Diarmuid Mangan making rapid strides towards the top
It was always a case of 'when' Diarmuid Mangan would break into the
Leinster
team rather than 'if'.
Even so, for him to describe the last 12 months since making his debut for the province away to Zebre as 'decent' must be one of the season's understatements.
Mangan started his seventh match of Leinster's season in last Saturday's 41-17 win over
Ulster
and has played in six of the province's last seven games, making his
Champions Cup
debut off the bench against Glasgow a week previously.
An athletic, skilful lock/backrow who was part of the Irish Under-20 team which won Grand Slams in 2022 and 2023 and also reached the World Under-20 Championship in 2023, in the midst of all this Mangan was also called up to the Irish senior squad during the
Six Nations
.
READ MORE
'It definitely came as a shock,' admits the 22-year-old, who received the call from Simon Easterby the day after playing the full 80 in Leinster's tough 22-19 win away to the Ospreys.
'I was in my sittingroom roaring and shouting at my two brothers while trying to do my debrief from the game and then next minute, my phone started ringing. It was Simon Easterby's number and I was like to the two of them 'lads, you need to be quiet here. This is a serious phone call'.
'I was nervous going in but having the likes of Sam and Cian Prendergast in there, and Jamie Osborne as well, helped,' says Mangan.
'I would have known Jamie from playing at Naas Rugby Club and I would have lived with him for two years, so having him, Sam and Cian in there definitely gave me a bit of comfort.
'I could bounce things off those lads and chat to them about kind of what it was going to be like. I learned loads in that camp and it's an environment I really want to get back to.'
Diarmuid Mangan with Daniel Hawkshw, left, and Sam Prendergast, right, on Ireland Under 20 duty in 2023. Photograph: Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho
Sam Prendergast is a good friend, as well as team-mate through the ranks, since they were five-years-old.
'Our dads were both in the Army, working with the UN in Syria. Our families would have been very close and have a good connection. So, it's class to be able to play in these games with him and it feels so natural. It's unbelievable when you take a step back and realise this is something we chatted about when we were 15/16 and playing at Newbridge together and it's happening now.
'He takes everything in his stride and he's so calm,' adds Mangan, admitting the younger Prendergast has been both an inspiration and a sounding board.
'We would be over at his house for barbecues when we're younger, we'd always be playing on the green. I've got three brothers and there was himself and Cian so we'd always be playing tag rugby, soccer, Gaelic.
His skill level is just unbelievable. Like you can see it now he's able to kick off both feet, his range of passing is unbelievable. He's always had those skills.'
On Mangan's sole weekend off in this run of Leinster games, he made his sixth AIL appearance of the season for UCD in a side featuring eight Leinster players, including four who played in the province's win over the Sharks in Durban a week previously, which preserved the club's 1A status with a 40-10 last-day win at Young Munster.
'They have been huge for me and stayed huge for me. As an academy player, the physicality is just that small bit below the
URC
and if you're not selected for URC or Champions Cup, you are getting a great test on a Saturday. You can take huge confidence from big performances in there to go into these URC games. Dan Sheehan's father, Barry, is the president. So it was so nice to be involved in keeping the club up.'
In what's been a hectic few months, Mangan has also taken enormous pride in travelling down to Cork with his parents to support his younger brother Ciarán in Ireland's Under-20 Six Nations campaign.
'It was great to share those experiences and hopefully I'll get to play with him, fingers crossed, with Leinster over the next few years.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
30 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Chrissy McKaigue says reports of Derry's demise have been greatly exaggerated
Chrissy McKaigue considers the portrayal of Derry's winless season, and feels it is too rudimentary to judge everything solely on the results. Because Derry are back in Newry this Saturday, and they might just be back in business too. The last time the Oak Leafers won a competitive match in regulation time was their All-Ireland SFC round three group game against Westmeath at Páirc Esler in Newry on June 15th, 2024. They subsequently beat Mayo after a penalty shootout in a preliminary quarter-final before losing to Kerry in the last eight. McKaigue played in all three of those games – scoring the crucial equalising point at the end of normal time in Castlebar – but in November the 2022 All-Star defender announced his intercounty retirement. 'I've settled in relatively well and that's probably a good thing, because when your gut tells you that it's time to move on and several months down the line it still feels that way, that's a fairly good indication that the time was right,' he says. READ MORE 'From around May onwards, every time I was coming out of the Owenbeg changing rooms I was going, 'This is one less visit that I'm going to have in the years to come'. Time moves on quickly and you realise that everyone's replaceable.' Haste wasn't Derry GAA's strong point last autumn, and they were the last county to appoint a senior football manager for 2025, with Paddy Tally confirmed as boss in mid-November. It has been a difficult maiden season for Tally, but their recent draw with Galway in the second round of group games felt like a statement performance. The aim now is to add a statement win against Dublin in Newry on Saturday. McKaigue does not agree with the view that Derry's footballers have been spiralling since the end of last year's league campaign. ' It depends on your definition of dropping off the edge of a cliff,' he replies when asked about Derry's 12-month slump. ' We won the Division One National League title, which is no mean feat. Now, is it that Derry failed in terms of meeting their expectations in the championship? Absolutely, but there has been a narrative created last year that Derry's senior footballers had the worst season ever. 'They won the McKenna Cup, I'm not claiming it to be anything overly special – but they still won it. They won Division One of the National League, they didn't have a good championship campaign, but it's all relative because they were beaten by Donegal, Armagh, Galway and eventually Kerry – three out of the four teams that reached the All-Ireland semi-finals. Derry still reached the quarter-finals. 'I can remember many poorer years for Derry in the championship than last year, but it was sort of built up into this catastrophe of a year. It was more that we didn't meet expectations. 'It's amazing that narrative was sort of depicted in so many areas, and I felt Mickey Harte last year got a lot of scrutiny that was a wee bit over the top at times. 'I still feel that Derry are a contender for Sam Maguire, maybe not this year in the same capacity as last year, but do I feel that Derry squad will have the potential to be a contender for Sam Maguire in the next number of years? I do. 'I know that's the ambition for Derry as a county. I'd like to think that wouldn't be based upon delusion, that would be based upon fact and logic. In the last three years, back-to-back semi-finals and last year quarter-finals, so you'd like to think there's a wee bit of substance in that claim. 'This year hasn't gone very well, but there have been legitimate reasons for that.' And as for Derry's winless streak, McKaigue believes there are various ways to juggle those stats. 'Winning on penalties counts as a victory, we went down to Mayo and beat them,' he says. 'Just to make sure you're writing that now, because I don't buy into that narrative. Winning on penalties still works. 'By the time Derry play Dublin next weekend, they'll have played 11 competitive games this year, and each of the 11 games will have been played against Division One standard teams. So it's all relative too, the standard of opposition they have played against this year has been of a really high standard. 'You have to give Paddy Tally a bit of slack too, in regards that we're missing Conor McCluskey and Gareth McKinless. From a Derry perspective, they are two generational players.' Still, unless they get something from their clash with Dublin on Saturday, Derry's 2025 season will be over. 'You would imagine Dublin's efficiency will be better than (it was against Armagh),' says McKaigue. 'But you're going to Newry, you're going to a tighter pitch, you're going to a proper championship game where it literally is winner takes all. 'Are Derry capable of beating Dublin? Absolutely, but Dublin are also capable of beating Derry. People aren't quite sure where Derry and Dublin both are in the pecking order, so you would like to think after the next game there will be a bit more transparency shed on that one. 'I just think Dublin will have a big say in this year's All-Ireland, potentially. I hope they don't, because that will mean that Derry will have turned them over. 'They're a different side without Con O'Callaghan, too. He is their David Clifford. He is their leader. He does so much for them and gives them that composure and that settled feeling .' Chrissy McKaigue was speaking at the launch of the 2025 Electric Ireland GAA All-Ireland minor championships
Irish Daily Mirror
31 minutes ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Simon Zebo: Leinster's new siege mentality and 'arrogant' approach of the past
Simon Zebo claims arrogance is part of the reason why Leinster are desperate to break a four-year wait for silverware on former Munster and Ireland star doesn't believe that the Blues are over their Champions Cup hangover, despite looking more focused against Glasgow in the URC semi-final last he believes the siege mentality that the province has projected since their unconvincing URC quarter-final victory over Scarlets can work in their favour in the Grand Final showdown with the Bulls at Croke 2021 URC decider was the last time that Leo Cullen's charges lifted a trophy. Since then, they have come so close in the Champions Cup but fell short in two finals and two semi-finals, and that has fed into their failure to reach the URC final until now. "A bit of it would be mental," said former Munster and Ireland star Zebo. "There were a few selection calls in the past. When Munster beat them in that semi-final (in 2023), they rested a lot of the bigger players and it was a very weakened team. "There were a couple of little arrogant things through selection. But when they're fully loaded, they're an incredible team. It's a bit of a headache. Now those players have to play three games back to back to back. "Will the third one sting them? I don't know. They usually rotate quite a lot. It's not all mental, but it's part of it for sure." Speaking after last weekend's semi-final win over Glasgow, Joe McCarthy claimed 'everyone loves to hate Leinster so that definitely drives us on'. Zebo believes such a mindset could benefit Leinster after a succession of play-off failures. "They're probably out to prove people wrong and that will probably help," he said."Their previous mentality hasn't worked so I suppose going in with a fresh mindset, maybe Jack Nienaber might have had some insight there, he's a brilliant motivator and gets the players going."I don't like Leinster, just because they're rivals. Munster dislike them and they dislike Munster, that's no problem. It's like Barcelona and Real Madrid in soccer. Of course you don't like your rivals - but I don't think the general public hate Leinster as much as maybe they believe inside the camp. I don't know, maybe I'm wrong."However Zebo does believe opposition coaches are right to mention the gulf that exists between their clubs and Leinster in terms of finance and resources."There's 15 internationals or maybe more, I don't know how many internationals they have," said the former Ireland star. "They have 12 Lions, the biggest representation ever. They have loads of money, they have private schools. They have everything. "They have a different mindset to other teams who are backs against the wall and underdogs and stuff. I can see why other coaches (say that). "They are favourites in nearly every game for a reason, you know. They have a class team, class players. So yeah, they're not hated - but people want to see the underdogs win and they're never the underdogs."For many, Leinster's 37-19 victory over the defending champions last week was a welcome return to normality after their Champions Cup disappointment. Zebo doesn't agree that the hangover is over. "No, I thought Glasgow were poor," he stressed. "I thought Leinster were good without being great. The Bulls will be very different."I felt Leinster did up their game and Glasgow weren't as good as I thought they would be. Again, the Bulls will definitely be better. Whether or not they win I don't know, but I'm not convinced yet. "I don't think the performances since Northampton from Leinster and those 12 Lions were back to their best rugby. Not yet anyway, but they are all capable of doing that.'When the final is over, the Lions dozen will turn their thoughts to touring - and that initial game against Argentina at the Aviva Stadium."If they were able to win collectively and get the first title over the Bulls, then they'd be walking with a little bit of a swagger into camp as opposed to being on the edge," said Zebo, who toured in 2013 when the Lions were last in Australia."It would boost their confidence a bit but there's other confident lads there too. There's top operators across the board, not just that Leinster contingent. 'For sure it will definitely help the confidence and the momentum, especially with the Lions core being Irish-heavy. If those lads perform and pick up the URC that will bring a lot of confidence back and it will bode well for the squad as a whole. 'So it is a pretty important fixture this week. There is a lot of pressure on Leinster and looking down the line at the Lions and form and getting picked then this match has huge significance, for sure.'
Irish Independent
4 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Wexford GAA reveals new sponsor for underage competitions
For the last 21 years OmniPro has provided a range of consulting, training and support services for Irish accounting firms and their SME clients. OmniPro provide tax, company law, corporate finance, recruitment, technical support and profitability advisory to firms and their clients throughout Ireland. Based in Ferns, its CEO is Des O'Neill, whose family has a long-standing involvement in the GAA at all levels. Des said: 'I see every week during the playing season the immense effort put in by players and their coaches alike, and how much taking part in these championships means to them' 'There's nothing quite like watching young hurlers and footballers playing with heart and determination, and all the while building teamwork, discipline, and character. It reminds us of why we love the games in the first place. I am delighted to be able to contribute to their journey. 'The children of today are our future. They are the foundation on which the GAA is built,' he added. Cathaoirleach of Wexford GAA, John Kenny, has thanked Des and OmniPro for their support. 'This contribution is an investment in young people, their development, and their dreams,' he said. 'It will help us to continue a games programme that brings some 50 different Cup and Shield competitions each year. Not only does this games programme mean that each player has a title to aim for, but it also creates an environment where they can experience the joy of the games, build friendships, and learn valuable life lessons. We are very grateful for OmniPro support and how it enables us to continue to do this.' John added his thanks to People Newspapers and the Irish Independent for their previous sponsorship of the competitions, and their ongoing great coverage of Gaelic games at all levels in the county. 'We are lucky to enjoy such a good relationship with the local media and I thank them sincerely for all the space they afford for match reports and other Gaelic games news each week,' he said. This year's OmniPro Under-14 Championships are already under way, while the Under-16 and Minor Championships are to commence in the coming weeks, following the conclusion of State Exams.
