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14 unusual facts about Ireland national rugby union team


1914 in Wales

14 March: After Percy Jones is target by Irish players during the 1914 Five Nations Championship, Harry Uzzell leads his men in retaliation in a game notorious for its on the field violence.

Cross-border flag for Ireland

The Ireland rugby team's flag is a green flag containing the shields of the four provinces and the Irish Rugby Football Union's logo.

Forest View High School, New Zealand

Isaac Boss - Ireland national rugby union team; Waikato N.P.C Cap #964: 1999, 2001-05, 52 games; Waikato Chiefs Super Rugby

Grahame Parker

He was capped the first time for the national rugby union team during the 1938 Home Nations Championship, when England defeated Ireland 36 to 14 at Lansdowne Road.

Ian Madigan

Ian Madigan (born 21 March 1989) is an Irish professional rugby union player for Blackrock College RFC, Leinster Rugby and Ireland.

Ireland rugby team

Ireland national rugby union team, administered by the Irish Rugby Football Union.

John Lawrence, 1st Baron Lawrence

Their second son, Henry Arnold, was a noted rugby player and captained England in two matches, including the first ever international against Ireland.

Ned Byrne

His talent was quickly noted and he later made his debut for Ireland in a 1977 Five Nations Championship game against Scotland.

He played hurling with his local club James Stephens and the Kilkenny senior inter-county team in the 1970s, and between 1977 and 1978 represented Ireland at rugby union.

Northern Ireland rugby union team

Ireland national rugby union team (Irish rugby is administered on an all-Ireland basis)

Peter Beazley

In January 1981 he opposed a call for the Ireland national rugby union team to cancel a tour of South Africa on the grounds that multiracial Rugby was practised throughout South Africa.

Simon Hillary

Hillary is still in the Leinster academy, but is considered an excellent prospect for the future of both Leinster Rugby and Ireland.

The Fields of Anfield Road

Before being adapted by Liverpool supporters it was, and still is, sung in its original form by supporters of Ireland and Celtic, as well as GAA teams and the Ireland, Munster and London Irish rugby union teams.

Welsh Rugby Players Association

The 2010 winner was Irish International, Tommy Bowe of Ospreys.


1967 New Zealand rugby union tour of Britain, France and Canada

The All Blacks should also have played matches in Ireland, including a test match against Ireland on 16 December but they were forced to cancel this section of the tour because of the 1967 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak.

Adam Ashley-Cooper

Against Italy, Ireland, USA, Russia, South Africa, New Zealand, and Wales at the 2011 Rugby World Cup Ashley-Cooper played outside centre (13), on the wings (both 11 & 14), and fullback (15).

Andrew Gibbs

After some inspirational performances, he was called up to the Welsh International squad for the Five Nations and made his international debut, aged 22, against Ireland on 18 March 1995 at Cardiff Arms Park.

Andy Mulligan

Andrew (Andy) Armstrong Mulligan, (4 February 1936, Kasauli, a small cantonment town in Solan district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh – 24 February 2001) was a rugby union international who captained Ireland and the British & Irish Lions, playing at scrum-half.

Apenisa Naevo

He went on tour in November of the 2002 season, playing in the games against Wales, Ireland and Scotland.

Benoît Baby

Baby made his début for the national team during the 2005 Six Nations, against Ireland in Dublin.

Brendan Mullin

Brendan John Mullin (born Jerusalem, 30 October 1963) is a former Ireland international rugby union football player.

Des Fitzgerald

He played for the Ireland team from 1984 to 1992, winning 34 caps, after making his debut in February 1984 against England in a 12-9 defeat at Twickenham.

Devin Toner

In November 2010, he was selected by Ireland's head coach Declan Kidney to make his International debut for Ireland against Samoa on the 13th of November 2010 during the 2010 end of year rugby tests He then came off the bench against the All Blacks and Argentina.

Hayden Triggs

He scored a try against the Barbarians, and started in the squad's historic victories over Ireland and England.

Lee Blackett

These are generally based around his uncanny resemblance to famous figures; namely Leo Cullen of Leinster and Ireland, Ian Dowie (retired footballer) and most notably, Earthworm Jim.

Mathieu Bastareaud

He stood out as an extreme powerhouse as he scored two tries against Scotland at Murrayfield and kept on impressing against Italy and Wales.

Nigel Walker

Walker made his Wales debut on 6 March 1993 in the five nations match against Ireland.

Northside, Dublin

Actress and singer Maria Doyle Kennedy is originally from the neighbourhood of Clontarf, as is Irish rugby international, Brian O'Driscoll.

Roy Prosser

Prosser played 25 Test matches: seven against South Africa, six against New Zealand, five against France, three against Ireland and one each against England, Scotland, Wales and Fiji.

Stefan Terblanche

Terblanche played in 37 tests for South Africa, scoring 19 tries, including a South African test record of four tries (equalled with Chester Williams and Pieter Rossouw) on debut against Ireland at Bloemfontein on 13 June 1998, which he later bettered by scoring a then record five tries against Italy on 19 June 1999.

Tony McGahan

In July 2008, McGahan took up the position as the director of coaching of Munster following Declan Kidney's departure to take over as Ireland coach.