News

Highlights: July 2025

Lions Glory

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/James Crombie

Hugo Keenan‘s name was enshrined in the annals of British & Irish Lions folklore as his try in the final play of the 2nd Test sealed a 29-26 win over the Wallabies, and the series. It rounded off an amazing Lions comeback as they overturned an 18-point deficit against Joe Schmidt’s side. Keenan was one of 11 Irish men named in the matchday squad for the crucial encounter with Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong, Tadhg Beirne, Jack Conan, Jamison Gibson-Park, James Lowe, Bundee Aki, Rónan Kelleher and James Ryan all featuring. 

Other notable aspects of the tour have included late call-ups for Jamie Osborne and Tom Clarkson, captaincy duties for both Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Beirne, a record 9th consecutive Lions Test appearance for Tadhg Furlong, and Mack Hansen‘s catch-up with his former Connacht Rugby teammate Ben O’Donnell. 

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan

If in Doubt…

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan

Garry Ringrose drew widespread acclaim ahead of the 2nd Test as he voluntarily withdrew from the team with lingering symptoms of a head injury suffered in the win over the Brumbies. Ringrose had been selected by Andy Farrell to start outside his international teammate, Bundee Aki. 

Having been unfortunate to miss out on Lions’ tours in both 2017 and 2021, the Dubliner was praised for his selfless act, and for the powerful message it put out to the rugby world regarding brain health. 

Roar Room

Against the backdrop of the UEFA Women’s EURO 2025, several representatives of Rugby Players Ireland were in Switzerland for a two-day event focusing on women’s sport.

Kicking off in Nyon and facilitated by World Players and FIFPRO, Roar Room: the Women’s Sport Strategic Summit gathered union leaders, researchers and player advocates from across the world for interactive sessions designed to address some of the challenges facing the women’s sporting landscape. 

The second day led participants to the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva, for a day of discussions concerning working environments and responsible event hosting in women’s sport. The event was jointly organised by the Swiss government, the Centre for Sport and Human Rights and the ILO.

The Ireland Sports Fund

The Ireland Sports Fund is a new initiative established to support the education and career development of contracted rugby players in Ireland. Driven by former Ireland 7s captain Billy Dardis through the Rugby Players Ireland Foundation, the fund has been launched to empower athletes in their post-playing careers. 

More here. 

Summer Tour

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Ben Brady

Craig Casey was given the honour of captaining his country for this year’s Summer Tour which took in games in both Georgia and Portugal. With a host of players in Australia, the series presented many players with the opportunity to wear green – and many grasped the chance.

Tommy O’Brien was one who didn’t let the moment pass him by. The Leinster winger grabbed a brace within the first ten minutes of his debut against Georgia. O’Brien was also joined in making his international bow by Darragh Murray, with Jack Aungier, Michael Milne, Tom Ahern and Ben Murphy coming off the bench. While Georgia made Ireland work hard, they were ultimately deflated by 5-34 defeat. 

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Ben Brady

This was then followed by a record-breaking 106-7 victory against Portugal in Lisbon, which saw Ireland score a total of 16 tries, with notable performances from debutants like Hugh Gavin and Shayne Bolton who both scored twice, along with Tommy O’Brien who now has four in two. Alex Kendellen, another debutant, also scored. 

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Ben Brady

Rugby World Cup

Preparations for the Rugby World Cup in England next month stepped up several paces over recent weeks. 

Frustratingly, the side have been dealt with a blow with the news that Aoife Wafer may miss part of the tournament. The Women’s Six Nations Player of the Championship is currently joined on the sidelines by Erin King and Dorothy Wall who have already been ruled out.

However, Sam Monaghan has worked her way back to full fitness and was named to lead the team in their first warm-up game against Scotland, along with the returning Béibhinn Parsons and newcomers Ivana Kiripati, Nancy McGillivray and Ailish Quinn. 

Tackle Your Feelings

Speaking of upping the ante, with the return of schools in the coming weeks the TYF team have been hard at work on something very exciting! While we were sorry to see the departure of Aaron Buggle, we were delighted to welcome Bairbre Hassett as Interim Campaign Manager. A Sports Psychology Consultant, Bairbe has been busy getting up to speed – but still had time to write a piece on how investing time into wellbeing pays dividends on the sports field and in the office. 

Read Bairbre’s article in Business Plus here. 

Anna McHale, PhD Researcher on the TYF Schools Programme, also contributed a piece on embracing setbacks. 

Farewells

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Travis Prior

Following the cessation of the Men’s 7s programme, Jordan Conroy has announced his retirement from professional rugby. Conroy was a key member of an Irish side that scaled unprecedented heights on the World Series, and was widely acclaimed for his try-scoring abilities. 

Meanwhile, as his former teammate Conor Phillips turns heads in the Love Island villa, we caught up with Matt McDonald who is spinning a whole new story of his own. Born in South Africa, McDonald has used time on the sidelines of late to bump up his burgeoning reputation as a DJ.

Read it here.

Moving On

Ben Brownlee has signed for Harbour Rugby in New Zealand. The former Leinster Rugby academy player spent a period on loan with Munster last season. In recent seasons he has also been a Rugby Players IReland player representative who advocated strongly on issues affecting academy players. 

After several seasons in Galway, Conor Oliver has signed on with Ealing Trailfinders ahead of the new season. Having joined Sale Sharks on a short-term deal last season, Tadgh McElroy has seen his contract extended at the club. 

Beyond the Game

Our inaugural Past Player Padel tournament took place at the House of Padel in Dublin. With almost 40 in attendance, there was plenty of healthy competition with Kevin McLaughlin and Paul Clinch ultimately ousting Simon Danielli and Bryan Mollen in the Advanced Final. Ailsa Hughes and Paul Marshall were the victors in the Intermediate Final.

The Padel Tournament is just one way in which our new Beyond the Game programme is giving former players the opportunity to reconnect, both with each other and with Rugby Players Ireland.

In the past month it was also a pleasure to link back in with former Munster Rugby and Connacht Rugby winger Alex Wootton who shared his experience of the transition out of the game. Now back in the UK with his young family, Wootton recently opened The Sheds – a coffee shop that is largely influenced by his rugby playing days in Ireland

Read Alex’s article here.

Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne

Former Irish U20 player Alan Tynan came off the bench to help Tipperary claim an emphatic victory over Cork in the All-Ireland Hurling Final at Croke Park. As the team’s Sport Psychologist , Cathal Sheridan can also be credited for the manner in which the side made their way through a difficult campaign. 

A British & Irish Legends side featuring Jamie Hagan, Shane Byrne, Mike Ross, Craig Gilroy and Tom Court faced off against the Classic Wallabies, losing 41-31 in the first of a two-game series. A raft of players were drafted in for the 2nd Test, including Harry McNulty who was also on the sidelines to greet Hugo Keenan following the latter’s heroic display.