Who got you into rugby? My dad Niall was helping with the coaching at Blackrock College rugby club and took me along when I was five or six. I was…
Hotshots
Hotshot: Dragons back row Ollie Griffiths
Tell us about your rugby background I started a bit later than most of the boys. I played football until I was 15 and then started rugby at Newbridge Comprehensive…
Hotshot: Glasgow Hawks half-back George Horne
When did you start taking rugby seriously? When I was going into high school. I had played it in Primary Four and with Howe of Fife rugby club, and my…
Hotshot: Connacht wing Ciaran Gaffney
When did you start playing rugby? My dad, John, is a coach at Galwegians and I used to go to training with him every Saturday. He convinced me to join…
Hotshots: Northampton prop Paul Hill
We gather you were born in Germany? Yes, my mum is German and my dad is English. We lived there until I was about one. When did you take up…
Hotshots: Edinburgh back row Jamie Ritchie
Where did you first pick up a rugby ball? My first club, for minis, was Madras, in St Andrews. I went to Strathallan on a scholarship when I was coming…
Hotshots: Cardiff Blues scrum-half Tomos Williams
When did you start playing rugby? With Treorchy U7. One of my brothers was there and my old man (Steve Williams) was a coach. He coached us all the way…
Hotshots: Ospreys lock Rory Thornton
When were you bitten by the rugby bug? I started in the U8s at Bonymaen with my neighbour Oliver Treviso. He still plays for them now. I was hooked…
Hotshots: Harlequins centre Joe Marchant
Which was your first team? Winchester U7. I stayed with Winchester through the age groups. Did you play other sports? I’m a black belt in karate, I swam and did…
Hotshots: Leinster and UCD scrum-half Nick McCarthy
When did you start playing rugby? When I was about six, at Old Belvedere and St Michael’s College. Have you played different positions? I was a scrum-half from the start.…