‘He could have saved Matt, if he was brave enough to pick him.’ Back in early March, as Ireland were on their march to a Grand Slam, Brian O’Driscoll recalled some funny stories about his time as a young pup in the Test squad. Asked what young Ireland player stood out most, from his 15 […]

2 years ago

“I could have done with you on some of the selection committees!” Ian Madigan has announced that he must retire from rugby due to injury but has insisted ‘this is not a sad story’ in a poignant essay shared on Instagram. The former Leinster, Ulster and Ireland star hangs up his boots after giving up […]

2 years ago

“It would look like someone has ransacked your room.” Finding the perfect roommate for away trips is not an exact science and there can be several botched experiments before a good match is found. That is why so many players opt to team up and will not be parted. Younger squad players are often roomed […]

5 years ago

“There were no cheap shots, no off-the-ball stuff.” Glad to hear it! On Sunday, Ireland welcomed down the senior Ulster squad to the High Performance Centre, in Dublin, for a full-throttle Six Nations warm-up. Conscious that they would like their players tossed into pressure-cooker situations, and that the Ulster squad were in need of a […]

5 years ago

“Eimear, will you and Ian stop talking about Ulster, please?!” While the Champions Cup has been postponed until a later date, the 2021 Guinness Six Nations is set to proceed from early February. France have already named their extended squad, but Ireland may wait until later this month to follow suit. The last two weekends’ Guinness […]

5 years ago

“Ethan McIlroy was phenomenal, and deservedly won Player of the Match.” Such was the spectre of Leinster, and their long winning streak, that the initial take from many rugby fans was that Ulster might live to regret just getting four points against Munster. Beating an ever-improving Munster side at home was no longer enough any […]

5 years ago