Brendan Lynch RIP

The Exiles community was saddened recently to learn of the death of Brendan Lynch – a former Exiles and Ireland Under-19 prop.

Brendan Lynch (aged 26), from Rotherham in South Yorkshire, was left for dead after a vehicle knocked him off his Honda SH-300 on Rome’s ring road last Sunday night. He died on the way to hospital.

Brendan had played professionally for Rotherham Titans and for a team in Alghero, Sardinia, before moving to Rome, where he was playing for a local team, Capitolina.

His Irish ancestry had also enabled him to represent the Ireland Under-19s. He had recently given up professional rugby after landing a contract at the Food and Agricultural Organisation, which is based in the Italian capital.

“He had been here just a few months but he was already one of us,” said Paolo Vaccari, the president of the Capitolina rugby club. “He was a great player, an exemplary professional.”

Many of the Exiles Committee, as well as his contemporaries – both from the Exiles and fellow Ireland Under-19s who played alongside him – will remember him well with affection. He was a lovely, quiet man. May he rest in peace.