IN THE AFTERMATH of being released by the Ireland Six Nations squad this year, Gavin Coombes mustered a big response to give Andy Farrell something to think about.
Gavin Coombes after scoring a try against Ospreys. Bryan Keane / INPHO
Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO
As part of a nine-try rout of Ospreys, the towering number eight ran in three tries to underline the quality that Ireland thought they could do without. The competition for places in the Ireland back row is a war zone: Jack Conan and Caelan Doris are just some of the players who are vying for a place in the regular rotation. Coombes has been left out in the cold as a result of the fierce competition.
He has been in and out of selection on the Ireland squad, with two international caps to his name so far. He was sent back to Munster midway through Ireland’s autumn campaign last year, and now, he had been stung again. But even in the face of another setback, he produced another answer.
That fight in Coombes was forged at the Skibbereen Rugby club. He’s the first man from the club to earn a senior cap for Ireland, and this weekend, he’s seeking glory with Munster in the URC final against the Stormers.
When he steps onto the field in Cape Town for the 5.30pm kick-off, he’ll have the support of everyone from home who offered a hand in his development. One of those is his underage coach Aidan Bushe.
“Yeah, very excited,” he tells The42 about the anticipation that’s building in Skibbereen. ”To get his first major final is a big deal really.”
Munster booked their place in the final after a thrilling win over Leinster earlier this month. Their one-point victory had all the hallmarks of those absorbing clashes between the provinces in the early 2000s. Jack Crowley’s decisive drop goal was reminiscent of the famous score that his Munster predecessor Ronan O’Gara produced to deliver a Six Nations Grand Slam for Ireland in 2009.
However, the Leinster-Munster rivalry has become a bit one-sided since then, with Leinster elevating to new levels of dominance while Munster have stuttered and struggled. Leinster came into that semi-final having won 10 of their last 11 meetings with the southern province.
Now, Munster are alive again and Coombes is right there toiling away in the engine room. The Skibbereen watermark is stamped all over his workrate.
“Seeing Gavin at the end of the match walking around the stadium shaking hands with everyone – it’s great that you’re represented there,” says Bushe.
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“It was fantastic. It’s always good craic down here because there’s always a few Leinster guys around.
“It was about time we got our own back.”
Gavin isn’t the only member of the Coombes family making his mark with Munster. His cousin Liam is there too as is Gavin’s sister Gillian. Earlier this year, Liam grabbed an exceptional match-winning try for Munster against the Lions just 24 hours before Gillian made her debut off the bench for Munster. Their Skibbereen counterpart – and Ireland international – Enya Breen was also involved in that bonus-point win over Ulster.
And the West Cork input in Munster doesn’t end there. Josh and Fineen Wycherley both hail from Bantry while John Hodnett is a product of Rosscarbery. There’s also Darren Sweetnam from Dunmanway in the mix too as well as the drop goal winner from the Leinster game, Jack Crowley of Innishannon. The list is even longer than that.
Bushe points to the Munster teams who conquered Europe in 2006 and 2008 as being the root cause of this upsurge of rugby talent in West Cork. Success breeds success.
“I suppose if you go back to that Munster team in the 2000s that were winning. All those lads were young then watching and wanted to play rugby. That was the catalyst of getting these players to concentrate more on rugby than GAA. A lot of the team would have been playing both but that was the catalyst, and that’s why they’re coming through now.”
Reflecting on his earliest impressions of a young Gavin Coombes, Bushe always identified him as a special talent. Just that beat ahead of the other boys. Liam was a star as well, and the teams they played on were built around them.
They were always together, living like brothers more than cousins. Liam had more of a serious personality growing up while Gavin brought the divilment.
“You always knew Gavin was a step ahead,” says Bushe. “He was big and powerful and was able to run through players. Liam had all the skills and he used to play out-half with us. He was exceptional too.
“We had them from when they were eight up to 16 or 17 when Gavin went to Bandon Grammar and Liam went to Christians. The whole team was nearly based around the two of them. There were good West Cork teams which brought the standard up. You always had local rivalries and really good oppositions, so there were no walkovers.
“Gavin was always the strongest guy on the pitch, really. And his athleticism as well – you could be strong but not have the athleticism to get around the pitch and have the ball skills. You could see that coming up with Gavin.
“They’re much the same age and they played all the way up together. You’d go to the adult matches on a Sunday and they’d be there on the sideline passing the ball around, having a great time.
“They’re quite different: Liam would be probably a bit more serious and Gavin would be more of a messer. But I can’t talk now because that’s going back the years. I’d still know them and chat to them.”
Gavin Coombes celebrates the win over Leinster with Jack Crowley. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
Looking at him when he was young, it was difficult to tell where Gavin’s rugby path would take him. But as he progressed through Bandon Grammar school, Bushe could see that Coombes made for the elite grade. Gavin had other sports on his books at that time too.
He gave his skills to Gaelic football, hockey and even basketball through the years, but rugby was his passion. It was an easy choice when the time came for him to focus on one pursuit.
“He went from Skibb to Bandon Grammar and as soon as he got onto that team, I went to those matches,” Bushe recalls. “They had never won the cup with the school but they made it into a competitive school at that level. Gavin was really one of the main fellas in that team at the time.
“When he was playing with the club, you didn’t know what the next level would be but once you saw him going to schools level, and he was still standing out, then you knew he was going further.”
And now here he is, standing on the verge of a major trophy with Munster. A victory over the Stormers would see the province collect their first piece of silverware since 2011. It was the Magners League in those days. Now the competition bears a new label, but still carries huge significance.
It was the Munster sides of ’06 and ’08 that sent Coombes and his West Cork brothers and sisters on this road. Now it’s his turn to do the same for the next generation.
“It’d be fantastic for Skibbereen club to think that they’d have a representative on a team winning a major trophy,” says a proud Bushe. “And to be a main player as well. Liam has been unfortunate with injuries so hopefully he’ll be back next year.”
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'You always knew Gavin was a step ahead' - From Skibbereen to chasing glory in South Africa
IN THE AFTERMATH of being released by the Ireland Six Nations squad this year, Gavin Coombes mustered a big response to give Andy Farrell something to think about.
As part of a nine-try rout of Ospreys, the towering number eight ran in three tries to underline the quality that Ireland thought they could do without. The competition for places in the Ireland back row is a war zone: Jack Conan and Caelan Doris are just some of the players who are vying for a place in the regular rotation. Coombes has been left out in the cold as a result of the fierce competition.
He has been in and out of selection on the Ireland squad, with two international caps to his name so far. He was sent back to Munster midway through Ireland’s autumn campaign last year, and now, he had been stung again. But even in the face of another setback, he produced another answer.
That fight in Coombes was forged at the Skibbereen Rugby club. He’s the first man from the club to earn a senior cap for Ireland, and this weekend, he’s seeking glory with Munster in the URC final against the Stormers.
When he steps onto the field in Cape Town for the 5.30pm kick-off, he’ll have the support of everyone from home who offered a hand in his development. One of those is his underage coach Aidan Bushe.
“Yeah, very excited,” he tells The42 about the anticipation that’s building in Skibbereen. ”To get his first major final is a big deal really.”
Munster booked their place in the final after a thrilling win over Leinster earlier this month. Their one-point victory had all the hallmarks of those absorbing clashes between the provinces in the early 2000s. Jack Crowley’s decisive drop goal was reminiscent of the famous score that his Munster predecessor Ronan O’Gara produced to deliver a Six Nations Grand Slam for Ireland in 2009.
However, the Leinster-Munster rivalry has become a bit one-sided since then, with Leinster elevating to new levels of dominance while Munster have stuttered and struggled. Leinster came into that semi-final having won 10 of their last 11 meetings with the southern province.
Now, Munster are alive again and Coombes is right there toiling away in the engine room. The Skibbereen watermark is stamped all over his workrate.
“Seeing Gavin at the end of the match walking around the stadium shaking hands with everyone – it’s great that you’re represented there,” says Bushe.
“It was fantastic. It’s always good craic down here because there’s always a few Leinster guys around.
“It was about time we got our own back.”
Gavin isn’t the only member of the Coombes family making his mark with Munster. His cousin Liam is there too as is Gavin’s sister Gillian. Earlier this year, Liam grabbed an exceptional match-winning try for Munster against the Lions just 24 hours before Gillian made her debut off the bench for Munster. Their Skibbereen counterpart – and Ireland international – Enya Breen was also involved in that bonus-point win over Ulster.
And the West Cork input in Munster doesn’t end there. Josh and Fineen Wycherley both hail from Bantry while John Hodnett is a product of Rosscarbery. There’s also Darren Sweetnam from Dunmanway in the mix too as well as the drop goal winner from the Leinster game, Jack Crowley of Innishannon. The list is even longer than that.
Bushe points to the Munster teams who conquered Europe in 2006 and 2008 as being the root cause of this upsurge of rugby talent in West Cork. Success breeds success.
“I suppose if you go back to that Munster team in the 2000s that were winning. All those lads were young then watching and wanted to play rugby. That was the catalyst of getting these players to concentrate more on rugby than GAA. A lot of the team would have been playing both but that was the catalyst, and that’s why they’re coming through now.”
Reflecting on his earliest impressions of a young Gavin Coombes, Bushe always identified him as a special talent. Just that beat ahead of the other boys. Liam was a star as well, and the teams they played on were built around them.
They were always together, living like brothers more than cousins. Liam had more of a serious personality growing up while Gavin brought the divilment.
“You always knew Gavin was a step ahead,” says Bushe. “He was big and powerful and was able to run through players. Liam had all the skills and he used to play out-half with us. He was exceptional too.
“We had them from when they were eight up to 16 or 17 when Gavin went to Bandon Grammar and Liam went to Christians. The whole team was nearly based around the two of them. There were good West Cork teams which brought the standard up. You always had local rivalries and really good oppositions, so there were no walkovers.
“Gavin was always the strongest guy on the pitch, really. And his athleticism as well – you could be strong but not have the athleticism to get around the pitch and have the ball skills. You could see that coming up with Gavin.
“They’re much the same age and they played all the way up together. You’d go to the adult matches on a Sunday and they’d be there on the sideline passing the ball around, having a great time.
“They’re quite different: Liam would be probably a bit more serious and Gavin would be more of a messer. But I can’t talk now because that’s going back the years. I’d still know them and chat to them.”
Looking at him when he was young, it was difficult to tell where Gavin’s rugby path would take him. But as he progressed through Bandon Grammar school, Bushe could see that Coombes made for the elite grade. Gavin had other sports on his books at that time too.
He gave his skills to Gaelic football, hockey and even basketball through the years, but rugby was his passion. It was an easy choice when the time came for him to focus on one pursuit.
“He went from Skibb to Bandon Grammar and as soon as he got onto that team, I went to those matches,” Bushe recalls. “They had never won the cup with the school but they made it into a competitive school at that level. Gavin was really one of the main fellas in that team at the time.
“When he was playing with the club, you didn’t know what the next level would be but once you saw him going to schools level, and he was still standing out, then you knew he was going further.”
And now here he is, standing on the verge of a major trophy with Munster. A victory over the Stormers would see the province collect their first piece of silverware since 2011. It was the Magners League in those days. Now the competition bears a new label, but still carries huge significance.
It was the Munster sides of ’06 and ’08 that sent Coombes and his West Cork brothers and sisters on this road. Now it’s his turn to do the same for the next generation.
“It’d be fantastic for Skibbereen club to think that they’d have a representative on a team winning a major trophy,” says a proud Bushe. “And to be a main player as well. Liam has been unfortunate with injuries so hopefully he’ll be back next year.”
Get instant updates on your province on The 42 app. With Laya Healthcare, official health and wellbeing partner to Leinster, Munster and Connacht Rugby.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Gavin Coombes Gillian Coombes Liam Coombes Munster West Cork