Nenagh Ormond back rower John Brislane is pictured during the Energia All-Ireland League launch which took place at Energia Park last week ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne
Twenty years after earning their senior status, and fresh from back-to-back promotions, Nenagh Ormond have taken their place among the heavyweights of Irish club rugby, lining out this season in Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A.
The hope in Tipperary is that the glory days are only just beginning as Derek Corcoran’s men embark on uncharted ground this year.
When the final whistle blew in Parsonstown at the close of the 2021/22 season, Nenagh Ormond were relieved to overcome MU Barnhall on the final day, in a season where they survived a relegation battle that yielded just five victories and a second-from-bottom finish.
A year later they endured heartbreak, defeated by two points in the Division 1B promotion play-offs away to Blackrock College. From that setback, however, grew the resilience that would drive the club forward.
In 2023/24 they stormed to the Division 2A title, booking their ticket to the Energia All-Ireland League’s second tier. Momentum carried them further last term, as they finished second and entered the promotion play-offs once again.
Blackrock and then UCC stood in their way. A strong finish saw Nenagh defeat Blackrock 25-17, setting up an all-Munster showdown with UCC. In a ding-dong battle from start to finish, promotion looked beyond them as the Cork students held a 33-24 lead in the closing stages.
Then came a moment to live in memory, Josh Rowland bursting clear from halfway to score the decisive try, sparking scenes of delirium at New Ormond Park.
John Brislane remembers it vividly. Speaking to IrishRugby.ie at the Energia All-Ireland League launch in Energia Park, he reflected on what it means to see Nenagh compete at the highest level.
“It’s so exciting, special really,” he explained. “That day was just so special beating UCC. Ten minutes left, we’re 14 points down or something like that and to score two tries, like that was just amazing.
“Four years ago, we were actually in a relegation battle looking to go down to 2B and one dash got through it, and since then things have taken some turn. Really looking forward to the first game in 1A this weekend.”
That first test in Division 1A comes on home soil against familiar opponents. Old Belvedere, the champions of Division 1B last season, return to New Ormond Park for Saturday’s 4pm kick-off, streamed live on irishrugby+.
Old Belvedere got the better of Nenagh twice last season en route to the title, including a 32-31 win at New Ormond Park courtesy of a late penalty from Ireland Under-20 out-half Sam Wisniewski. If that corresponding encounter serves as any guide, another fiercely-contested fixture awaits.
Nenagh’s preparations have been thorough, with player-coach Corcoran welcoming new additions to the squad. Some players departed for challenges elsewhere in recent years but are now back with the club, looking to be part of this magical journey for the standard bearers of Tipperary rugby.
Last season’s goal was a top-four finish, and with that achieved, there is little sense of getting carried away. Brislane insists the focus is on the here and now, taking it game by game, with Old Belvedere first on the agenda.
“It has been a rollercoaster of emotions,” he acknowledged. “There’s been lows, but the highs have been very high, and the emotions are just so high, and like every week it was just getting better and better. And there were down weeks, but they are just so enjoyable every week.
“We have signed a couple of new players. Just more so recruiting players that had left the club beforehand that had gone to 1A clubs to play high rugby. And look, we’re at that level now, so players don’t have to go to other places.
“Pre-season has gone really well. We’ve trained really hard week in, week out, where it’s raining or sunny, we’re out there. We’re pushing ourselves as hard as we can.
“It’s credit to the coaches, they keep our heads to the ground all the time, and we’re only thinking about just that first game. Last year the goal was to aim for top four. It was a thing that we thought was credible, and we could do that. And we did get it.
“This year we’ve set our goals, and our goals is just the first game. First game against Old Belvedere, just want to get to that, get a result, and we’ll move on from each game to each game. In 1A you can’t be thinking past one game.”
Nenagh Ormond’s rise has already been gilded with silverware. Last season they lifted the Bank of Ireland Munster Senior Challenge Cup for the first time in their history, overcoming Old Crescent 32-20 at Thomond Park.
It proved a vital springboard for the second half of their All-Ireland League campaign, sustaining belief through the grind for the play-offs, and indeed those crunch clashes with Blackrock and UCC.
They will encounter plenty of tough opponents this season. While they have trips to the capital and Ballynahinch to look forward to, Young Munster and Cork Constitution provide provincial derbies to savour, and Brislane knows they will be measuring-stick occasions, as that win over Crescent in the provincial decider was a massive boost to get over the line last term.
“We played Cork Con (in the Munster Senior Cup a couple of weekends ago), came out on the wrong side of it, but we’ve played Cork Con a couple times now in my last couple of years. And Young Munster as well, and they are two games we always really look forward to, Munster derbies and the games you try and win.
“That win over Old Crescent was the first time we’d ever won the Senior Cup. We had been in the final two years beforehand, and we came up short against Young Munster. But winning that was just a booster to push us on through the rest of the season through all them tough games.
“Just remember that game and it gave us the energy throughout, whether it was in the semi-final against Blackrock or in the final against UCC in the play-offs. That was a massive moment for the club, just as big as going up to 1A,” he added.
For Nenagh, the journey to Division 1A has already been a historic one. What comes next is uncharted territory, and it begins this weekend on home ground. A fairytale story from looking to stay up in Division 2A, to now matching up against the league’s elite clubs.
This website uses cookies.
Read More