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| Place of birth | Antrim, County Antrim, Northern Ireland | ||||||||||
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Chris Busby is an Irish rugby referee. He is a member of Ireland's referee High Performance Panel.
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| Place of birth | Antrim, County Antrim, Northern Ireland | ||||||||||
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Chris Busby is an Irish rugby referee. He is a member of Ireland's referee High Performance Panel.
Busby, born in Antrim, County Antrim, has been refereeing for over 7 years. [1] He made his Pro14 refereeing debut on 9 October 2020 refereeing the match between Zebre and Dragons. [2] [3]
In January 2025, it was reported that Busby was retiring from rugby, subsequent to an incident where Mack Hansen publicly criticised him after a United Rugby Championship match. [4]
Munster Rugby is one of the professional provincial rugby teams from the island of Ireland. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team represents the IRFU's Munster Branch, which is responsible for rugby union throughout the Irish province of Munster. The team motto is "To the brave and faithful, nothing is impossible." This is derived from the motto of the MacCarthy clan – "Forti et Fideli nihil difficile". Their main home ground is Thomond Park, Limerick, though some games are played at Musgrave Park, Cork.
Billy Holland is an Irish former rugby union player, who spent his entire career playing for his native province of Munster, whilst also earning a single international cap for Ireland. He played primarily as a lock, though also played flanker occasionally, and represented Cork Constitution in the All-Ireland League.
The Southern Kings were a South African professional rugby union team that competed in Super Rugby and Pro14. They were based in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape province and played their home matches at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. They were created in 2009, and had their first match against the British & Irish Lions during their 2009 tour. After competing in Super Rugby in 2013, 2016 and 2017, they joined Pro14 prior to the 2017–18 season, along with the Cheetahs.
John Joseph Hanrahan is an Irish rugby union player who plays for Connacht in the United Rugby Championship. He plays primarily as a fly-half, but can also play as a centre or fullback.
John Cooney is an Irish rugby union player who plays scrum-half for Irish provincial side Ulster in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup, having previously played for Leinster and Connacht, and has eleven caps for Ireland. Since joining Ulster in 2017, he has been nominated for EPCR European Player of the Year once, been named in the Pro14 Dream Team four times, and been Ulster's player of the year twice.
Jack Edward Conan is an Irish professional rugby union player who plays as a number eight for United Rugby Championship club Leinster and the Ireland national team.
The 2017–18 PRO14 was the seventeenth season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League. It is the first season to be referred to as the Guinness PRO14 Championship, with the addition of two South African teams.
Andrew Brace is a rugby union referee and former player. Born in Cardiff, Wales, Brace represents the Irish Rugby Football Union as a referee, and was an international player for Belgium. He currently referees in the URC, European Rugby Challenge Cup, European Rugby Champions Cup and at test match level.
The 2018–19 Munster Rugby season was Munster's eighteenth season competing in the Pro14, alongside which they also competed in the European Rugby Champions Cup. It was Johann van Graan's second season as head coach and his first full season in the role, having joined partway through the previous season.
The 2018–19 Pro14 is the eighteenth season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League. It was the second season to be referred to as the Pro14.
Gavin Coombes is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a number eight for United Rugby Championship club Munster and the Ireland national team.
Michael Lowry is an Irish rugby union player from Northern Ireland who plays fullback and out-half for United Rugby Championship and European Rugby Champions Cup side Ulster, and internationally for Ireland. Doubted early on because of his small stature, he has exceptional footwork and acceleration. Ireland coach Andy Farrell describes him as a "nightmare" to play against, praising his explosiveness and bravery.
Ben Blain is a professional rugby union referee who represents the Scottish Rugby Union.
Neil Paterson is a professional rugby union referee who represents the Scottish Rugby Union. He now serves as a Television Match Official for the Pro14, and in international matches.
The 2020–21 PRO14 was the twentieth season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League. It was the fourth season to be referred to as the PRO14.
Giacomo Nicotera is an Italian professional rugby union player who primarily plays hooker for Stade Francais in Top 14.
Craig Evans is a Welsh rugby referee. He has been a member of Wales' professional rugby union ranks since 2015.
The 2020–21 season was Ulster's 27th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and Dan McFarland's third season as head coach. Iain Henderson was captain. They competed in the Pro14, the Pro14 Rainbow Cup, the European Rugby Champions Cup and the European Rugby Challenge Cup.
The 2019–20 season was Ulster's 26th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and Dan McFarland's second season as head coach. Lock Iain Henderson was named captain in place of retired hooker Rory Best. They competed in the Pro14 and the European Rugby Champions Cup. Both competitions were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, he later stages being played in August, September and October 2020. In the Pro14, Ulster finished second in Conference A, making the playoffs and qualifying for next season's Champions Cup. They beat Edinburgh in the semi-final, but lost to Leinster in the final. They finished second in Pool 3 in the Champions Cup, qualifying for the quarter-finals, where they were beaten by Toulouse.
The 2017–18 season was Ulster's 24th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and Jono Gibbes' only season as head coach. Rory Best was captain. They competed in the inaugural Pro14 and the European Rugby Champions Cup.
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