Timoney: Faz Is Unbelievable At Giving You Belief In Yourself

Nick Timoney says he feels ‘incredibly grateful to be given opportunities’ to play in this year’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations, having been part of wider squads in the past but not making his Championship debut until just last month.

The Ulster back rower and former Sevens international won his first three 15s caps for Ireland in 2021 and 2022, before marking his international return against Georgia last July with a try-scoring performance.

He has also scored against Japan and France in recent months, the latter match seeing him come off the bench for his long-awaited Six Nations bow. “It’s hard to know how that’s gone on the back of a loss, but you hope the coaches see what you’re trying to do,” he said afterwards.

With the back row such a highly competitive area of the team, Timoney has had to be patient in waiting for his chance. He was part of Ireland’s squads for the 2022 and 2024 Six Nations tournaments, and also brought in to train during the 2023 and 2025 campaigns.

This year’s edition has seen him make his breakthrough, being involved as a second-half replacement in each of Ireland’s first three games, including a typically busy 30-minute cameo last time out against England.

Reflecting on those opening rounds in Paris, Dublin, and London, he admitted: “I mean I’ve loved it. Obviously haven’t played in the Six Nations before this season and (it’s) something you always dream of.

“So, from that point of view, just been feeling incredibly grateful. Grateful to be given the opportunities. Started off disappointingly with the France game being the first one, but since then it’s been incredibly enjoyable turning it around.

“Obviously the England game was a special day. Looking forward to hopefully finishing it strong and seeing what we can get out of it.

“It’s been infinitely better for me than any of the other Six Nations that I’ve been involved in, in that I’ve actually gotten to play and I feel like I’ve been fairly happy (with it), and gotten mostly positive feedback from the coaches.”

The use of the bench in modern Test rugby has evolved and become ever more important in recent years, with a more forwards-heavy approach favoured for certain fixtures. Monikers like ‘finishers’, ‘Bomb squad’, and ‘Pom squad’ have signified the increasing importance of squad players in deciding games.

An athletic ‘hybrid’ type of loose forward like Timoney, whose pace and power was showcased on the Sevens circuit and who has played in all three back row positions for Ulster, has a lot of strings to his bow. His consistency in the white shirt has led to more matchday involvements with Ireland over the last eight months.

The last four of his nine appearances for Ireland have been as a replacement, and while he has become accustomed to a starting role for his province, at number 8 in the earlier years and now as their first-choice openside flanker, he has learned quickly what works best when being a bench option.

“Well the last few games, I feel like just (bringing) energy and enthusiasm. I’m actually not very used to coming off the bench really at all. I don’t do it all that often for Ulster, but just knowing that you only have 20 or 30 minutes, whatever it is….

“And just with how grateful I actually feel to be playing (for Ireland). I’ve experienced not playing for quite a long time. So, like really at the forefront of my mind is how lucky I am to actually be on the pitch.

“I just want to get involved as much as I possibly can and get as much out of it as I can. I’m actually not thinking a whole lot of really what the tactical things (are) I need to do. I just go on and be as energetic and as enthusiastic as possible, and hopefully the lads around you feel better for it.”

Timoney is honest enough to concede that he thought his international career might be over at one stage. There was a gap of over two-and-a-half years between his third and fourth Ireland caps, a spell in which Andy Farrell’s men won back-to-back Six Nations titles.

Current captain Caelan Doris, the now-retired Peter O’Mahony, Josh van der Flier, Jack Conan, and Ryan Baird were the preferred back row options during that successful period, and the Dubliner only got back in for last year’s summer tour, a few weeks shy of his 30th birthday.

However, he has played in five of Ireland’s last six Tests going back to November, including a try-scoring start at openside against Japan, and shown what a valuable asset he is. As have others like his Ulster team-mates and fellow Six Nations debutants, Cormac Izuchukwu and Robert Baloucoune.

Asked if he ever got disillusioned with international rugby given his absence from Irish matchday squads between November 2022 and the summer of 2025, he replied: “There were definitely times where I would be fairly sure I wouldn’t be playing for Ireland again.

“Like last year in the Six Nations, didn’t get picked in the wider squad and when you’re 29 and you have a couple of caps, it’s not like you’re a complete unknown or anything. It’s fairly easy to believe that the chances might not come around again.

“Yeah, I’d say I was relatively proud of myself for not getting disenthused or anything, and sticking at it and backing myself and being able to get back to this point. I’d be pretty happy with that.”

Timoney also praised Farrell’s man-management skills as a factor in him not getting downhearted about his lack of game-time. The head coach’s player-centric approach means that members of the squad always feel he is in their corner, even when they fail to make a team line-up or a matchday 23.

“‘Faz’ is just unbelievable at giving you belief in yourself, and his ability to not ever belittle people or as someone who has been in the squad a lot of times and obviously not been picked a lot of times, I feel like in a lot of rugby environments it would be easy to feel downtrodden or overlooked in some way.

“But his ability to not do that, and to treat people properly and with respect and then obviously still back them when their chance does come is pretty special,” he added.

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