 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 6 December 1992 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Place of birth | Limerick, Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 83 kg (13.1 st; 183 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Castletroy College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University of Limerick | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notable relative(s) | Seán Cronin (brother) [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Neil Cronin (born 6 December 1992) is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
During the 2017–18 season, Cronin captained Garryowen to a 39th Munster Senior Challenge Cup and, for his efforts, was named the AIL Munster Player of the Year and Division 1A Player of the Year. [2] [3]
Cronin made his Munster debut on 26 December 2014, featuring off the bench in the provinces 28–13 win against Leinster in Thomond Park. [4] [5] He went on to make three more appearances as a substitute for Munster during the 2014–15 season. Following his performances for Garryowen, Cronin was awarded a one-year contract with Munster for the 2018–19 season. [6]
Cronin made his 'second' debut for Munster on 1 September 2018, starting at scrum-half in their opening 2018–19 Pro14 fixture against South African side Cheetahs in Thomond Park. [7] Cronin made his Champions Cup debut on 13 October 2018, featuring off the bench in Munster's opening 2018–19 pool 2 fixture against English side Exeter Chiefs, which ended in a 10–10 draw in Sandy Park. [8]
Cronin signed a two-year contract extension with Munster in October 2018. [9] Cronin scored his first try for Munster in their 43–0 win against South African side Southern Kings on 15 February 2019. [10] He suffered an ACL injury during training with Munster in October 2020, which is expected to rule Cronin out for at least six months. [11] He signed a two-year contract extension with Munster in March 2021, a deal that will see him remain with the province until at least June 2023. [12] Cronin featured off the bench in Munster's historic 28–14 win against a South Africa XV in Páirc Uí Chaoimh on 10 November 2022, [13] and extended his contract with Munster until the end of January 2024. [14]
Cronin has made eight appearances for the Ireland Club XV, most recently in February and March 2018 when he captained the side in two fixtures against Scotland Club XV. [15] [16]
After Cronin's first brief stint with Munster came to an end, he qualified as a secondary school teacher, before going on to earn a teaching degree and a position at St Munchin's College. [1]
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.
James Cronin is an Irish rugby union player, currently playing for Leicester Tigers in England's Premiership Rugby, he previously represented his native province of Munster in the URC and French club Biarritz in the Top 14. He plays as a prop and represented Highfield in the All-Ireland League.
Niall Scannell is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a hooker for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
Christopher Robert Eric Farrell is an Irish rugby union player for French Pro D2 club Oyonnax. He plays as a centre.
Michael Patrick Haley is an English-born, Irish-qualified rugby union player who plays as a fullback for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
Liam O'Connor is an Irish former rugby union player who played as a prop for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
Joseph Carbery is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a fly-half for United Rugby Championship club Munster. Born in New Zealand, he represents Ireland at international level after qualifying on ancestry grounds.
Fineen Wycherley is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a lock for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
Jeremy Loughman is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a prop for United Rugby Championship club Munster and the Ireland national team.
Shane Daly is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a wing or fullback for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
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.
Diarmuid Barron is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a hooker for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
Patrick Patterson is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
Craig Patrick Casey is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for United Rugby Championship club Munster and the Ireland national team.
Keynan Knox is a South African rugby union player who plays as a prop for United Rugby Championship club Munster.
Ben Healy is an Irish-born, Scottish-qualified rugby union player who plays as a fly-half for Edinburgh and for the Scotland national rugby union team.
Rowan Osborne is an Irish former rugby union player. He played as a scrum-half and represented Dublin University in the amateur All-Ireland League.
Jack Crowley is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a fly-half for United Rugby Championship club Munster and the Ireland national team.
The 2021–22 Munster Rugby season was Munster's twenty-first season competing in the United Rugby Championship, alongside which they also competed in the European Rugby Champions Cup. It was Johann van Graan's fifth and final season as head coach.
The 2022–23 season was Ulster Rugby's 29th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union. They competed in the United Rugby Championship, finishing second in the league table and going out in the quarter-finals, and the European Rugby Champions Cup going out in the round of 16. It was Dan McFarland's fifth season as head coach. Scrum-half John Cooney was leading scorer with 154 points. Hooker Tom Stewart was leading try scorer with 17, and won the URC Top Try Scorer and Next-Gen Player of the Season awards.
