The Ireland Mixed 20s claimed Gold, while the Mixed 18s secured Silver and the Girls 18s took Bronze. The Boys 18s finished just outside the medals in fourth place, with both the Mixed 15s and Boys 15s finishing fifth in their respective divisions.
Across all five teams, the performances highlighted the growing strength and depth of Irish junior Touch.
Young Mixed 18s Claim European Silver
Ireland’s Mixed 18s produced an outstanding campaign to claim European Silver with an exceptionally young and talented squad.
Only two players, Oscar Dunne and Rhys Tanner, remained from the Mixed 18s team that won Gold at the 2025 Atlantic Youth Touch Cup. With a large number of new players stepping up into the division, this was a significantly rebuilt squad taking on the challenge of international competition together for the first time.
They responded superbly.
Ireland opened the tournament with a difficult 12–3 defeat to England, but quickly demonstrated their resilience. They went on to win four consecutive matches, edging Scotland 9–8 before overcoming Belgium 13–11, defeating the Cayman Islands 11–5 and finishing their round-robin campaign with a 10–8 victory over Lebanon.
Those results secured Ireland second place in the standings and a semi-final against Belgium.
In another entertaining, high-scoring encounter, Ireland held their nerve to record a 12–9 victory and book their place in the European final.
England proved too strong in the gold-medal match, securing a 13–3 victory, but the silver medal represented an exceptional achievement for such a young Irish squad. More importantly, the tournament offered an exciting glimpse of what this group could achieve in the years ahead.
Ruadhan Leonard was a constant attacking threat throughout the competition and finished as Ireland’s leading try scorer with 13 tries, underlining his status as one of the tournament’s most exciting young players.
Also catching the eye were co-captains Niamh Purtill and Charlie Moseley-Scoggins, alongside Harrison Reeves and Oscar Dunne.
The team was coached by Billy Ngawini and Tim Hogan, with Ashleigh Hardy providing invaluable support as team manager. Their combined efforts helped a largely new group develop quickly, compete fearlessly and leave Coventry as European Silver Medallists.
Encouraging Results Across the Irish Programme
The success extended well beyond the Mixed 18s.
Ireland’s Girls 18s claimed European Bronze, showing considerable resilience and determination to finish their campaign on the podium.
The Boys 18s narrowly missed out on a medal, finishing fourth, while both the Mixed 15s and Boys 15s secured fifth-place finishes.
For many of the younger players, Coventry represented their first experience of international Touch, providing an important opportunity to test themselves against some of the best young players in Europe and gain experience that will be invaluable in future competitions.
The results across all five teams highlighted the continued development of Ireland’s junior Touch programme. Medals are, of course, an important measure of success, but the wider value of the tournament could be seen in the experience gained, friendships formed and emergence of another wave of talented Irish players.
The Mixed 20s may have led the celebrations with Gold, but the achievements of the Mixed 18s, Girls 18s, Boys 18s, Mixed 15s and Boys 15s demonstrated that Irish youth Touch is developing strength and depth across every age group.
This was not simply the story of one successful weekend. It was the result of years of player development, dedicated coaching, committed volunteers, family support and young athletes continually accepting the challenge to step beyond their comfort zones.
With many of these players eligible to return next year, the most exciting prospect is that this may only be the beginning.
Ireland Mixed 18s
Players: Shea Delaney, Harrison Reeves, Ruadhan Leonard, Charlie Moseley-Scoggins, Finn Keeley, Cillian Doyle, Rhys Tanner, Oscar Dunne, Elijah John Rangitaawa, Tamati Rangitaawa, Niamh Purtill, Lucy Keith, Iseult Naidoo, Keeva Mooney, Millie Kenny, Aoife Skerrett
Coaches: Billy Ngawini, Tim Hogan
Team Manager: Ashleigh Hardy
Top Scorer: Ruadhan Leonard – 13 tries
Ireland Boys 18s
Players: Alex Birrell, Alfy Willis, Oisín Moran, Dean Phillips, Finn Maguire, Henry Pratt, Louis Chambers, Matthew Darcy, Ethan O’Neill, Max Corbett, Patrick Carey, Samuel Walsh, Samuel Moraghan, Amaraa Batzaya, John Gorman, Luke Purser
Coaches: Michael Kearney, Ola McCulloch
Team Manager: Ron Degani
Top Scorer: Finn Maguire – 7 tries
Ireland Girls 18s
Players: Mollie Quinn, Chloe Savage, Saoirse Brennan, Caitlin Bastic, Maggie Kerin, Abigail Kerin, Lia Hulin, Jen Kennedy, Laoise Tay, Lucy Kilcoyne, Willow McIntosh, Shyne Leonard, Siofra Ginty, Lucy Andrews, Laura O’Meara, Mya Gill
Coaches: Karl Birrell, Kerri Edwards
Team Manager: Rachelle Bastic
Top Scorer: Lucy Andrews – 3 tries
Ireland Boys 15s
Players: Caolan Lennon, Ciarán O’Connor, Harry Browne, Heath Hulin, John Gallen, Michael McKay, Ruairí Doyle, Tom Murphy, Isa Irwin, Ryan Synnott, Rory Delaney, William O’Neill, Harrison O’Reilly, Jack Sanders, Jonathan Mullion, Luke Gill
Coaches: Gary Hynes, Henry Hardman
Team Manager: Georgia-Erin Foley
Top Scorer: John Gallen – 8 tries
Ireland Mixed 15s
Players: Charlie McConnell, Hughie Devitt O’Byrne, Lochlann McKnight, Dhruv Sisodya, Charlie Dunne, Kobi Hudson, Tyler Klopper, Charlie Moes, Aidan Hopkins, Robyn Summerbell, Clodagh McLoughlin, Kai Hulin, Bodi-Rae Leonard, Ciara McCusker, Florence Ferguson
Coach: Eddie Devitt
Team Manager: Nelia Hulin
Top Scorer: Dhruv Sisodya – 9 tries
Photo credit: Gavin Cullen Photography