Tributes have poured in after the death of former Ireland and Leicester Tigers scrum-half Tom Tierney at the age of 46.
Tierney was a member of the Ireland squad that made it as far as the quarter-final play-offs of the 1999 Rugby World Cup, where he scored in a 44-14 win over Romania. He won eight caps for his country across a two-year span but lost his place to the emerging Peter Stringer—a fellow Limerick man—in 2000 and never returned for the national team.
The former Munster playmaker came through the ranks with regional outfits Garryowen, Richmond and Galwegians before moving to the provincial level. He also made 15 appearances for Premiership giants Leicester between 2002 and 2004 before returning to his homeland for a four-year stint at Connacht.
Former team-mate Frankie Sheahan was emotional in his reaction to the news, writing that he was "truly devastated" to hear his "great friend and teammate" had died. "Fantastic player, superb character and outstanding coach," tweeted the ex-hooker. "Thoughts and prayers with Mary [Tierney's widow] and all the family."
After hanging up his boots, Tierney enjoyed a successful coaching career and was at the helm when Ireland's women won their second Six Nations crown in 2015. The team was narrowly denied a Grand Slam after losing to France, but Tierney later left the post in the wake of a poor showing at the 2017 Rugby World Cup.
He went on to coach Ireland's under-19 and under-20 teams in the following years, helping to promote some of the prospects that have helped transform the nation into rugby 's No. 1 ranked team. At the time of his death, Tierney was working as a IRFU national talent coach, based at the University of Limerick.
“Everyone in Irish Rugby is deeply shocked to hear of the sudden loss of Tom Tierney," read a statement from IRFU chief executive Kevin Potts. "Our immediate thoughts are with his wife Mary and daughters Isabel and Julia, as well as his many friends, colleagues and former team-mates.
"Tom was an outstanding scrum-half and his time in the Ireland jersey will always be an immense source of pride for his family and the clubs that supported him on his journey. He also amassed an impressive CV as a coach and we were honoured to have him as a colleague in the IRFU from 2014 to present. He will be sorely missed.”
Galway journalist John Mulligan credited Tierney for his influence in creating "that legendary Ireland team of 2015" in a heartfelt post. Meanwhile, Nick Winkelman, Irish Rugby's head of athletic performance and science, lauded Tierney as "so full of energy, joy, and passion for our game and players."
