Tributes have been paid this afternoon to former Ireland rugby player and women’s international coach Tom Tierney who passed away suddenly aged 46.
Tierney was capped eight times for his national, while he also played with Richmond, Garryowen, Munster, Galwegians, Connacht and Leicester during his career.
The scrum-half made his debut for Ireland in June, 1999 and went on to earn eight caps including four appearances at the 1999 Rugby World Cup where he scored a try in the Pool E win against Romania.
Following his retirement he transitioned into a coaching role, working with Crescent College Comprehensive SJ, Garryowen, Cork Constitution and the Ireland Club XV side.
He was primarily working with the IRFU since 2014 including coaching roles with Ireland U19 and U20 Mens, Ireland Women’s 7s and Ireland Women’s 15s for three years where his honours included a 2015 Women’s Six Nations Championship. He also led the Ireland Women’s team during the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup which was held in Ireland.
Munster always remained close to his heart and his role as IRFU National Talent Coach had seen him based out of Munster Rugby’s High Performance Centre in UL since 2021, working with Munster’s Academy players.
Following the tragic news being announced, IRFU Chief Executive Kevin Potts said:
“Everyone in Irish Rugby is deeply shocked to hear of the sudden loss of Tom Tierney.
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.”
Munster Rugby CEO, Ian Flanagan, said:
“On behalf of Munster Rugby, I would like to express our deepest condolences to Tom’s wife Mary, daughters Isabel and Julia, and the wider Tierney family.
We are shocked and deeply saddened by Tom’s sudden passing. A great servant to Munster and Irish Rugby he will be dearly missed. The younger players and his colleagues in the HPC enjoyed working closely with Tom each day as he brought a great energy and unique personality to his role, always ensuring the future of Munster Rugby was in safe hands.
May he rest in peace.”
Diarmuid Kearney
Diarmuid Kearney is a freelance Sports Journalist based in Co Kerry. He has more than 5 years experience covering domestic and international soccer for different media organisations, while also working for local and national print and digital organisations covering GAA.