Henry McErlean’s journey from hurling with Cushendall to the Ireland under-20 rugby team

Henry McErlean has embraced the road less travelled, a journey that took him from Cushendall in the Glens of Antrim and his first sporting passion, hurling, to the cusp of a potential Grand Slam opportunity with the Ireland Under-20s, via St Michael’s College.

He grew up playing hurling, rugby with the Ballymena minis a secondary interest, but when the family relocated to Dublin as he swapped primary for secondary schooling, that GAA primacy was challenged.

“The hurling scene wasn’t as strong in Michael’s. It was a bit of a no-brainer with my new mates which sport I was going to be playing. I went into rugby instead, ”he explains, smiling. He briefly popped into Clanna Gael Fontenoy GAA club in Ringsend but his prowess on the rugby pitch didn’t allow for a dual focus.

He’s a very talented footballer who easily switched between fullback (for the Junior Cup team) and outhalf at school via a stint on the wing in fourth year. He was denied further opportunities at senior level by Covid-19 as a fifth year and a knee injury that prevented him from playing in his final year at school.

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Having played half a dozen games for Terenure College in the Energia League Division 1A, McErlean was named on the bench for Ireland’s opening game in the Under-20 Six Nations against Wales at Colwyn Bay. His arrival on the pitch had a galvanising effect as he created and exploited space, scoring a try too.

“I was very keen on making an impact. I knew that there were spaces there to run into but perhaps we just hadn’t played into them. On the bench you can see it. It might be a bit harder in-game. Coming on I knew where we could potentially have a bit of leverage on them so that was the plan,” he says.

He started in the victories over France and Italy and will be an important player for Richie Murphy’s side as they take on Scotland in Scotstoun on Friday night (7.15). Playing a couple of training matches with Andy Farrell’s Ireland side has been beneficial for the age-grade squad both individually and collectively.

“You can see why they are the number one in the world by the speed they play at. I spoke to Ross Byrne, talking to him about the type of kick he puts in, Mack Hansen as well, you must be on top of your game because if you shoot up, they will just put the ball in behind you,” McErlean says.

Do you ask them about game specific situations, or does it all pass in a blur? “You get a few where you are caught out and you think ‘I must ask him after how I could improve?’ You have five or six of those moments but by the end you only remember two or three. That two or three is always great information.”

The 20s even had the temerity to run the move from which Hugo Keenan scored against France against the seniors only to be denied by the positioning of the referee. That drew a few smiles.

On a personal level McErlean outlines the strengths of his game. “I would like to think that I am reliable under the high ball and if there is outside space I will go after it. I wouldn’t just take the contact I would always be trying to play to the space, putting another lad into space; try and break the line, be a bit explosive in trying to break through, not just normal carries up the middle.”

There is no talk about a Grand Slam, the team are “moment focused”, and the next one is Friday night. There is no room for distractions, as there is plenty of road still to travel.