Alan Quinlan
| Date of birth | 13 July 1974 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of birth | Tipperary, Ireland | ||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||
| Weight | 16 st 7 lb (105 kg) | ||
| Rugby union career | |||
| Playing career | |||
| Position | Back Row | ||
| Amateur clubs | |||
| Years | Club / team | ||
1994 – present |
Clanwilliam Shannon |
||
| Provincial/State sides | |||
| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 1996–2011 | Munster | 212 | (165) |
| correct as of 11 Jun 2011. | |||
| National team(s) | |||
| Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
| 1999–2008 | Ireland | 27 | (30) |
| correct as of 15 Sep 2010. | |||
Alan Quinlan (Irish: Ailín Ó Caoindealbhain, born 13 July 1974) is an Irish rugby union player. He played for Munster and is registered to the AIB League side Shannon. He retired from rugby in May 2011.
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[edit] Career
Quinlan was educated at Abbey CBS in Tipperary and worked for a motor dealer after leaving school.[1] He began his rugby career with Clanwilliam FC where he captained the Irish Youth Team against Scotland in 1993. He normally plays as a blindside flanker, but has also played openside, number eight and second row for Munster.[2]
[edit] Club/Provincial Career
Quinlan moved from Clanwilliam to join Shannon U20s in 1994. He began playing for Munster in 1996 and captained the youths team before becoming a regular in the first team. In May 2006 he made a comeback from a cruciate ligament injury earlier in the season to win both the AIB League Division 1 title with Shannon and the Heineken Cup with Munster after a late appearance from the bench in the Heineken Cup Final win over Biarritz in Cardiff. He captained the side from Number Eight in Munster's upset victory over Ulster in Ravenhill in the 2007 Magner's League. Quinlan was voted Man of the Match as Munster beat Toulouse 16–13 on 24 May 2008 to win the Heineken Cup for a second time. He was part of the Squad that won the 2008–2009 Magners League. In total he holds five league medals with Shannon, as well as two Heineken Cup medals and a Celtic League Medal with Munster. Quinlan won his 201st cap against Leinster, equalling Anthony Foley's club record for caps, on 2 October 2010. He became Munster's most capped player ever on 16 October 2010, against RC Toulon in the Heineken Cup.[3]
[edit] International career
Quinlan represented Ireland 'A' between 1998 and 2001 and made his senior debut for the Irish national team in October 1999 as a replacement in a Test against Romania. He played his first Six Nations match against Italy in 2001. He was a part of Ireland's squad at the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia and scored two tries in the tournament before dislocating his shoulder scoring a vital try against Argentina in the pool stages, which ended his involvement. He was named in Ireland's 2007 Rugby World Cup squad but did not make any appearances. Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan was widely criticised afterwards for not using his bench. Quinlan took his caps to a total of 27 by playing in the Autumn Internationals of 2008 against Canada and the All Blacks.[4]
[edit] Recent career
On the 21st April 2009, Quinlan was named in the squad for the 2009 Lions tour of South Africa.[5] During Munsters Heineken cup semi-final defeat to Leinster in May 2009, Quinlan was cited for making contact with the eye or eye area of Leinster captain Leo Cullen. The offence was deemed at the low range of seriousness and he received a 12 playing week ban until 9 September 2009.[6] As a result he missed the Lions tour to South Africa.
More recently he has had strong performances for Munster in the Heineken Cup and Magners League, often earning the Man of the Match award. In the 2009-2010 season he represented Munster 21 times, including all 8 of their 2010 Heineken Cup matches. [1].
In April 2011, Quinlan officially announced his retirement from professional rugby, to be effective at the end of the 2010/11 season.[7][8]He played his last game for Munster on 06 May 2011, against Connacht in the Celtic League, scoring a try to mark the end of his remarkable career and going off to a standing ovation from the Munster and Connacht supporters. He joined the Munster team at the 2011 Magners League Grand Final trophy presentation, celebrating Munster's 19-9 victory over old rivals Leinster in Thomond Park.
He was a co-commentator for ITV's coverage of the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
[edit] Personal life
Quinlan married Irish model Ruth Griffin in Tipperary town during the summer of 2008. They have one son named AJ who was born in January 2009. They later split up in June 2010.[9]
He released an autobiography, entitled 'Quinlan: Red Blooded', in 2010.
[edit] References
- ^ "Age hasn't withered Quinny the elder". The Irish Times. 2009-04-04. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2009/0411/1224244446960.html.
- ^ http://www.irishrugby.ie/13394_13785.php?player=3903&includeref=dynamic
- ^ "Alan Quinlan". The Irish Times. 2009-04-04. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2009/0411/1224244447000.html.
- ^ http://www.scrum.com/ireland/rugby/player/13264.html
- ^ "O'Connell to lead 14 Irish Lions". RTE Sport. 2009-04-21. http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/2009/0421/lions.html. Retrieved 2009-04-23.
- ^ "Banned Quinlan to miss Lions tour". BBC Sport. 2009-05-13. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/8031505.stm. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
- ^ "Quinlan calls it a day". Planet Rugby. 2011-04-13. http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,3551_6869256,00.html. Retrieved 2011-04-13.
- ^ "Munster and former Irish flanker Alan Quinlan to retire". BBC Sport. 2011-04-13. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/13066367.stm. Retrieved 2011-04-13.
- ^ http://www.herald.ie/entertainment/around-town/new-mum-ruth-gets--back-model-figure-just-12-weeks-after-ajs-birth-1707790.html
[edit] External links
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