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Irish Times
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
IRFU's ‘A' Interprovincial Championship providing valuable game time for players
Last weekend Leinster won the reconstituted 'A' Interprovincial Championship by beating Ulster 35-21 at Gibson Park, a result that went unheralded in the media – not even worth a brief with the scoreline, never mind a report. The teams contained a liberal sprinkling of outstanding young talent alongside several names that will be familiar from the senior provincial match day squads. The IRFU relaunched the competition with a view to not only celebrating its 150th anniversary but also as a playing outlet going forward to provide game time. The IRFU's performance director David Humphreys said at the time: 'With the success of the Emerging Ireland tours, coupled with the return of an 'A' international against England next year, it is vital that we continue to provide players at provincial and club levels with opportunities to impress outside of the traditional URC and EPCR fixture windows. 'Discussions have been ongoing for some time to provide players with meaningful games and all four provinces are unanimously supportive of this competition. It is also great to see provinces taking matches around their local clubs.' READ MORE Despite the lukewarm reaction from mainstream media and supporters, the tournament has proved to be a godsend for academy players in the four provinces, for whom the majority would otherwise have been largely limited to playing AIL club matches. Nothing wrong with that if a player is lining out in Division 1A but there's a significant drop-off in standard for every rung of the ladder beneath. There is no substitute for matches, where practice examines theory. All the training and gym work in the world can help to nurture, but won't refine, a player's rugby IQ. But matches, specifically URC and either Champions Cup or Challenge Cup, were in relatively short supply for many players in the four provincial academies. At the start of the 2024-2025 season there were 74 players listed in provincial academies across a three-year cycle. They were ascribed as follows: Leinster 22 (Year 1 – 10, Year 2 – 7, Year 3 – 5); Ulster 20 (7, 11, 2), Munster 19 (7, 6, 6) and Connacht 13 (4, 5, 4). In macro terms Connacht played the fewest academy players in URC and Challenge Cup games, three of 13 (23 per cent). Ulster, in URC and Champions Cup, gave competitive game time to five of 20 (25 per cent); Munster, likewise, to seven of 19 (37 per cent); while Leinster provided the most opportunities to academy players with 14 of 22 (64 per cent), seeing game time in URC and Champions Cup. Leinster academy hooker Gus McCarthy made his Ireland debut against Fiji in the November internationals. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho Taken in an overall context, roughly 60 per cent of academy players in the four provinces – 45 out of 74 – did not see a single minute in either the URC or Champions and Challenge Cups in Europe. A magnificent seven first-year academy players played senior provincial tournament rugby, with the standout performer Ulster outhalf Jack Murphy, who notched 894 minutes across 13 matches with 11 starts. Four Leinster players, hooker Stephen Smyth (five games – 65 minutes), scrumhalf Oliver Coffey (two games – 14 minutes), wing Reuben Moloney (one – three minutes) and secondrow Alan Spicer (one – two minutes); one Munster player, hooker Danny Sheahan (one – 15 minutes); and two Ulster players – Murphy and centre Wilhelm de Klerk (two – 104 minutes) also managed the landmark achievement. US-born tight head prop Niall Smyth has gone from year-one academy to a senior contract for next season despite missing most of the season following shoulder surgery. There were other eye-catching numbers, not least Murphy's former Pres Bray team-mate Finn Treacy (eight matches – 489 minutes) who had a brilliant season with Connacht, while in Leinster hooker Gus McCarthy (14 – 583 minutes), who was also capped by Ireland, secondrow Diarmuid Mangan (12 – 667 minutes), wing Andrew Osborne (10 – 669 minutes) and centre Charlie Tector (10 – 589 minutes) all enhanced their status. It is germane to point out that Munster prop Darragh McSweeney, backrow Luke Murphy, centre Fionn Gibbons and prop Ronan Foxe had seasons curtailed by injury; so too prop Alex Usanov (Leinster) and secondrow Spicer (Leinster). The pointy end of the decision-making process comes in year three where, if a player hasn't already received a senior contract, it is the end of the line with the buffers in view. Only scrumhalf Jack Oliver of that cohort hasn't progressed at Munster, released early to take up a contract with the Glasgow Warriors. In Leinster, centre Ben Brownlee, Aitzol Arenzana-King and Rory McGuire leave the province, with the latter two heading for contracts with Richie Murphy's Ulster. The other year-three players, Mangan and Tector, have upgraded to senior contracts as have a plethora of year-twos in Munster and Leinster. The new intake to the academies will be announced shortly (Ulster have released five players) but, as this season has proved, trying to find space to expose them to elite-level rugby is a difficult challenge and for many a composite itinerary of A interpros and club matches will have to suffice. Leinster Age Position Matches (starts) Minutes Aitzol Arenzana-King (Year 3) 22 Wing 2 (1) 62 Ben Brownlee (3) 22 Centre 0 0 Oliver Coffey (1) 20 Scrumhalf 2 (0) 14 Hugh Cooney (2) 21 Centre 5 (4) 325 Billy Corrigan (1) 19 Secondrow/Backrow 0 0 Casper Gabriel (1) 20 Outhalf 0 0 Fintan Gunne (2) 21 Scrumhalf 12 (3) 368 Diarmuid Mangan (3) 22 Secondrow/Backrow 12 (8) 667 Gus McCarthy (2) 21 Hooker 14 (7) 583 Henry McErlean (2) 22 Fullback 2 (1) 80 Rory McGuire (3) 22 Prop 5 (0) 51 Hugo McLaughlin (1) 20 Fullback 0 0 Reuben Moloney (1) 21 Fullback 1 (0) 3 Liam Molony (2) 21 Flanker 0 0 Conor O'Tighearnaigh (2) 22 Secondrow 1 (1) 50 Andrew Osborne (2) 21 Wing 10 (9) 669 Niall Smyth (1) 19 Prop 0 0 Stephen Smyth (1) 20 Hooker 5 (0) 65 Andrew Sparrow (1) 20 Prop 0 0 Alan Spicer (1) 20 Secondrow 1 (0) 2 Charlie Tector (3) 23 Outhalf/Ccentre 10 (7) 589 Alex Usanov (1) 19 Prop 0 0 Munster Age Position Matches (starts) Minutes Max Clein (2) 21 Hooker 0 0 Seán Edogbo (1) 21 Backrow 0 0 Ronan Foxe (2) 22 Prop 3 (0) 15 Michael Foy (1) 19 Secondrow/Backrow 0 0 Fionn Gibbons (3) 22 Centre 0 0 George Hadden (2) 22 Prop 0 0 Dylan Hicks (2) 20 Outhalf 0 0 Shay McCarthy (2) 22 Wing 6 (3) 307 Darragh McSweeney (3) 22 Prop 0 0 Luke Murphy (1) 20 Backrow 0 0 Evan O'Connell (3) 21 Secondrow 5 (3) 213 Ben O'Connor (2) 20 Fullback 7 (5) 414 Gene O'Leary Kareem (1) 19 Centre 0 0 Jake O'Riordan (1) 20 Scrumhalf 0 0 Jack Oliver (3) 22 Scrumhalf 0 0 Ruadhán Quinn (3) 21 Backrow 11 (2) 306 Kieran Ryan (3) 23 Prop 8 (0) 113 Danny Sheahan (1) 21 Hooker 1 (0) 15 Gordon Wood (1) 20 Centre 0 0 Ulster Age Position Matches (starts) Minutes Sam Berman (1) 21 Centre 0 0 Jack Boal (2) 22 Prop 0 0 Jacob Boyd (2) 20 Prop 1 (1) 48 Tom Brigg (2) 20 Backrow 0 0 Wilhelm de Klerk (1) 20 Centre 2 (0) 104 Cameron Doak (2) 20 Prop 0 0 Ethan Graham (2) 21 Wing 0 0 Joe Hopes (3) 21 Secondrow 0 0 Charlie Irvine (2) 22 Secondrow 1 (1) 80 Lukas Kenny (2) 20 Wing 0 0 Clark Logan (1) 19 Scrumhalf 0 0 Ben McFarlane (2) 20 Fullback/wing 0 0 James McKillop (1) 20 Backrow 0 0 Jack Murphy (1) 20 Outhalf 13 (11) 894 Jonny Scott (1) 20 Centre 0 0 Zac Solomon (2) 20 Hooker 0 0 Josh Stevens (2) 20 Backrow 0 0 Rory Telfer (3) Wing 4 (1) 151 Henry Walker (2) 19 Hooker 0 0 Bryn Ward (1) 20 Backrow 0 0 Connacht Age Position Matches (starts) Minutes Fiachna Barrett (2) 22 Prop 1 (0) 20 Billy Bohan (1) 19 Prop 0 0 John Devine (3) 21 Centre 0 0 Tomás Farthing (1) 19 Scrumhalf 0 0 Max Flynn (1) 20 Flanker 0 0 Daniel Hawkshaw (3) 23 Centre 0 0 Shane Mallon (3) 23 Wing 0 0 Éanna McCarthy (1) 20 No 8 0 0 Seán Naughton (2) 20 Outhalf 1 (0) 21 James Nicholson (2) 21 Fullback/Wing 0 0 Finn Treacy (2) 20 Wing/Centre 8 (7) 489 Matthew Victory (2) 21 Hooker 0 0 Harry West (3) 22 Outhalf 0 0
The 42
21-05-2025
- Sport
- The 42
Munster sign UCC second row on development deal
MUNSTER HAVE SIGNED UCC second row Conor Ryan on a one-year development deal for next season. Ryan, 21, made two appearances for Munster this season in friendlies against Bath and Leicester Tigers, scoring a try against the latter, and also played for the province in the 'A' Interprovincial Championship. He was part of the UCC side that narrowly missed on promotion back to Division 1A of the All-Ireland League this season. Ryan's signing 'is part of Munster Rugby's wider ongoing commitment to monitoring local players' performances in the AIL and providing opportunities to players that emerge later and have been performing at a consistently high level', the province said. Advertisement
The 42
16-05-2025
- Sport
- The 42
Burns and Campbell among players leaving Munster at end of season
MUNSTER HAVE ANNOUNCED that six senior players will depart at end of the season. The departures of Scott Buckley, Billy Burns, Patrick Campbell, Liam Coombes, Jack Daly and Cian Hurley were today confirmed by the province. In addition academy scrum-half Jack Oliver has exited and is currently training with Glasgow Warriors. Advertisement 24-year-old hooker Buckley, who is currently on loan at Ealing Trailfinders, scored three tries in 24 Munster appearances. 30-year-old out-half Burns joined Munster last summer and scored 28 points in 10 Munster appearances. The seven-cap Ireland international joined after six years at Ulster. Munster Rugby can confirm that Scott Buckley, Billy Burns, Patrick Campbell, Liam Coombes, Jack Daly, Cian Hurley & Jack Oliver will depart the province at the end of the season. A big thanks to the lads for their contributions to Munster Rugby and we wish them all the best for… — Munster Rugby (@Munsterrugby) May 16, 2025 Back three player Campbell scored four tries in 12 appearances for Munster since making his try-scoring debut against Wasps in December 2021. Winger/centre Coombes has scored six tries in 19 Munster appearances since making a try-scoring debut against Cheetahs in Bloemfontein in November 2017. Flanker Daly has made 10 appearances for Munster after coming up through the ranks at Castleisland RFC. Flanker/lock Hurley made five appearances for Munster after coming up through the ranks of Clonakilty RFC and CBC. 22-year-old scrum-half Oliver departs after three years in the Munster Academy. A Garryowen FC clubman and former Castletroy College student, Jack started the 2021/22 season by captaining the Munster U19s during the Interprovincial Championship.
Irish Independent
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Leinster announce Ben Martin as new head coach of women's team
Ben Martin will take over as head coach of the Leinster women's senior team ahead of this summer's Interprovincial Championship, replacing the outgoing Tania Rosser.
The Irish Sun
13-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Leinster starlet says he kept Man Utd ace Kobbie Mainoo in his pocket before switching to rugby
LEINSTER RUGBY Academy prop Niall Smyth has reflecting on his rapid rise from rugby rookie to earning a senior Leinster contract. Smyth revealed that he hadn't even picked up a rugby ball before relocating from New York to Ireland. 2 Leinster Academy prop Niall Smyth revealed that he played against Man Utd during his soccer days in the USA before moving to Dublin 2 Smyth says he kept Kobbie Mainoo scoreless during a game before he permanently switched codes At that point, his sporting focus had been entirely on a different game, soccer. Before Smyth moved to Dublin to attend boarding school at Blackrock College, he quickly saw rugby as an opportunity to settle in and meet new people. Speaking to And he revealed during his time in New York, he kept read more on rugby The Leinster star won a state championship playing soccer before his rugby days, and played against a number of big clubs, that included the likes of West Ham and Man Utd. 20-year-old Smyth said: 'I wasn't quite the same size I am now. I was probably about 65kg and 6'1″ but I was pretty quick.' 'I didn't play rugby back home. I was playing football at the time. My dad was always saying to give rugby a shot but I never played in the States. 'There was no club near me and I was flat out on the football, so I didn't really get into it." Most read in Football 'I never played for an MLS team or anything like that. I was kind of the step below that, because I think that would have clashed with my school, going to that kind of level. I tried to balance the two, between school and football. 'I was playing at the highest club level possible without going into an academy, essentially. Shocking moment enormous brawl breaks out in rubgy league after 'horrendous hit' "We were ranked fifth in the nation for a while. We won the State championship in New York. We were kind of always up and about there at the top of the club level nationally. 'I played against some high-profile teams like West Ham and Manchester United. "I marked Kobbie Mainoo and I kept him quiet, for the most part. He was obviously a standout at the time but I don't think he scored.' Although still waiting for a senior debut, the powerful tight-head has already featured in this season's 'A' Interprovincial Championship wins over Connacht Eagles and Munster 'A'. But he'll hope to take another step forward next season on what has already been a remarkable journey between the association football and rugby union codes.
