'Coming from Munster, it's all you want to do. It's such a proud club'

The 42

a day ago

IT'S A FRESH, bright weekday morning in Melbourne and the city is alive with people bustling to work.
As the rush goes on outside, Alex McHenry is sitting in a quiet hotel lobby, taking a moment to pause and reflect. The former Munster centre will be in the office soon himself, but he's good enough to explain how he has come to live here.
At the age of 27, McHenry is an ex-professional rugby player, but there wasn't any dramatic retirement. He came to Australia 12 months ago for an adventure and he's had no reason to go home yet. The Cork man reckons he'll stay for another few years.
He's still playing rugby in Melbourne with the superbly-named Power House in the Dewar Shield, the highest level of the club game in this neck of the woods. It was rugby that partly brought him to Australia in the first place, McHenry making a big impact as he helped Easts to win the Shute Shield in Sydney last year.
McHenry finished up with Pro D2 side Dax at the end of the 2023/24 season and had spoken to a few other French clubs before he caught wind of Easts needing a centre. His older brother, Jack, was already living in Bondi and McHenry knew a few others in Sydney. Two weeks after chatting to Easts for the first time, they were flying him Down Under.
It was only supposed to be for two or three months, but McHenry left knowing that it might be longer.
'It's funny because I was packing my bags to go, and my mum said, 'Why are you packing so much?' and I was like, 'If I really enjoy this, I'm staying.'
And he loved it. McHenry moved in with former Munster scrum-half Jack Stafford, who was already playing for Manly in the Shute Shield, and Wexford man Barry O'Connor, who played for the AFL's Sydney Swans.
Alex McHenry playing for Easts in Sydney. Easts Rugby Easts Rugby
McHenry made a big impact on the pitch, helping Easts to end their 55-year drought by winning the Shute Shield. The Irish centre played with the likes of Charlie Gamble, who impressed against the Lions twice recently, and Waratahs wing Darby Lancaster.
And away from rugby, he got stuck in too. McHenry's cousin moved to Sydney 15 years ago and runs a construction company, so he got a job there for six months.
'It was the most humbling thing ever, concreting motorways,' says McHenry.
'I walked onto the site one day and the lads were like, 'You're not cut out for this, your hands are too soft to be here,' but that was a bit of craic and got you by in the off-season.'
Just three weeks after he arrived in Sydney, McHenry got a contract offer from third-tier French club Rouen.
He had enjoyed his time with Dax and weighed up Roeun's offer, but decided to stay in Sydney.
'I was like, 'Do I keep on chasing this?' I just kind of came to the stage in my career where, yes, you could go back, but you're probably taking a contract that's not worth that much money and it's like, how long are you prolonging the inevitable?
'It was a difficult decision and you probably had sleepless nights over it and still do, but I'm happy with the decision I made.'
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One of the other reasons Australia was so attractive was that McHenry's partner, Louise, was already there.
McHenry won the Shute Shield with Easts. Easts Rugby Easts Rugby
She was down in Melbourne working as a chemical engineer and so, when the Shute Shield season ended with Easts, McHenry made the move south.
They've been together for years, but this is their first time living together. Having seen him move from Munster to Wasps on loan, then onto Jersey Reds and Dax, Louise had decided to do her own thing and head Down Under. Happily, Alex joined her.
He now works with tech software company Workvivo, which was founded in Cork in 2017, acquired by Zoom in 2023, has an office in Sydney, but allows McHenry to work remotely from Melbourne.
Having earned an economics degree from UCC at the encouragement of his mother, it feels like a better fit than the construction site. Melbourne is also a brilliant city for anyone into their sport.
Rugby union in Melbourne isn't as strong as in Sydney and other Australian cities, especially since the demise of the Rebels, but McHenry is enjoying playing with Power House, who have a huge number of Irish players including former Ireland U18 international Cian McGovern.
'It's funny, our changing rooms are in the Grand Prix pit lanes [at Albert Park], so you come out the door and you see where the cars pull in for their pit stops,' says McHenry.
'Power House is a great club. There's a massive Irish connection there. There's a real family element to the club. It's a step down [from Shute Shield] and has that social element, which is good.
'You probably do miss the higher level, but in terms of club, it's been brilliant.'
McHenry in action for Power House in Melbourne. Power House Power House
It's a world away from Munster. McHenry came through Christian Brothers College and Cork Constitution, played for the Ireland U20s in 2017 and earned a place in the Munster academy.
He was highly rated and though he earned three senior caps, it just never quite happened for McHenry under Johann van Graan. There were times when it looked like McHenry might kick on but with Damian de Allende and Chris Farrell having the centre spots locked down, it was tough.
McHenry's only hint of regret is that he didn't have a bit more of a vicious edge in training, but it was a frustrating time as he watched close friends like Shane Daly, Gavin Coombes, and Calvin Nash kicking on.
'I was annoyed because I wasn't playing. You feel like you can offer something and that didn't happen but you make your peace with those sorts of things.
'I had some brilliant years in Munster as well. I'd say I could be one of the most capped A players ever! But you grow up with a group of lads and I'm delighted to see lots of my academy group have pushed on to be internationals now.'
His debut for Munster away to Benetton in 2019 when he was still in the academy was the big highlight of that time.
McHenry was over in the US with Munster A for the one-off Cara Cup competition when he was called home early to go onto the bench for the trip to Treviso. It should have been purely exciting, but McHenry ended up dealing with lots of stress.
'Because of all the travel, my hips got really tight and they locked up,' he says with a smile.
McHenry with Damian de Allende. James Crombie / INPHO James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
'I was crocked before the match but they're like, 'Whatever you do now, don't pull out because you're going to get on the pitch, you'll get your debut.'
'I got 90 seconds off the bench, but it was massive, playing with those lads that you grew up with. Coming from Munster, it's all you want to do. It's such a proud club and it's boyhood dream kind of stuff.'
His parents, John and Sylvia, were watching back in Cork with Daly's parents. Daly scored his first Munster try as McHenry got his debut. McHenry's parents still have a champagne cork from that night.
They're currently over in Melbourne to visit him and Louise, as well as take in the second Lions Test today.
'They give so much,' says McHenry of his parents. 'They came to Jersey a couple of times and they came to Dax last year with my aunt and uncle. They kept being like, 'What's the next trip?''
Now, they're all enjoying Australia. Jack has settled in Sydney, where he plays 'subbies' rugby, and youngest brother Harry has just finished university in Cork.
The McHenrys lived in Kildare until Alex was 11 because John, a professional golfer, worked at the K Club but they 'thankfully saw some wisdom' and moved back to Cork, where rugby took over.
Playing for Munster was a dream come true, then McHenry played for Wasps on loan in 2021 before joining Jersey when he left his native province in 2022. Sadly, both English clubs ended up going bust.
McHenry with his good friend Shane Daly. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO
Playing with Dax in the Pro D2 was another fantastic experience for McHenry, who couldn't get over the sight of the club's players smoking cigarettes outside the gym, with the S&C coach sometimes joining them. The rugby was ferocious and fun.
Now, he's loving life in Australia. He's had a couple of clubs in Sydney getting in touch and a return to the Shute Shield is possibly on the cards next year. Getting back to that semi-professional level would be welcome.
Yet McHenry is slowly starting to feel at ease looking back on his days as a pro rugby player.
'You do have those nights when you relay conversations and think how things could have gone. But that's almost a toxic way to be thinking. I've gotten better over the last few months, I'm really happy with life.
'I've a good job. I want to start saving money to buy a house, or build a family, or to set myself up financially moving forward. Rugby probably wasn't going to do that for me. Not that it's all about finances, but that is important.
'You do your bit, you give your best, but then it comes to this age where you know plenty of lads who do kind of f*ck about and then they're 33 or 34 and going into an entry-level salary.
'It was the right time for me.'