Dear Members, Supporters, and Friends of Blackrock College RFC, I am truly honoured to represent our great Club as President of Leinster Rugby for season 2024/25 and I wish to thank all the members most sincerely for the great privilege you have provided to me. Naturally I wish BCRFC the very best of luck for the season and I look forward to getting to Stradbrook to see all our teams in action as much as possible.
I would also like to wish President Ray McMahon an enjoyable and successful year at the helm, with all the highs (and some lows) that a rugby season will inevitably bring. I have known Ray for many years, and he will be a wonderful President. In Mick Dwan we have a great VP and with Pat Finn pulling it all together, the Club is in very good hands.
Speaking of safe hands, our Club would not function without the inimitable Conor Cleary, and I would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge all the work Mark Fallon does for everyone in the Club. I am also delighted to see Erin Dalton return as Club Administrator, which is great news.
On the Leinster front BCRFC are well served by Tom Taffe, who now sits on the Leinster Executive for the year, and I wish him well in his new role. Simon Rogan also sits on the Senior Clubs Committee where he does trojan work.
To our men’s club captain, Ray Whelan, Head Coach James Blaney and Director of Rugby Mick Hearty, all the backroom staff, and to the senior squad, I wish you the very best of luck in the AIL and let’s hope we are knocking on the door of promotion to Division 1A at the end of the season.
The BCRFC Women’s team have been at the forefront of Women’s Rugby in Ireland for over 30 years, and I wish head coach Andy Adams, Director of Rugby Goose Doyle, and all the backroom staff every success in the WAIL this season. To women’s club captain Hannah O’Connor, who has been a stalwart of Blackrock, Leinster and Ireland over the past few years, and as captain of Leinster has just led them to victory in the Intepro series, I wish you further success with Rock in the season ahead.
Jen Moore deserves a special mention for all the work she does for women’s rugby in Rock, Leinster and the IRFU. The Women’s game continues to grow at a rapid rate in Leinster, and it is heartening to see the structures that are now in place to support this growth.
BCRFC can be justifiably proud of the mini rugby section, which is one of the most successful in Ireland and I wish them, our youths, u20s, and junior teams, a successful and enjoyable season. It was incredible to see the Metro Cup return to Rock last season and congratulations to Aidan, Joe and all the team (especially Jack!) for achieving that great success.
The Club game is the bedrock of rugby in Ireland, and it is tremendous to see the vibrancy of the game throughout the 12 counties of Leinster. Energia’s sponsorship of the AIL and WAIL has been a huge success, and the League continues to go from strength to strength. A nod also to the Club Scene Podcast and the Anyscor app, which greatly enhance the excitement of AIL.
Without referees we would not have a game, and I urge you to respect and look after our match referees at all levels of our game throughout the season. Sadly, the abuse of referees is becoming more prevalent across the game, and we must not let tolerance for such behaviour become the norm. Technical zones must be adhered to and respected. I would also ask all our members to keep the recruitment and development of referees as a priority.
For Leinster Rugby, last season brought heartache with the loss in the Investec Cup Final in extra time, however I have no doubt that the small margins involved in that defeat will galvanise the players and coaches and push them on to success this season. The drive for five is by no means an easy road to travel, and on behalf of you all I would like to wish the squad and our Leo, Jacques, Robin, our Emmy, Sean, Guy and all the backroom staff the very best for the season.
We also welcome Tyler Bleyandaal on his return to Ireland. During his playing career Tyler played for Canterbury and the Crusaders in New Zealand and earned 62 caps for Munster. I have no doubt he will be a great addition to the coaching staff, and we wish him and his family all the best for the season ahead.
We are also delighted and excited to welcome three exceptional players to the squad, with the arrival of RG Snyman, Jordie Barrett and Rabah Slimani. We are looking forward to seeing the impact these players will have and we wish them every success with Leinster Rugby.
This will be a season like no other for Leinster Rugby, as we embark on the rebuilding of the Anglesa Stand in the RDS. The Senior team will play most of their home games in the Aviva Stadium and I look forward to your support there throughout the season.
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to mention the passing of the legendary Naill Brophy last year, which was a sad day for all of rugby and especially for our Club. I am borrowing the words of writer Grantham Rice (with a hat tip to Kingsley Aikins who said this recently about the great Tony O’Reilly) “When the great scorer in the sky comes to mark against your name, he marks not that you won or lost, but how you played the game”. Brophs was the heartbeat of our club for so many years and played the game so well. It is great to see his grandchildren now togging out in the blue and white!
To Ray and all at our great Club I hope you have an enjoyable and successful season, both on and off the pitch.
Yours in rugby,
Declan Gardiner
President Leinster Rugby
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