A big loss. Although the laws now mean an NIQ player must be playing in a country for five years to become IQ, Ireland made hay when the rule was three years, and have probably gained the most out of any of the Six Nations sides. James Lowe, CJ Stander, Jared Payne, and Jamison Gibson-Park […]

4 months ago

“Not on my watch”, was a phrase we had as players. Ian Jones had the pleasure of playing Ireland four times in his 79-Test All Blacks career. New Zealand were pushed close in Dunedin, in 1992, but responded by trouncing Ireland 59-6 the weekend after. The other two victories were also blow-outs. An amateur when […]

6 years ago

The countdown is well and truly on… In just two days time Ireland will take on New Zealand in a game that is being touted as a meeting of the two best teams in rugby at present. Joe Schmidt’s men have a chance to top the world rankings for the first time in history if […]

7 years ago

Can you just imagine what Brian O’Driscoll and Ma’a Nonu could do in midfield together? Reports in New Zealand, this weekend, suggest Ma’a Nonu could be in line for a third, and presumably final, stint at Auckland Blues. After three years of storming around Europe with Toulon, the 36-year-old is in line to see out […]

8 years ago

Rugby World Cup winner Conrad Smith revealed he looked up to former Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll when he first started his career. Smith scored three tries in seven games against Ireland over an 11-year career with New Zealand, winning every match, but he said he enjoyed playing against Ireland and that he had fond memories […]

8 years ago

Rugby World Cup winner Conrad Smith has said that Ireland centre Bundee Aki was highly rated in New Zealand but was a player who was just unfortunate not to have been selected by the All Blacks. Aki moved to the west of Ireland from the Waikato Chiefs in 2014 and won a PRO12 title with […]

8 years ago