Is this the 'ultimate' agri Irish rugby squad?

The Guinness Six Nations returns this weekend with the Irish rugby team heading to Italy to face the Azzurri in round three of the championship.

After two games, Ireland is top of the table, with the chance of winning the Grand Slam very much alive.

Ireland’s rugby players, over the years, have been no stranger to the agricultural community, with many coming from a farm family background, and/or retiring to farm themselves.

With that in mind, ahead of the game tomorrow (Saturday, February 25), Agriland has created a fantasy team of Ireland’s farming-associated rugby players.

Irish rugby farming squad

The squad is made up of current and recently retired players, with the one exception to that rule being the inclusion of Irish and Lions legend, Willie John McBride as the squad’s captain.

A number of players in the team are out of position, with the majority of farmers’ sons and daughters appearing to favour playing in the pack.

Image sources: Munster Rugby, Lions Rugby, Leinster Rugby, Oyonnax Rugby and IRFU

Reasons behind selection of Ireland’s ‘ultimate’ farming squad:

John Hayes – usually found at tight-head ‘The Bull Hayes‘ has been selected at loose-head for our team. Playing his provincial rugby with Munster, he was capped 105 times by Ireland and also has two British and Irish Lions appearances. Since retiring he operates a suckler farm in Co. Limerick;
Rory Best – a former Irish captain, he played his provincial rugby with Ulster. He was capped 124 times for Ireland and toured twice with the British and Irish Lions but failed to make a test appearance. He now runs a tillage and pedigree Angus farm with his brother and father in Co. Armagh;
Tadhg Furlong – likely the best tighthead in the world currently, French head coach Fabien Galthié recently said that he could play out-half. Known as ‘Snackbox‘ to members of the Agriland team, the New Ross man plays his rugby with Leinster and has 62 Irish caps and six British and Irish Lions appearances. He hails from a Co. Wexford dairy farm;
Willie John McBride (captain) – a former Irish and Lions captain, he has 63 Irish caps and 17 for the British and Irish Lions. He was the captain of the 1974 Lions squad that toured South Africa, this was the most successful Lions tour of all time. He grew up on a farm in Toomebridge, Co. Antrim;
Donnacha Ryan – the son of the private dairy consultant, he featured for Ireland on 47 occasions. He played his provincial rugby with Munster and also played for Racing 92 in France;
Ciara Griffin – a former women’s captain, with 35 caps for Ireland, she played for Munster – also captaining the team. Griffin retired aged 27 from international rugby, she grew up on farm in Co. Kerry;
Sean O’Brien – known as the ‘Tullow Tank‘, he farms part-time in Co. Carlow while also coaching Leinster. He played his provincial rugby with Leinster and also had a stint with London Irish. He has five British and Irish Lions caps and 56 Irish caps;
CJ Stander – born in South Africa, he was capped 51 times by Ireland and once for the British and Irish Lions. Arriving in Munster with very little English he soon became a key part of the Munster back-row. He is the son of South African dairy and vegetable farmer;
Siobhan Fleming – usually found in the back-row, we have decided to deploy her in the half-back position. Another former Munster women’s captain, she was capped 15 times for Ireland. She is a Kerry native who farms part-time;
Ben Healy – now a member of the Scottish squad, but he is currently uncapped making him available for Irish selection. Currently playing his provincial rugby with Munster, he grew up on a farm in Co. Tipperary;
Darragh Sweetnam – hailing from a pig farm in Dunmanway, Co. Cork he has three Irish caps. Starting his career at Munster he now plays for Oyonnax in the French second division;
Johne Murphy – the brother of a member of the Agriland team, he is currently the head coach at Naas RFC and director of rugby in Newbridge College. He played for Leicester Tigers in England from 2005-2010, he then moved to Munster were he played from 2010 until 2015 – he was also capped by Ireland A on 13 occasions. He grew up on a tillage farm in Co. Kildare;
Will Addison – English-born Addison has five caps for Ireland; he plays his provincial rugby with Ulster. His father is an organic farmer in England;
Dave Kearney (brother of Rob) – capped by Ireland on 19 occasions he plays his provincial rugby with Leinster;
Rob Kearney (brother of Dave) – now retired, he was a stalwart of the Irish back-three for a number of years; he played his provincial rugby with Leinster and was capped 95 times for Ireland – he also has three caps for the British and Irish Lions. Both Kearneys grew up on a farm on the Cooley peninsula in Co. Louth.

Rugby replacements

Shane Delahunt – a current member of the Connacht rugby squad, he has yet to be capped by Ireland. He comes from a dairy farm in Birr Co. Offaly;
Simon Best – a brother of Rory, he played for Ireland and Ulster. He was capped 23 times by Ireland and now farms alongside his brother and father;
Mike Ross – the Cork man is best known for his time with Leinster, he was capped 61 times by Ireland. He grew up on a dairy farm in Co. Cork now run by his brother and father;
John Ryan – starting his career with Munster, he moved to Wasps before returning to Munster and making over 200 appearances. He is currently plying his trade with the Chiefs in New Zealand. He has been capped by Ireland on 24 occasions. He grew up on a farm in Co. Cork;
Michael Bent – has already come out of retirement to feature for Ireland, having done so on the recent tour of New Zealand. He now works on a dairy farm in New Zealand. He was famously capped for Ireland before he played for Leinster and would make five appearances for Ireland;
Robin Copeland – he came to the attention of the Irish public during his stint with Cardiff Blues. He then moved to Munster, making 71 appearances, before moving to Connacht were he made 18 appearances. He is still playing in France and has been capped once by Ireland. He grew up on a dairy farm in Co. Wexford;
Gavin Coombes – a key member of the Munster back-row, he has been capped twice by Ireland. Coombes will be offering cover for the backline, due to a shortage of backs in the squad. He hails from a Skibbereen dairy farm.

The Agriland team has selected former Irish international Bernard Jackman, whose father was a cattle dealer, as head coach.

During his playing career Jackman played for Sale Sharks, Connacht and Leinster – along with getting nine caps for Ireland.

His coaching career began with Grenoble as the forwards coach, before moving to the role of head coach. He has also been head coach of the Dragons and Clontarf, and he is now coaching Bective Rangers.

Quality across the team

Speaking to Agriland about his selection as inside centre and the impact that growing up on a farm had on his sporting career, Johne Murphy said: “It gave me a work ethic and got me used to hard work.

“It gives you a natural frame from the manual labour from a young age and it gives you a bit extra from a hard work perspective as you move forward.”

Murphy said that as a child he would have been sweeping grain stores, and during the winter helping is dad with the cattle they kept.

“I would have been doing the general donkey work and later on, helped with the drawing of the corn,” he said.

The Murphy family now operates a smallholding and keep a few horses, and he continues to help out now and again when needed.

Johne brings his kids to the farm as much as possible to give them a sense of what he did when he was a child.

Giving some insight into if he believes that the Agriland Irish rugby farmers squad could compete, he said: “Oh definitely, you’ve got some proper legends in there between John Hayes and Willie John McBride.