

He will be forever remembered with affection and gratitude as the voice 

of Irish Rugby and our thoughts are with Jim’s wife Anne and his children, 

James, Ian, John and Cliona, as well as his grandchildren and extended 

family and friends. 

DENIS J. HICKIE 

LEINSTER, ST MARY’S COLLEGE, IRELAND 

It was with great sadness that Leinster Rugby learnt of 

the passing of Denis J. Hickie and we extend our heartfelt 

sympathies to the members of his family and his many 

friends. 

Denis contributed so much to the success of his club St Mary’s College, 

Leinster Rugby and Ireland during his playing career as the No 8 played 

the game with a committed passion that drew admiration from all. 

Denis was capped 30 times by Leinster and on six occasions by Ireland. 

The Hickie family are of course synonymous with the St Mary’s College 

club and Leinster Rugby as Denis’ brother Tony played nine times for 

Leinster including versus Australia, while Denis’ son Gavin also played for 

Leinster (43 appearances) and his nephew Denis made 126 appearances 

for Leinster as well as scoring 29 tries in 62 test appearances for Ireland. 

But Hickie himself was the original trail blazer as in 1971, together with 

his teammate Sean Lynch, they were the first St Mary’s players ever to be 

capped for Ireland. 

May he rest in peace. 


If exceptional tries are what you like, you can 

always count on ASM Clermont Auvergne wing, 

Damian Penaud, to deliver. Fans witnessed 

some great scores in Round 1 of the Heineken 

Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup 

including Penaud’s spectacular effort against 

Ulster Rugby. 

“Great break from JJ Hanrahan to expose the 

opposition front row and beat him one-on-one, 

followed by a perfectly-timed pass to Penaud, 

who has the kick accuracy, speed and a worldclass 

finish to score a superb try,” was how BT 

Sport’s Sam Waburton described the score. 

Warburton’s verdict, combined with the public’s 

votes, determined the winner, and although 

Penaud fully deserved the accolade, it was 

a close call between his effort and Anthony 

Jelonch’s memorable try for Stade Toulousain 

against Cardiff Rugby. 

For the sixth season in a row, the Try of the 

Round activation is launched on the Monday 

after each round, and fans will also be able to 

vote for the Try of the Season immediately after 

the Finals Weekend next May. 

Cheslin Kolbe won the award for the best try 

last season, Juan Imhoff topped the poll in 

2019/20, then it was Maxime Médard in 2018/19, 

Tadhg Beirne in 2017/18, and first of all, Nick 

Abendanon back in 2016/17. 

Who will succeed all these great names of 

European club rugby? You can make the 

difference by voting for your favourite! 

EPCRUGBY.COM/TOTR

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+2 - - 0+2 - - - - - 0+14 1 5 0+14 1 5 - - - 13 - 

MICHAEL ALA'ALATOA 1301 25 SEP 21 4+3 - - 4+2 - - 0+1 - - 4+3 - - 4+2 - - 0+1 - - - WS 7 

RYAN BAIRD 1278 27 APR 19 4+3 1 5 3+3 1 5 1 - - 16+18 7 35 14+14 7 35 2+4 - - 2 IR 6 

ADAM BYRNE 1213 29 DEC 12 3 3 15 3 3 15 - - - 52+8 23 115 42+8 17 85 10 6 30 2 IR 1 

ED BYRNE 1222 9 FEB 14 2+3 1 5 2+3 1 5 - - - 21+54 11 55 21+43 10 50 0+11 1 5 3 IR 6 

HARRY BYRNE 1280 28 SEP 19 2+1 - 10 2+1 - 10 - - - 16+11 6 164 16+10 6 159 0+1 - 5 6 IR 2 

ROSS BYRNE 1236 4 SEP 15 4+3 1 43 3+3 1 33 1 - 10 74+37 7 693 61+21 3 504 13+16 4 189 7 IR 13 

THOMAS CLARK- 

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

SON 

JACK CONAN 1223 20 FEB 14 2 - - 2 - - - - - 82+25 23 115 61+15 16 80 21+10 7 35 3 IR 22 

WILL CONNORS 1264 9 FEB 18 0+1 - - 0+1 - - - - - 17+7 2 10 16+7 2 10 1 - - 11 IR 9 

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

SEAN CRONIN 1202 28 OCT 11 1+1 1 5 1+1 1 5 - - - 121+76 43 215 77+55 26 130 43+19 16 80 2 IR 72 

MAX DEEGAN 1256 3 DEC 16 1+5 2 10 1+4 2 10 0+1 - - 36+35 20 100 33+26 18 90 3+9 2 10 2 IR 1 

PETER DOOLEY 1230 31 OCT 14 0+2 - - 0+2 - - - - - 40+55 5 25 38+49 5 25 2+6 - - 10 - 

CAELAN DORIS 1268 28 APR 18 5 2 10 4 2 10 1 - - 37+8 7 35 30+6 5 25 7+2 2 10 2 IR 12 

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 6+1 - 2 5+1 - 2 1 - - 23+19 4 145 21+15 3 134 2+4 1 11 12 - 

TADHG FURLONG 1220 1 NOV 13 4 1 5 3 - - 1 1 5 77+41 9 45 45+33 3 15 32+8 6 30 1 IR 52 

JAMISON GIBSON-PARK 1247 2 SEP 16 3+2 2 10 2+2 - - 1 2 10 52+54 19 95 46+30 14 70 6+24 5 25 1 IR 12 

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 2+5 1 5 2+4 1 5 0+1 - - 158+80 28 140 92+52 14 70 64+27 13 65 4 IR 112 

ROBBIE HENSHAW 1251 8 OCT 16 2 1 5 2 1 5 - - - 58+1 12 60 27 6 30 31+1 6 30 2 IR 53 

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 6 2 10 5 1 5 1 1 5 33+3 6 30 27+3 5 25 6 1 5 1 IR 16 

RONAN KELLEHER 1277 22 FEB 19 3+2 4 20 2+2 3 15 1 1 5 23+7 13 65 16+5 11 55 7+2 2 10 1 IR 16 

JORDAN LARMOUR 1258 2 SEP 17 5 2 10 4 2 10 1 - - 57+10 21 105 35+7 16 80 22+3 5 25 2 IR 30 

DAN LEAVY 1231 31 OCT 14 3+1 - - 3+1 - - - - - 46+30 17 85 38+20 13 65 8+10 4 20 5 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 5 1 5 4 - - 1 1 5 57 35 175 38 25 125 19 10 50 1 IR 9 

NICK MCCARTHY 1241 19 DEC 15 0+4 - - 0+4 - - - - - 6+34 4 20 6+28 4 20 0+6 - - 9 - 

LUKE MCGRATH 1206 5 MAY 12 5+2 - - 5+1 - - 0+1 - - 107+51 39 195 74+44 31 155 33+7 8 40 9 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 6+1 - - 5+1 - - 1 - - 70+53 4 20 67+38 4 20 3+15 - - 9 - 

JOSH MURPHY 1261 3 NOV 17 0+1 - - 0+1 - - - - - 42+8 5 25 41+7 4 20 1+1 1 5 10 - 

JAMIE OSBORNE 1294 30 JAN 21 1+2 - - 1+2 - - - - - 3+6 1 5 3+6 1 5 - - - 4 - 

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 2+1 - - 2 - - 0+1 - - 28+10 7 37 26+9 6 32 2+1 1 5 4 - 

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

TOMMY O'BRIEN 1283 20 DEC 19 0+4 - - 0+3 - - 0+1 - - 4+9 3 15 4+8 3 15 0+1 - - 9 - 

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 2 1 5 2 1 5 - - - 25+6 17 85 25+6 17 85 - - - 2 - 

ANDREW PORTER 1246 2 SEP 16 4+1 2 10 3+1 2 10 1 - - 32+50 13 65 26+31 10 50 6+19 3 15 3 IR 40 

GARRY RINGROSE 1237 12 SEP 15 6 1 5 5 1 5 1 - - 90+2 28 148 57+1 17 93 33+1 11 55 2 IR 37 

RHYS RUDDOCK 1167 6 DEC 09 6+2 1 5 5+2 1 5 1 - - 149+47 12 60 111+33 10 50 37+12 2 10 2 IR 27 

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

JAMES RYAN 1259 2 SEP 17 3 - - 3 - - - - - 47+6 3 15 25+1 1 5 22+5 2 10 13 IR 40 

JOHNNY SEXTON 1127 27 JAN 06 2+1 - 22 2+1 - 22 - - - 150+26 26 1529 89+20 13 855 59+6 12 643 16 IR 101 

DAN SHEEHAN 1286 23 OCT 20 3+3 4 20 3+2 4 20 0+1 - - 6+13 10 50 6+12 10 50 0+1 - - 2 IR 2 

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 3+2 - - 3+1 - - 0+1 - - 209+62 4 20 143+43 4 20 63+19 - - 54 IR 70 

JAMES TRACY 1211 4 NOV 12 1+2 1 5 1+2 1 5 - - - 58+74 15 75 51+46 14 70 7+28 1 5 3 IR 6 

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

JOSH VAN DER FLIER 1228 11 OCT 14 5+1 2 10 4+1 1 5 1 1 5 80+24 13 65 49+18 8 40 31+6 5 25 1 IR 35 


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 62.50% 5 - - 5 - - - - - 58 6 57 5 1 1 82 78.05% 

ROSS BYRNE 90.00% 16 2 - 11 2 - 5 - - 212 77 1 165 52 1 47 25 - 374 77.27% 

CIARAN FRAWLEY 100.00% 1 - - 1 - - - - - 52 7 - 49 7 - 3 - - 73 80.82% 

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 83.33% 8 2 - 8 2 - - - - 242 294 11 128 171 7 107 119 4 672 79.76% 


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ig picture 

Tania Rosser – New Leinster Rugby women’s head coach 

Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile 


Photos from Sportsfile 


ENERGIA AIL 

A 30 YEAR RUGBY LEGACY 

Watch now at 

energia.ie/energia-ail-30


offical leinster 

supporters club 

First, a very Happy New Year to you all and it does indeed 

seem strange to be wishing you all this given it’s the middle 

of January and we’re only now playing our first game of 2022. 

Strange times we are indeed 

living in but here’s hoping that 

the past few weeks were just a 

mere blip and that the games 

will now continue at the high 

octane fast-paced stakes we’re all 

accustomed to. 

The thrill of live rugby is something we all 

need – both supporters and players alike 

and we for one are delighted its back. 

We must acknowledge also that 

this game is taking part under some 

restrictions given that supporter capacity 

is limited to 5,000 and the Leinster fan 

base is much more than that so there are 

of course disappointed fans who will not 

be able to cheer on from the stands when 

we take to the field. 

If you were fortunate enough to have 

received the nod to attend, then please 

do enjoy the game and make sure your 

voice is heard from the warm-up all the 

way through to the final warm-down. 

We know how much the players draw 

on the energy of the crowd, and given 

the last one they ran out in front of 

was against Bath in the Aviva back 

in December, they’ll be relishing the 

opportunity this weekend so let’s make 

sure they know we’re with them 100 per 

cent. 

The last piece we wrote was for the 

Round 2 game that didn’t take place in 

December against this weekend’s same 

opponents and that game was to be 

away in France of course and it would’ve 

been a little different to December 2020 

when, bar the team and a few select 

backroom staff, there were no supporters 

present to witness our 35-14 victory in the 

Altrad Stadium led by the Player of the 

Match that day, Rhys Ruddock. 

Fitting that Rhys was the man to get the 

2021/22 campaign off to the perfect 

start, where in our opener against Bath 

back in December, we secured victory 

in front of a crowd of just over 25,000 

supporters in the Aviva Stadium. 

Switching to the focus for this week’s 

game and while it’s evident to see that 

our hosts suffered a heavy defeat in their 

opening fixture against Exeter, that was 

a game they travelled to and Sandy Park 

is not an easy place to secure victory, 

whereas their focus will now be on 

looking to try secure a victory at home in 

front of their loyal fans. 

Their domestic season to date sees 

them currently fourth in the Top 14 table 

however they do have two games in hand 

which, if they were to win, could propel 

them to second for the time being. 

Played 13 Won 8 Lost 4 Drawn 1 

For 339 Against 239 

Bonus 6 Points 40 

For ourselves on the domestic front while 

currently second in the URC table, also 

with two games in hand, the one statistic 

to draw strength from is in Points Against. 

Over seven games the average is just 

over 12 points conceded, and while 

against Bath we gave up 20, it may well 

have been a case of first time European 

nerves for some as the season got 

underway. 

Played 7 Won 6 Lost 0 Drawn 1 

For 219 Against 85 

Bonus 5 Points 29 

Given the disruptions since our last game, 

it’s difficult to pinpoint the mind-set of the 

players but let’s hope that with the faithful 

crowd there to welcome them to the pitch, 

as well as the familiar Leinster roar from 

the stands when they need it most, we 

can get our campaign back on track. 

As always we’re thankful for the support 

we as a committee get from Leinster 

Rugby, as well as you the supporters, and 

we encourage you to continue to show 

your support for the team through our 

social media channels. 

Yours in Rugby, 

Your OLSC Committee 


OFFICIAL 

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For more details, 

click here 

www.irfucharitabletrust.com

Newly-formed CDS 

keeping Youths girls 

in competition 

Three clubs 

have come 

together 

to make 

sure their 

respective 

underage 

girls 

players get 

competitive 

action. 

CDS is an U-16 girls rugby team 

made up of players from three 

different rugby clubs: Coolmine 

RFC, De La Salle Palmerston FC 

(DLSP) and Seapoint RFC. 

The team was established in 2019 to 

provide mini rugby graduates with the 

chance to play Youth rugby. 

A squad of 20 is needed to enter Leinster 

Youth competitions and none of the 

respective clubs could reach that quota 

on their own. 

“By bringing the girls together from the 

three different clubs we now have a 

strong team giving the girls a real fighting 

chance to compete in the Leinster Youth 

competitions and play the sport that they 

have all grown to love,” Maeve Gebruers 

of CDS said. 

CDS are having a successful season 

to date and made the semi-final of the 

Leinster Plate where they were beaten by 

Navan RFC. 

DLSP have also amalgamated with other 

clubs at different age groups. 

At U-14, DLSP have a combined team 

with Seapoint RFC called SeaSalle and, 

at U-18, DLSP have teamed up with 

a number of clubs including Terenure 

College, Seapoint, Old Belvedere, 

Suttonians and Coolmine to form a team 

called the Panthers. 


THE GREATEST WEEKEND IN RUGBY 

27-28 MAY, STADE VÉLODROME

Virtual Mascot 

Gareth 

Hayes 

Age: 7 

School: St Brigid’s Boys, Foxrock 

Hobbies: Rugby, Soccer, Lego, Nintendo Switch 

Favourite Player: Hugo Keenan 


WHERE ARE 

THEY NOW? 

NIALL TRESTON 

THEN: Niall 

Treston 

made 23 

appearances 

for Leinster 

between 2001 

and 2005. 

NOW: He lives 

with his wife 

Claire and two 

boys John (6) 

and Mark (4) 

in Foxrock, 

working as 

a Senior 

Portfolio 

Manager and 

Team Leader 

at Brewin 

Dolphin 

Ireland. 


It was great. 

There was a 

good crew of 

older players 

in the pack, a 

smattering 

of experience, 

provided by 

the likes 

of Trevor 

Brennan and 

Liam Toland... 

It was highly unusual for a 

21-year-old tighthead prop to 

make his Leinster debut around 

the turn of the century. 

Back then, the rule of thumb was that it 

was a place for grown, grizzled men, 

not for those knee-deep in the process 

of learning how to use their maturing 

bodies. 

The perceived wisdom was that front 

row forwards really competed on equal 

footing in the mid-to-late 20s. 

Such was the regard in which Niall 

Treston was held as an anchorman at 

the time when Leinster did not have their 

franchise number three nailed down. 

It was an exciting probationary period 

when all things seemed possible as British 

and Irish Lion Paul Wallace was coming 

to the end of a stellar career and Emmet 

Byrne and Peter Coyle were jostling for 

supremacy. 

“It is probably fair to say there weren’t 

too many tightheads of that age playing 

at that level,” says Niall. 

“In the Irish set-up, John Hayes was there 

for a decade. But, at Leinster, I had an 

idea there were opportunities. 

“Paul Wallace was a great help to me. 

I learned a lot from him, technique-wise. 

Gary Halpin, God Bless him, was still 

knocking around in the beginning. Emmet 

and Peter were also there. 

“I made it my business to learn as much 

as I could from all of them, as quickly as 

possible, while preparing to compete for 

their places,” he states. 

The rate of progression was fast enough 

for Niall to make his Leinster debut 

against Swansea at St Helen’s in 2001. 

It is never a pleasant experience, 

getting down and dirty in a Welshman’s 

backyard. Even more so back then, when 

it was a matter of survival of the meanest. 

“It was great. There was a good crew of 

older players in the pack, a smattering 

of experience, provided by the likes of 

Trevor Brennan and Liam Toland,” he 

says. 

“It was a step into the unknown and I 

was thrown into the deep end, in some 

respects. If I recollect clearly, I hung in 

there for an hour before Paul Wallace 

came on.” 

Shoulder and knee injuries meant Niall 

had to wait for his second cap until closer 

to the end of the season. 

“I made better inroads in the second 

season. I felt I had moved up to second 

choice behind Emmet and I was involved 

in the Heineken Cup, playing the second 

half of the quarter-final against Biarritz 

and, also, involved in the semi-final 

against Perpignan. 

“I felt it was a springboard to becoming 

the starting tighthead. My career was 

accelerating in the right direction.” 

In the summer of 2003, out went Williams 

to Scotland. In came Gary Ella. Six caps 

later, Niall, still 23, was really beginning 

to play well when his rugby world was 

crushed against Scarlets in November. 

“I remember it well. In the second 

half, there was a maul off a lineout. It 

collapsed. My leg was in the wrong 

place at the wrong time. I heard a crack. 


“I knew something was badly wrong. 

Players were moving away. I looked 

down to see the bone sticking out from 

a compound fracture. It was broken in a 

number of places. 

“You go into shock. Then, the pain sets 

in. By that stage, the doctors are with 

you, giving you oxygen and injecting 

painkillers to try to stabilise you. I 

still remember quite vividly, when it 

happened, how it happened.” 

In the aftermath, Niall was operated on 

the next morning in St Vincent’s Hospital 

and advised by his orthopaedic surgeon 

that it was a similar injury to that suffered 

by David Busst against Manchester 

United in 1996. The Coventry centre-half 

never played again. 

“That was when it hit home. That is when I 

began to think about my career being on 

the line,” he adds. 

Further, Niall suffered the additional 

complication of ‘compartment syndrome’ 

where the muscles in his leg reacted 

against the steel rod put in place to 

straighten the bones. 

When he woke up, he was met with the 

sight of his muscles hanging outside two 

long cuts down his leg. 

He stayed in the hospital for three weeks, 

undergoing six surgeries. From there, the 

slow, gruelling process of relearning how 

to walk on the leg began. 

Ultimately, because of the complexities 

of compartment syndrome, he could 

never fully recover the power in his leg, a 

basic requirement for any rugby player, 

especially a front-row forward. 

“In fairness, Leinster were very good to 

me. I had signed a two-year contract 

that summer. They could have gotten 

out of it after six months. Instead, they 

honoured the contract and gave me a 

full 18 months to do what I could to get 

back. 

“It was lonely. It was deeply frustrating 

when it became more and more evident 


that, no matter how hard I worked, I just 

wasn’t getting the returns I needed. 

“I was being advised by surgeons and 

other people that I wasn’t going to 

recover. 

The Leinster doctor at the time, Professor 

Arthur Tanner was very good to me 

throughout the process and we stayed 

close friends until his sad passing in 2017. 

“He estimated I had a slight, maybe five 

per cent, chance of getting back. He 

was the only one to provide a light at the 

end of a tunnel. That kept me going for 

a while.” 

Another new coach Declan Kidney was 

the man to tell Niall his contract would 

not be extended. 

“I didn’t want to look back and wonder 

why I didn’t do everything I could to get 

back. That was my thinking.” 

On the back of Arthur’s advice, it 

took Niall to Coventry in the English 

Championship to play regularly to see 

what level he could reach with game 

time. 

“Soon enough, I realised I wasn’t making 

the progress I needed even though I was 

sending videos of my game home.” 

In the end, the IRFU’s technical expert 

Stephen Aboud, who I was very close 

with, got in touch to let Niall know he 

was way off where he had been and 

way off where he needed to be. 

“I guess I just needed someone I 

respected to tell me what I already knew 

deep down. That was it. That was the 

end. The dream was over.” 

At that time, the players’ union was in 

its infancy. It was the support of family, 

his parents’ emphasis on education, that 

gave Niall a head start, completing his 

Bachelor of Commerce from UCD, prior 

to commencing his first professional 

contract and his accountancy exams, 

after getting injured, in time to join NCB 

Stockbrokers as an assistant portfolio 

manager. 

He has since upskilled with an MBA 

from the Smurfit School of Business and 

stayed in the same industry, rising to be 

a Senior Portfolio Manager at Brewin 

Dolphin Ireland as well as leading a 

team of investment managers across the 

business. 

“I quickly found that there were a number 

of transferable skills from rugby into the 

business world,” he adds. 

“One is having a high level of resilience, 

being able to roll with the punches. No 

matter what you do in life, you will have 

setbacks. 

“More positively, people coming from 

professional team sports should have a 

high level of emotional intelligence, being 

able to deal with people, being able 

to lead people, knowing what makes 

different personalities tick. 

“Aligned with a strong work ethic that 

you need to be successful in professional 

sport has served me very well in business 

too. 

“I took a lot from my experience in the 

game in understanding how to motivate 

and empower people.” 

Twenty years on from his debut, Niall 

took his older son John to his first Leinster 

match against Connacht in the United 

Rugby Championship match at the RDS 

last month. 

The cycle of family life means he is ready 

to support his two boys whether coaching 

minis in Blackrock College RFC or taking 

them to watch the team for which he 

played. 


Referees 

Corner 

BY DAN WALLACE 

Happy New Year to everyone. 

It is great to see some rugby 

back on the pitch after the 

Christmas break. We hope 

that everyone enjoys today’s 

fixture. Today’s referee is one of 

the finest in the world - Wayne 

Barnes. 

Wayne is no stranger to the RDS 

or Dublin. We extend our heartiest 

congratulations to him on his 250th 

Premiership game last weekend and 

wish him and his team the best of 

success today. 

From a referee’s point of view, it is 

always a pleasure to watch Wayne 

officiate. 

Last October, CYM Terenure player 

and one of newer referees Aude de 

Casanove was presented with her 

referee’s jersey for passing her trial. 

Aude hails from France. With many 

delays since she started out, Aude kept 

on plugging away and passed with 

flying colours. I had the chance to catch 

up with her over December. 

What made you decide to take up the 

whistle? 

I thought it could be good to have one 

more woman with the whistle, especially 

because back then I don’t think I had 

seen any in the matches I had been 

playing or supporting in the Metro 

league. Besides, I was hoping it would 

help me be a better player. 

How long are you refereeing now? 

Two-and-half years now, but with COVID 

in the middle it’s been only a year of 

active service I’d say! 

What is the biggest thing you have 

learned since you started out? 

That ‘I can’. I can be the one in the 

middle, holding the whistle and standing 

my ground. Yes, I make mistakes, and 

sometimes I am unsure, but in a whole 

match there will be many good calls too. 

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, our website www.leinsterrugbyreferees.ie or 

through twitter @leinsterreferee. 


What was the process like to become 

a referee? 

It was very straightforward. Sent 

an email to come to a workshop, 

received a call from Sue to check 

on my motivations and availability, 

did the online theory test and went 

to the workshop. A week after, I was 

refereeing for the first time. 

What is your training regime like? 

I am still playing myself so I don’t have 

specific training for refereeing. But it’s 

rugby Monday and Wednesday, and 

gym with the girls on Thursday. 

What is your favourite thing about 

refereeing? 

I really like being the one making the 

calls. There is no ‘oh come on, ref’ 

when you are the ref. Do you miss 

something or lose control of a situation? 

It’s on you, take it home and work on 

it. Do you have a very smooth game 

with decisions you are confident about? 

Good on you, take it home and make 

sure to keep that standard. At the 

end of the day, you want to give your 

best so that the 30 people running at 

each other can do it in a safe, fair and 

enjoyable way. 

What is the most memorable game 

you have refereed so far? 

I didn’t referee that many matches yet 

but I would say it would be the Division 

10 Metro League clash of Coolmine 

against Emerald Warriors. It was a great 

match, both teams gave their best while 

being very friendly and respectful but I 

remember it especially because it was 

my first time wearing the official jersey 

and it hit differently! 

What is your pre-match routine like? 

The routine would start the day before 

the match, when I would check the 

colours of the teams, the league and 

the particularity that may come with the 

level. I also have a look at some specific 

laws that I may have a doubt about or 

a point I think I did not handle well the 

match before and that I need to focus 

on. Then in the morning, I try to visualise 

myself at the kick-off, review the options, 

same for the first scrum and the first line 

out. Then I head out to the location to be 

on-site around an hour before kick-off. 

I introduce myself to the coaches and 

the team, do the checks and then my 

warm-up. 

What are your refereeing aspirations? 

As I am still playing myself, I can hardly 

commit to more than one match a week 

so I am happy in the Metro League. 

When I retire I’ll be more available and 

then we’ll see but I am not planning on 

doing so quite yet! 

Who is your idol or favourite referee 

and why? 

I don’t really have an idol but I like 

Hollie Davidson as I always find her 

very clear and straightforward when 

communicating her decisions; and 

Romain Poite (allez les bleus!) 

What will make you improve as a 

referee? 

Refereeing more games and if 

possible getting feedback from more 

experienced referees. The best way 

to learn how to handle a situation or 

what call to make is to face it and learn 

from it. 

What advice would you give to 

someone thinking about taking up 

refereeing? 

Grab a (Acme Thunderer) whistle and 

give it a try, there’s nothing to lose and 

a lot to learn! 

Referees sometimes come in for a fair 

bit of stick during games, how do you 

deal with it? 

I faced it for the first time in my third 

match ever, an U-14 girls. It’s a bit early 

in a referee’s career to be called a thief 

and a cheat… Since then it happens 

regularly, sometimes I just ‘have no 

clue’ and sometimes I’m ‘a disgrace that 

should stick to underage’. Luckily I also 

got matches with very good comments 

and most of the time people are quite 

nice and respectful! 

To be fair these tough matches were 

the ones that taught me the most about 

communication and escalation and how 

to keep control of the situation. Besides, 

you learn to make the difference 

between what is a relevant remark and 

what is background noise. 

Also, you can report any abuse to the 

branch so it helps to know that you 

can get some support if you feel that 

someone has crossed the line. 

Do you do any self-analysis after 

games? 

Of course. I think about the match 

and compare it to the targets I had set 

earlier in the day. Did I deliver a safe 

and enjoyable match? Did I handle the 

ruck/line outs/scrum better than last 

time? Was there something I was not 

satisfied with and I want to work on next 

time? And if there was a moment when 

I was unsure I was making the right call, 

I have a look at the laws to see if I was 

right or wrong. 


New players 

bring 

renewed life 

to Rathdrum 

seniors 

Rathdrum RFC senior men’s 

team enjoyed a positive run in 

to the Christmas break. With the 

uncertainties that surround us all, 

they are delighted to have seen 

a strong resurgence in new and 

former players coming to join 

Rathdrum RFC this season. 

A number of new players joined this 

season and have slotted in perfectly with 

the team and the spirit of the club, along 

with some former players who have 

made their return after a brief hiatus off 

the rugby pitch. 

In the last match before the Christmas 

break, Rathdrum played Greystones, also 

known as the annual Drum-Stones match. 

The Drum-Stones match is a traditional 

match played between Rathdrum and 

Greystones RFC dating back nearly 

50 years ago as a nod of thanks to 

Greystones RFC for the help they gave to 

get Rathdrum RFC established. 

When the clubs don’t face each other in 

the league, it’s played as a pre-season 

friendly. This year again, Rathdrum and 

Greystones face off against each other 

in Metro 4. It’s always a pleasure for 

Rathdrum to welcome Greystones to the 

Ivy Leaf grounds and the Drum-Stones 

match is always extra special with a 

trophy on the line. 

By the final whistle, Rathdrum RFC had 

retained the trophy for the second year 

in a row after a well-fought, spirited and 

competitive match between the two sides 

with captain Noel Cross and vice-captain 

Calvin Swords, lifting the trophy yet 

again. 

Spirits were high and the atmosphere 

positive going into the break and this 

has been replicated through to 2022 

with Rathdrum RFC senior men looking 

forward to taking to the pitch again soon, 

and most of all enjoying what we are 

here to do – play rugby. 

Rathdrum senior men are always 

welcoming new and former players to the 

team and are actively recruiting. 

Training is Wednesdays and Fridays at 

7.30pm. Feel free to go along and join 

in or get in touch via Facebook 

@rathdrumrfc for more information. 

Rathdrum 

field first 

ever Youths 

team 

As a result of a strong focus in 

the club on growing their grass 

roots minis section, this season 

Rathdrum RFC fielded their first 

Youths team at U-13 level. 

The step up to the 15-a-side structure has 

been a steep learning curve for the boys, 

however, they have represented the club 

with great spirit and skill. 

Performances are improving with every 

game in what has been a topsy-turvy year 

for all and the focus for the remainder 

of the year is to continue to improve the 

team’s skills and performance. 

Additionally, they are now working with 

the local Avondale Community College 

to develop the game in the local school 

which they hope will further add to the 

Youths section. 


YOUR ACCESS TO THE HEART OF EUROPEAN 

RUGBY HAS NEVER BEEN BETTER 

HEINEKENCHAMPIONSCUP.COM 

#HeinekenChampionsCup

Busy season at 

Longford RFC 

It’s been an 

action-packed 

year for 

Longford RFC 

so far. You can 

find out what 

is going on day 

to day on www. 

longfordrugby. 

com or on the 

club’s social 

media pages. 

New 4G pitch 

A massive highlight this season has 

been the opening of the club’s state 

of the art fully floodlit and fenced 4G 

artificial pitch. All age levels of the club 

have been enjoying the pitch so far, 

with senior teams having played league 

matches and trained on it too. 

Like a lot of clubs, Longford have had to 

call off lots of matches in the past few 

seasons, due to waterlogged pitches 

but this will be a thing of the past with 

the new surface! We also opened the 

pitch up to other sports in the area, with 

both Gaelic football and soccer training 

taking place on it on a weekly basis. 

Ireland Sevens 

Another big highlight in Longford RFC 

was one of the club’s members, Shane 

Mallon, being called up to the Ireland 

Sevens Development Team for the 

Dubai Invitational tournament in early 

December, which Ireland won. 

Shane is a top club man and was 

mentoring the Longford U-15s during 

Midland Area trials for the Shane 

Horgan Cup the week before his call 

up. 

Sponsor 

The Longford U-15 squad were 

delighted to accept new training tops 

kindly sponsored by Aryzta foods. 

Coach Allen Marshall, representing 

Aryzta, presented the tops at the pre- 

Christmas social training session, as the 

squad enjoyed pizzas together before 

the break. 

CCRO 

Longford RFC welcome the appointment 

of a new CCRO, Aoghan Clarke, who 

will step up from his team duties to 

develop rugby in the area’s primary 

schools. 

Training 

Post-Covid, the club are back up and 

running from U-6 to Senior and it is all 

thanks to the amazing players, coaches, 

officers and members, that this has been 

possible. We are all hoping to conclude 

a season full of hope in 2022. 


As newly announced Official Clean Air Partner of 

Leinster Rugby, we are delighted to support the 

team in their pursuit of excellence, by adding 

Novaerus air disinfection technology to their 

winning formula. 

Irish-designed and patented Novaerus NanoStrike 

technology strives to give Leinster the physical and 

competitive edge by disinfecting the squad and 

management team’s indoor air safely, 24/7. 

Clean air is as important to a world-class winning 

team as clean water, superb nutrition, and a healthy 

lifestyle, all improving cognitive and physical 

performance on and off the pitch. Wishing our 

new partners Leinster Rugby all the best vs Bath 

Rugby today.

HANGING WITH THE STARS 

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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. 

beauchamps.ie 

OFFICIAL LEGAL ADVISOR 

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

Midlands 52 Metro 14 

in pictures 


North East 40 North midlands 19 

in pictures 


Founded: 

1986 

Ground: 

GGL STADIUM 

Capacity: 

12,719 


Hérault Rugby 

last time out 

Exeter Rugby 42 

Montpellier 6 

Sandy Park | Saturday, 11 December| words: epcrugby.com 

Montpellier endured a difficult opening to the 

Heineken Champions Cup this year with a trip 

to Sandy Park to face the 2020 winners. 

Exeter lock Jonny Gray notched 

a second half hat-trick as the 

hosts routed Montpellier 42-6. 

They scored 42 unanswered points – 

including 35 in the second half – as 

Stuart Hogg, Sam Simmonds and Don 

Armond dotted down in addition to 

Gray’s trio of tries. 

Montpellier had led 6-0 after the 

opening 20 minutes – and trailed by 

just a single point at the break – but a 

relentless closing 40 minutes secured 

the Pool A triumph for the hosts. 

The visitors – missing several key names 

through both injury and international 

rest – began the game on the front 

foot and earned a third minute penalty. 

Teenage out-half Louis Foursans called 

his shot, slotting his first European points 

through the uprights. 

Foursans added a second penalty with 

10 minutes on the clock as the visitors 

pinned Exeter in their own 22 during 

the opening salvos. 

Midway through the first half Exeter 

kicked into life, a sustained spell of 

pressure resulted in the opening try of 

the contest. 

After what seemed endless phases of 

brute force from the forwards, Exeter 

changed tack and swiftly moved the 

ball to the right flank. Hogg juked four 

defenders in one delightful step to open 

up a free run to the whitewash – the 

Scotland international dotting down 

with ease. 

Joe Simmonds added the extras to 

give the hosts a one-point lead at the 

interval. 

Whatever was said at half time riled the 

home team as they scored within 120 

seconds of the re-start – Gray notching 

his first of the evening with a closerange 

finish. 

Gray added his second 10 minutes 


Images: inpho.ie 

later, Montpellier unable to resist the 

power game – another close-range 

finish onto the lock’s resumé. 

The hat-trick followed on the hour mark, 

a quickly taken Luke Cowan-Dickie 

penalty allowed Gray to power over. 

The decision was referred to the TMO, 

with the on-field decision of try upheld. 

By now it was all Exeter and 2020 

EPCR European Player of the Year Sam 

Simmonds dotted down the team’s 

fifth try, set up by the mazy run of Jack 

Nowell. 

The sixth try came in added time, 

replacement Don Armand completing 

the rout with another close-range finish. 

In round two, Montpellier were 

awarded a 28-0 win over Leinster 

Rugby when the EPCR medical advisory 

committee deemed that Leinster Rugby 

could not travel to France. 

EXETER – Stuart Hogg (Harvey Skinner 

67); Jack Nowell, Henry Slade (Tom 

Hendrickson 61), Ian Whitten, Tom 

O’Flaherty; Joe Simmonds, Jack Maunder 

(Sam Maunder 61); Alec Hepburn (James 

Kenny 63), Luke Cowan-Dickie (Jack 

Yeandle 61), Josh Iosefa-Scott (Sam Nixon 

41); Jonny Gray, Jonny Hill (Don Armand 

71); Dave Ewers (Jannes Kirsten 58), Sam 

Skinner, Sam Simmonds. 

MONTPELLIER – Julien Tisseron; Josua 

Vici, Yvan Reilhac, Thomas Darmon, 

Gabriel Ngandebe; Louis Foursans- 

Bourdette (Pierre Lucas 67), Gela 

Aprasidze (Aubin Eymeri 61); Enzo 

Forletta (Robert Rodgers 50), Brandon 

Paenga-Amosa (Guilhem Guirado 52), 

Henry Thomas (Malik Hamadache 61); 

Mickael Capelli (Tyler Duguid 56), Bastien 

Chalureau; Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, 

Jeremie Maurouard (Masivesi Dakuwaqa 

58), Kelian Galletier (Zach Mercer 71). 


Director of Rugby 

Philippe 

Saint-André 

Philippe Saint-André took 

over as Director of Rugby with 

Montpellier in March 2020. 

A former France international, he spent 

most of his club career with Clermont 

before joining Premiership side 

Gloucester in 1997. On the international 

stage, he represented France 69 times. 

Upon finishing his playing career with 

Gloucester, he took on the Director of 

Rugby role with the club. 

He later moved to Sale Sharks where he 

oversaw a Premiership and Challenge 

Cup win in consecutive years before 

going to Toulon, the French national side 

and now Montpellier. 

Club Captain 

Guilhem Guirado 

Hooker Guilhem Guirado first 

started playing with Perpignan, 

appearing on the scene around 

the mid-00s. 

Since then, he has amassed over 200 

appearances for the Pyrenees club 

before moving to Toulon where he made 

110 appearances, winning the Heineken 

Champions Cup in 2015. 

Now with Montpellier since 2019, the 

35-year-old has 74 international caps for 

France, scoring eight tries in the process. 

80 | www.leinsterrugby.ie 

montpellier squad 

GELA APRASIDZE 

SCRUM HALF 

YANNICK ARROYO 

TIGHT HEAD PROP 

ALEXANDRE BECOGNEE 

BACK ROW 

JULES BERTRY 

CENTRE 

AXEL BEVIA 

FULL BACK 

ANTHONY BOUTHIER 

FULL BACK 

YACOUBA CAMARA 

FLANKER 

MICKAEL CAPELLI 

LOCK 

BASTIEN CHALUREAU 

LOCK 

LUCAS CHAUDANSON 

CENTRE 

MASIVESI DAKUWAQA 

BACK ROW 

THOMAS DARMON 

OUTSIDE HALF/SCRUM HALF 

MARTIN DEVERGIE 

NO 8 

MOHAMED DIALLO 


MARTIN DOAN 

SCRUM HALF 

GEOFFREY DOUMAYROU 

CENTRE 

TYLER DUGUID 

LOCK 

AUBIN EYMERI 

SCRUM HALF 

STEVEN FAUPALA 

CENTRE/WING 

GRÉGORY FICHTEN 

LOOSE HEAD PROP 

ENZO FORLETTA 


LOUIS FOURSANS 

OUTSIDE HALF 

KELIAN GALLETIER 

FLANKER 

PAOLO GARBISI 

OUTSIDE HALF 

HUGO GENS 

BACK ROW 

VINCENT GIUDICELLI 

HOOKER 

RUHANN GREYLING 

HOOKER 

GUILHEM GUIRADO 

HOOKER 

MALIK HAMADACHE 


MOHAMED HAOUAS 


NICO JANSE VAN RENSBURG 

BACK ROW/LOCK 

MEHMET KILICKAYA 


TITI LAMOSITELE 


GIGI LESHKASHELI 

BACK ROW 

PIERRE LUCAS 

CENTRE 

ROMAIN MACURDY 

LOCK 

AXEL MALARET 

OUTSIDE HALF/FULL BACK 

KARL MARTIN 

CENTRE 

LOUIS MAURO 


JEREMIE MAUROUARD 

HOOKER 

SAMUEL MAXIMIN 

BACK ROW 

ROBIN MCCLINTOCK 

CENTRE/WING 

ZACH MERCER 

BACK ROW 

LOAN MOULIS 

WING 

GABRIEL N’GANDEBE 

WING 

MIKHEIL NARIASHVILI 


LENNI NOUCHI 

BACK ROW 

FULGENCE OUEDRAOGO 

FLANKER 

BRANDON PAENGA-AMOSA 

HOOKER 

BENOIT PAILLAUGUE 

SCRUM HALF 

HANDRÉ POLLARD 

OUTSIDE HALF 

JULIEN RASAMOELINA 


VINCENT RATTEZ 

FULL BACK/WING 

YVAN REILHAC 

CENTRE 

COBUS REINACH 

SCRUM HALF 

ROBERT RODGERS 


THIBAULT SALODINI 

BACK ROW 

JAN SERFONTEIN 

CENTRE/WING 

ADRIEN SONZOGNI 

HOOKER 

LUCAS TABAROT 


MARCO TAULEIGNE 

BACK ROW 

HENRY THOMAS 


JULIEN TISSERON 

FULL BACK/WING 

MATTHIEU UHILA 

LOCK 

PAUL VALLÉE 

CENTRE 

FLORIAN VERHAEGHE 

LOCK 

JOSUA VICI 

WING 

ARTHUR VINCENT 

CENTRE/WING 

PAUL WILLEMSE 

LOCK

Club in Focus 

IT CARLOW 

The crosspollination 

between 

college and club 

rugby can be a 

difficult one to 

master for those 

players just out of 

IT Carlow Sports Complex 

school 

Institute of Technology 

Carlow is one that straddles 

the responsibility of pushing 

education and pulling on the shirt 

just about as well as any other 

institution. 

Originally, former President Ruaidhri 

Neavyn had the bright idea to turn 

Carlow into a sports college, presumably 

as a point of difference. He contacted 

the IRFU, the FAI and the GAA governing 

bodies in pursuit of a mutually beneficial 

partnership. Rugby was the first to buy in. 

The GAA and FAI followed. 

At this point, Leinster Rugby provides 

staff to lecture on modules in coach 

education and player development on 

a BA in Sports Coaching and Business 

Management degree course. 

In 2020, this was reinforced by the 

opening of the stunning €15 million 

multi-purpose South Sports Campus, a 

training centre complete with six new 

pitches, floodlights, a walking trail, an 

athletics track and ancillary spaces such 

as changing rooms and meeting rooms. 

“It is an incredible facility. If you walked 

into a sports organisation in Europe, you 

would be blown away. It really is state of 

the art. It is something that the south-east 

needed,” says Brett. 

This up-grade in sports facilities coincides 

with the announcement that IT Carlow 

becomes a University in 2022 with a 

partnership with Waterford IT. Before the 

opening of the new complex, IT Carlow 

already had state-of-the-art facilities 

“IT Carlow runs a number of sports 

courses in sports science, sports 

rehabilitation, the business of sport and 

sports performance analysis,” states 

Brett Igoe, the Programme Co-ordinator 

of the Sports Coaching and Business 

Management degree course. 

IT Carlow President Patricia Mulcahy & Mick Dawson 


IRFU Colleges Cup winners 2019 

including on-campus pitches, gyms and 

research labs. The new training base 

takes away the pressure on space. 

“It takes the heat off training. It takes 

the heat off over-use for our three men’s 

team, our women’s team and those 

Leinster training groups,” says Brett. 

“It will be permanently used by the rugby 

community in various guises, often hosting 

Leinster domestic competitions, including 

the colleges inter-varsity tournament.” 

Greg McGrath 

The link to rugby is wide-ranging. IT 

Carlow acts as a training base for the 

various South-East boys and girls clubs 

squads that prepare and participate in 

the regional competitions involving them, 

Midlands, North Midlands, North East 

and Metro. 

“IT Carlow has been a central point for 

Leinster’s age grade representatives from 

the area for several years. The likes of 

Joey Carbery, Peter Dooley and Tom 

Daly have come through here,” he says. 

“The challenge Leinster had 10-15 years 

ago, still now, is how to make the best use 

of the schools and clubs pathways. 

“For the schools, the players don’t have 

to travel to find the proper weights, the 

strength and conditioning expertise, all 

the extras that go into giving them a 

chance to compete at the next level. 

“In fairness, the Leinster domestic game, 

under Phil Lawlor, came up with a plan 

to have central training hubs for Monday 

and Wednesday nights for each of the 

five regions to help the clubs players 

catch up physically. 

“IT Carlow was chosen as the base for 

the South-East. It is an example of how 

there is a lot of good work being done 

outside the traditional schools system. 

I don’t think we champion enough the 

good things we do. 

“Leinster is one of the best clubs in 

Europe. It is a real success story. But, it is 

not an accident,” admits Brett. 

“By the time the players arrive at Leo 

Cullen and Stuart Lancaster’s doors, there 

has been so much work put in to identify 

and develop talent. 

“But, they can’t be successful without 

the work that goes on underneath the 

professional level. For example, IT 

Carlow facilitates the Community Officers 

continual professional development. 

It could come in the form of coaching 

courses, an analysis workshop or a 

disability workshop for coaches. 

“There is so much stellar community 

work going on throughout the province, 

whether it is on the pitch or off it,” adds 

Brett. 


Lisa Callan 

Brett Igoe 

The third level impact of Carlow ramps 

up as a variety of courses are on offer to 

those considering working in the sports 

industry. The number of people who 

have graduated from Carlow includes 

2021 Leinster Women head coach Phil 

de Barra, professional players Mick 

Kearney, Denis Coulson and James 

Connolly and six of the Leinster Women’s 

team including Lisa Callan and Emily 

McKeown. 

IT Carlow prides itself, not only on their 

world-class facilities but, on their support 

around the student/athlete including the 

sports scholarship system, expertise in 

strength and conditioning, nutrition, sports 

analysis and mental health, all with their 

highly experienced staff. IT Carlow post 

graduate students have been involved 

in academic research around the game 

including game analysis and sports 

science. 

In addition, as many as 16 members of 

the Leinster staff have come through the 

courses there, ranging from Community 

Rugby Officers, women’s development 

officers to analysts. For example, Corey 

Carty is a Community Rugby Officer for 

the branch and Eoin Smyth is the Leinster 

Academy Performance Analyst. 

Emily McKeown 

The partnership with IT Carlow has 

benefited Leinster in terms of providing 

skilled workers to their organisation. Brett 

is a Leinster age grade coach on the 

U-18 schools programme. 

Brett is keen to promote the fact the 

rugby-related course is more than just 

another playground to sweat out the fun 

from the night before. 

“Parents have this idea that it is a rugby 

course where you go to college to play 

rugby. It is a business course, a proper 

degree course, leading to employment. 

“Rugby is big business. There are 

numerous areas around rugby, outside 

lifting weights and playing, that contribute 

towards a professional environment. 

“The IRFU, with their four subsidiaries, 

the provinces, employ an army of staff 

whether you are talking about science, 

sports science, strength and conditioning, 

ticketing, marketing, data analytics, 

media, communications, commercial 

interests. 

On the field, the structure of IT Carlow’s 

season means there is no push and 

pull for players. IT Carlow play in the 

IRFU/Student Sport Ireland third level 

competition, where they would be the 

team to beat, winning eight out of the 

last 10 competitions. The women’s team 

play in the same IRFU competition, 

competing against the likes of UCD and 

the University of Limerick. Their game day 

is Wednesday, with a mass exodus of 

players to train at their clubs on Tuesday 

and Thursday. 

Two years ago, Lansdowne’s three props 

Greg McGrath, Martin Mulhall and 

Ntingo Mpika played for IT Carlow in the 

same seasons they played Division 1A in 

the All-Ireland League. 

“We’ve never had an issue with any 

club because our IRFU League and Cup 

competitions run on alternative weeks to 

the AIL.” 

In the summer, McGrath signed for 

Connacht. 

“I think Greg’s involvement in the course 

helped to contribute towards him winning 

his caps for Leinster in the PRO14 last 

season and getting into professional 

rugby,” notes Brett. 

“When he was with us, he had two S&C 

sessions, one skill session every week. 

They were a focus for improvement 

before he went back to Lansdowne at the 

weekend. 

“He is, technically, a late developer as 

someone who has worked hard to make 

rugby his profession. 

“If you want to be a professional, the 

school or club, sub-Academy, Academy 

route is great. If you want an alternative 

route later on, while getting further 

education, IT Carlow is a good place to 

play and to learn.” 

If you are interested in their course, 

please email Brett at: 

brett.igoe@itcarlow.ie 

or apply through the CAO. 


New Ross RFC 

New Ross RFC 

has taken 

a step into 

the future 

by being the 

first club 

grounds in 

the country 

to launch 

a policy 

discouraging 

the use of 

single use 

plastics 

on its 

grounds at 

FBD Park in 

Southknock. 

Simultaneously, It has launched 

a No Smoking policy on the 

grounds. 

Speaking at the dual launch a few weeks 

ago , Club President, David Burke, said 

that the club caters for large numbers of 

young players across all ages from U-6 

upwards and it was felt by the club’s 

management committee that children and 

youths needed to be discouraged from 

possibly taking up smoking and that one 

of the best ways of doing this would be to 

denormalise smoking in their vicinity. 

“We all know the ill effects smoking can 

have on health and New Ross RFC wants 

to do all in its power to help prevent the 

habit passing on to the next generations,” 

he said as he unveiled the specially 

designed signage informing visitors and 

members of the new policy on the club 

grounds. 

Meanwhile, Chairman Brendan Roche 

launched the ban on single-use plastics. 

This policy is aimed at reducing waste 

and encouraging members and visitors to 

use a multi-use bottle while exercising. 

“Everyone is sick and tired of seeing 

plastic bottles dumped all over the 

countryside and at the sides of pitches so 

here, at New Ross RFC, we want to lead 

the way by preventing these items being 

used on our grounds. We believe that we 

are the first club in Ireland to introduce 

this policy and would encourage others 

to follow our lead and help improve the 

environment for everybody,” he said. 

“From this season, the club’s minis jerseys 

carry 'No Smoking' and 'No single-use 

plastics' logos so that we can begin 

to spread the message wherever we 

go,”said Mike Quinn, Minis Co-ordinator. 

“We will be delighted if we can make 

just a little difference to the future health 

and environment of our younger 

people.” 



en 

murphy 

THE ACADEMY 

INTERVIEW 

BY PAUL CAHILL 

Ben Murphy has been around rugby 

for as long as he can remember. 

“I was probably three or four 

when I started going to watch 

Leinster in Donnybrook with my 

dad,” he says. 

In fact, he was only five years old when 

he first ran out on the famous old pitch 

at Donnybrook alongside current senior 

team coach, Felipe Contepomi, as mascot 

before a game with Edinburgh. 

Having a father as passionate about 

rugby as Richie Murphy, the current Irish 

U-20 head coach and former Leinster 

and Ireland skills and kicking coach, has 

made it easy for Ben to fall in love with 

the game. 

But, the Leinster Academy scrum-half 

is adamant that he is creating his own 

rugby path. 

“It definitely helps having a rugby coach 

as a dad,” says Ben. 

“It’s very good that I can go to him with 

any questions and he’ll give you good 

advice, but when I was younger, he was 

just making sure I enjoyed it. 

“He was never pushy or forced me to do 

anything I didn’t want to do, which I think 

was very important for me to make my 

own decisions and then when I realized 

that I wanted to play rugby at a high 

level, then I knew that I could ask him 

to step in and help in whatever way I 

needed.” 

Ben has worked his way through every 

avenue of rugby within Leinster Rugby, 

from minis, to Schools Cup, the Leinster 

player pathway, AIL, culminating in caps 

for the Irish U-20s in the Six Nations and 

earning a Leinster Academy contract 

earlier this year. 

Like so many, it all began on a Sunday 

morning at a local club. 

Having already run out at Donnybook 

as a five-year-old, it was time for Ben to 

really get involved and Kilbogget Park 

was the destination. 


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“I started playing with Seapoint when I 

was five. 

“I went down with a friend and I stayed 

for 10 years. I had lots of friends from 

my school on the team and lads from 

other schools in the area so we had a 

really good group and we really enjoyed 

playing together.” 

Murphy’s career to date has come with a 

few setbacks. 

He was deemed – by some – to be too 

small in his early teens, but neither his 

school, Presentation College, Bray nor 

Murphy himself was willing to let that 

stop him. 

“I always had problems with my size 

when I was younger. I would have been 

quite small going into first and second 

year. 

“But, the school was great with me. They 

managed me really well when I look 

back on it now. When things were getting 

more competitive, and we were getting 

into cup squads, the school would let me 

use the facilities during the holidays when 

the place wasn’t being used. 

“I still have a great connection with Pres 

and I can’t speak highly enough about 

them.” 

Nine years after his first outing in 

Donnybrook as a mascot, Ben was back 

with the Pres Bray Junior Cup team taking 

on Gonzaga in the first round at Energia 

Park. 

Like his first outing all those years before 

as a mascot, he was starting to like his 

days out as a player at the Donnybrook 

venue. 

“It wasn’t an amazing game of rugby, but 

we beat Gonzaga 8-3. It was brilliant to 

get the win.” 

Pres would eventually lose to a Blackrock 

College side in the quarter-finals, led by 

Ben’s current Leinster Academy teammate, 

Seán O’Brien. 

A few years later, it was a Senior Cup 

game against Blackrock at Energia Park 

that really made people notice the young 

scrum-half. 

While the result against an excellent 

Blackrock College side was the same, 

as Blackrock ran out 25-19 winners, it 

was the fight in the Pres Bray side and in 

Murphy, that caught the eye. 

Trailing by 18 points in the first half, Pres 

staged a remarkable fight back, including 

a Murphy try. 

“Yeah, but we couldn’t get over the line in 

the end,” says Murphy with a sigh. 

“To lose to Blackrock again, we just 

couldn’t get away from them!” 

After leaving school, Murphy was a part 

of the Leinster Rugby sub-Academy down 

in the Ken Wall Centre of Excellence 

in Energia Park and a year later he 

achieved one of the biggest milestones 

of his career to date as he made his Irish 

U-20 debut against Scotland in the Six 

Nations. 

From the days of being written-off as a 

youngster, to putting in the extras in Pres 

Bray, to now pulling on an Ireland jersey. 

It was an experience that he will never 

forget. 

“It was class. It was probably one of the 

best squads I’ve ever been in. Everything 

just clicked for us at the right time. Some 

of the games were brilliant. Winning 

away to England was probably the 

highlight. It was just unfortunate that we 

couldn’t finish it off. It would have been 

good to see how far that team could 

have gone, but it is what it is.” 

He is, of course, referring to the arrival of 

Covid-19 and the cancelation of the Six 

Nations as a result. 

Ireland U-20s had already beaten 

Scotland, Wales and a hugely impressive 

win away to England in Franklin’s 

Gardens to secure the Triple Crown. The 

first games postponed that year were the 

Irish U-20 and senior games due to take 

place against Italy that week. 

With the country in lockdown, it was 

back to the drawing board for Murphy. 

Or in this case, the Pres Bray pitches 

which are just up the road from his house. 

“We had a small gym set up at home 

and thankfully we live close to Pres Bray, 

so I was able to keep up my individual 

training, which kept me going. It gave me 

something to get up for in the morning, 

which was important for everyone during 

lockdown. I just tried my best to work on 

as many individual things from a rugby 

point of view. 

“And even from a normal life point of 

view, and away from rugby, I probably 

got to do things that I never have time for, 

like catch up on college work!” 

Image: Inpho.ie 


As the country began to come out of 

lockdown, Murphy quickly turned to the 

Energia All-Ireland League to gain some 

match minutes. 

“I went to Clontarf for my first year after 

school, but I had a couple of injuries so 

I only managed a couple of games that 

season. 

“The following year I joined Old Wesley 

and I’ve been there for two seasons now. 

It’s been a bit difficult between injuries 

and Covid which meant that I have only 

played a couple of games for both clubs. 

I picked up a couple of knocks coming 

out of school before Covid hit. Wesley 

are really looking after me and I’m 

really enjoying being with the club.” 

With so little rugby played over 

the past 18 months, the AIL has 

proven to be the perfect place 

for young prospects to gain the 

game time that they need, and 

Murphy is no different. 

“I’ve played four or five times 

for Old Wesley this year 

and I think it really helps the 

young lads in the Academy to 

get game time. When you’re 

training regularly and you’re not 

getting much game time it can 

be hard, you always have 

things to work on so games 

are pretty crucial. 

“A lot of us haven’t had 

too many games with 

Covid in recent years 

so it will definitely be 

a big priority for me 

to make sure I play as 

much as I can over 

the next few months.” 

Speaking of playing 

as much as you can, 

towards the end of 

last season, a call came 

through that gave Murphy an 

incredible opportunity. 

Munster Rugby needed cover at scrum-half 

and invited the Bray native on a threemonth 

loan deal. 

It was a chance no young player could 

pass. 

It’s great whenever you get an 

opportunity to train with the 

senior squad in UCD. It was an 

eye-opener at how fast and 

intense everything is done. 


“It was great timing for me and 

everything just lined up correctly. It was a 

great experience. 

“I learned an awful lot about how senior 

players operate and what good habits 

you need to have in order to be in a 

senior squad. The lads down there really 

looked after me and I really enjoyed it.” 

After two years in the Leinster sub- 

Academy, and his loan deal behind him, 

Murphy was promoted to the Leinster 

Rugby Academy at the start of this 

season. 

After his brief spell with the Munster 

senior side, he had a much better 

idea of what was required on the 

training field with the Leinster squad. 

“It’s great whenever you get an 

opportunity to train with the senior 

squad in UCD. It was an eye-opener at 

how fast and intense everything is done. 

“It’s great to see the next level up so 

closely. It gives you a good indication as 

to where you are at and gives you other 

things you need to work on. If you pause 

for a second you can get caught out and 

made look a bit of a fool, so it keeps you 

on your toes.” 

His focus now is kicking on in his Leinster 

career. 

Earlier this month, Murphy was a member 

of the Leinster Development squad 

that took on the Irish U-20s which was 

another opportunity to impress coaches 

close to home. 

In fact, impress coaches in his actual 

home, as for the first time, Ben would 

be facing a team coached by his father, 

Richie. 

It must have been a strange build up to 

game week in their house? 

“It was very strange. We had a good bit 

of slagging at home leading up to the 

game! But it was good fun,” says Ben 

with a wry smile. 

“It was definitely beneficial for both 

teams as well. Obviously, the Irish lads 

were gearing up for the Six Nations, and 

we want to help the Leinster lads as much 

as we can, but it was nice to beat them 

as well.” 

The Leinster Development squad won 

that game with a last minute try 

to clinch it 24-21, in what was 

a strange game day for the 

Murphys. 

“It was a bit odd because it was 

the first time I played against 

my dad. But I also played for 

him once last year which was also 

a bit strange. I played in one of the 

warm-up games for the Irish U-20s, but 

unfortunately I got injured before the Six 

Nations.” 

It’s clear that Murphy takes each step 

forward in his stride. 

As we begin a new year, the youngster is 

reassuringly level-headed as he prepares 

for 2022. 

“I haven’t played that many games in the 

last while so it’s going to be about getting 

back to Wesley and playing as much 

AIL as I can. Obviously, I’ll take any 

opportunities to train with the senior team 

and then see what happens. 

“But it’s important for me now not to get 

ahead of myself and get as many games 

as I can and go week by week.” 

A long way from the doubters as a young 

lad, Murphy has more than deserved his 

shot to plough his own furrow now. 


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 


& 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 

Did You Know? Marcus is from Clane in Kildare and is the 

youngest of three. His dad went to the High School and then 

played rugby in Old Wesley before coaching back at Clane 

RFC. Marcus has Italian connections on his mother’s side with her 

father, Luigi Rea, being from Italy. Marcus is studying Business 

Management in Griffith College. Instagram: @marcus_hanan 

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 




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 (9 caps) 

Did you know? Jamie is studying commerce in UCD. His 

grandad, Paddy Osborne, was a horse trainer in Naas, 

while his dad played rugby all throughout his life and 

his mum played hockey. Other than rugby, Jamie loves 

all sports especially soccer, GAA and NFL. Jamie is 

currently in a house with fellow Leinster Academy players 

Brian Deeny, Martin Moloney and Max O’Reilly. 

Instagram: @jamieosborne01 


Seán O’Brien #1297 

Lee Barron 

Back Row 

DOB: 31/07/2000 




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 

DOB: 15/02/2001 


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. 

Instagram: @lleebarron 

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. 

Instagram: @chriscosgrave1 

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. 

Instagram: @mark_hernani 

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’. 

Instagram: @lasisi.temi 


Year one 2021/22: 

Scrum half 

Ben Murphy 

DOB: 23/04/2001 



& Leinster Rugby (1 cap) 

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. I 

nstagram: @ben._murphy01 

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. 

Instagram: @jackboyle1 

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. 

Instagram: @robrussell7 


Date 

25/09 

03/10 

09/10 

16/10 

22/10 

27/11 

03/12 

11 Dec 

17 Dec 

KO/ 

Result 

W 

31-3 

W 

7-6 

W 

43-7 

Opposiotion Venue 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 1 2 

URC VODACOM 

BULLS 

URC DRAGONS 

Aviva 

Stadium 

Rodney 

Parade 

URC ZEBRE RDS Arena J O’BRIEN 

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 

W 

50-15 URC SCARLETS RDS Arena KEENAN LARMOUR RINGROSE FRAWLEY 

1C 

W 

31-15 

URC GLASGOW 

Scotstoun 

Stadium 

KEENAN 

1T 

A BYRNE 

1T 

L 

10-20 URC ULSTER RDS Arena J O’BRIEN A BYRNE HENSHAW 

1T 

W 

47-19 URC CONNACHT RDS Arena KEENAN LARMOUR 1T RINGROSE 

1T 

W 

45-20 HCC BATH Aviva 

Stadium 

L 

0-28 

HCC MONTPELLIER 

26/12 P-P URC MUNSTER 

01/01 P-P URC ULSTER 

GGL (Altrad) 

Stadium 

Thomond 

Park 

Kingspan 

Stadium 

07/01 P-P URC SIGMA LIONS RDS Arena 

fixtures and 

results 2021/22 

KEENAN 

1T 

LARMOUR 

1T 

LOWE 

RINGROSE FRAWLEY LOWE 

FRAWLEY 

HENSHAW 

LARMOUR RINGROSE FRAWLEY 

LARMOUR 

LOWE 

LOWE 

1T 

H BYRNE 

SEXTON 

1C 1P 

R BYRNE 

4C 1P 

R BYRNE 

1C 1P 

H BYRNE 

5C 

R BYRNE 

5C 

MCGRATH 

GIBSON-PARK 

MCGRATH 

E BYRNE 

1T 

PORTER 

1T 

HEALY 

CRONIN 

1T 

KELLEHER 

1T 

KELLEHER 

1T 

MCGRATH E BYRNE TRACY 

MCGRATH 

GIBSON-PARK 

2T 

HEALY 

PORTER 

SHEEHAN 

1T 

KELLEHER 1T 

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 

ALAALATOA MOLONY RYAN RUDDOCK VAN DER FLIER 

ALAALATOA BAIRD TONER LEAVY 

FURLONG MOLONY RYAN 

DORIS 

2T 

PENNY 

1T 

VAN DER FLIER 

DORIS 

DEEGAN 

1T 

RUDDOCK 

CONAN 

FURLONG MOLONY BAIRD DORIS LEAVY CONAN 

TRACY 

1T 

E BYRNE HEALY BAIRD DEEGAN GIBSON-PARK 

R BYRNE 

1T 1C 

TRACY E BYRNE HEALY BAIRD LEAVY N MCCARTHY C FRAWLEY 

KELLEHER 

1T 

SHEEHAN 

2T 

SHEEHAN 

1T 

DOOLEY HEALY MOLONY DEEGAN N MCCARTHY 

HEALY 

1T 

ALAALATOA BAIRD RUDDOCK MCGRATH 

SEXTON 

4C 

R BYRNE 

3C 

OSBORNE 

S PENNY 

[UNUSED] 

RUSSELL 

T O’BRIEN 

E BYRNE ALAALATOA TONER RUDDOCK GIBSON-PARK OSBORNE VAN DER FLIER 

FURLONG MOLONY TONER LEAVY PENNY RUDDOCK CRONIN DOOLEY ABDALADZE DEEGAN CONNORS N MCCARTHY H BYRNE T O’BRIEN 

ALA’ALATOA 

BAIRD 

1T 

TONER 

RUDDOCK 

1T 

VAN DER FLIER 

DORIS 

1T 

KELLEHER PORTER ABDALADZE J MURPHY 

DEEGAN 

1T 

N MCCARTHY 

R BYRNE 

1C 

T O’BRIEN 

FURLONG 

1T 

MOLONY BAIRD RUDDOCK 

VAN DER FLIER 

1T 

DORIS SHEEHAN HEALY ALAALATOA TONER DEEGAN MCGRATH J O’BRIEN T O’BRIEN 


Squads matchday 

officials 

REFEREE 

WAYNE BARNES (ENG) 

ASSISTANT REFEREE 

ANTHONY WOODTHORPE (ENG) 

ASSISTANT REFEREE 

JAMIE LEAHY (ENG) 

TMO 

STUART TERHEEGE (ENG) 

Hugo Keenan 

Jordan Larmour 

Garry Ringrose 

Ciarán Frawley 

Jimmy O’brien 

Ross Byrne 

Jamison Gibson-Park 

Andrew Porter 

Rónan Kelleher 

Tadhg Furlong 

Ross Molony 

James Ryan [C] 

Caelan Doris 

Josh Van Der Flier 

Jack Conan 

15 

14 

13 

12 

11 

10 

9 

FULL BACK 

RIGHT WING 

OUTSIDE CENTRE 

INSIDE CENTRE 

LEFT WING 

FLY HALF 

SCRUM HALF 

Axel Bevia 

Gabriel Ngandebe 

Karl Martin 

Thomas Darmon 

Josua Vici 

Louis Foursans 

Gela Aprasidze 

LOOSE HEAD 

1 

PROP Mikheil Nariashvili 

FRONT PAGE 

HOOKER Guilhem Guirado [C] 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 


SECOND ROW 

SECOND ROW 

BLINDSIDE FLANKER 

OPENSIDE FLANKER 

NUMBER 8 

Henry Thomas 

Tyler Duguid 

Mickael Capelli 

Masivesi Dukuwaqa 

Florian Verhaeghe 

Marco Tauleigne 

Dan Sheehan 

Cian Healy 

Michael Ala’alatoa 

Rhys Ruddock 

Max Deegan 

Luke Mc Grath 

Johnny Sexton 

James Lowe 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

REPLACEMENT 

Vincent Giudicelli 

Robert Rodgers 

Titi Lamositele 

Alexandre Becognee 

Aubin Eymeri 

Pierre Lucas 

Nico Janse van Rensburg 

Zach Mercer

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 Shots 

11 December 2021 

The Leinster squad of 

2000/01, led by captain 

Reggie Corrigan with the 

Celtic League trophy, are 

introduced to the crowd 

at half-time during the 

Heineken Champions Cup 

Pool A match between 

Leinster and Bath at Aviva 

Stadium in Dublin. 

Photo by Brendan Moran/ 

Sportsfile 

11 December 2021 

Former Leinster player Fergus 

McFadden with his sons Freddie 

and Alfie is presented a print by 

Liz Power of the OLSC during the 

Heineken Champions Cup Pool A 

match between Leinster and Bath at 

Aviva Stadium in Dublin. 

Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile 


RUGBY. 

DELIVERED. 

TEAMWORK. SPEED. DELIVERY. THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE 

OFFICIAL LOGISTICS PARTNER. DHL.

Leinster vs Montpellier

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