Munster star named as Tipp’s favourite son

MUNSTER rugby star and former international Alan Quinlan was yesterday named as the 2010 Tipperary Person of the Year.

He is to be honoured by the Tipperary Association in Dublin.

Quinlan, 35, was capped 27 times for Ireland and was part of Ireland’s squad at the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia where he scored two tries.

He was named in Ireland’s 2007 Rugby World Cup squad but did not make any appearance.

A native of Limerick Junction, he grew up in a farming background and attended the Monastery Primary School and the Abbey CBS in Tipperary Town.

Quinlan began his rugby career with Clanwilliam FC where he captained the Irish Youth Team against Scotland in 1993. He still has a major input into the club.

He also represented Ireland ‘A’ between 1998 and 2001 and made his senior debut for the Irish national side in October 1999 in a Test against Romania.

He played his first Six Nations match against Italy in 2001.

In April 2009, he was named in the squad for the 2009 Lions tour of South Africa but due to a 12-week ban received for an incident during the Heineken Cup semi-final defeat to Leinster, last May, he missed the tour.

More recently, he had strong performances for Munster in both the Heineken Cup and Magners League, regularly taking man-of-the-match awards.

Married to Irish model Ruth Griffin, the couple have one son, AJ.

Commenting on the award, Tipperary Association president Michael Fenton said Alan Quinlan was a well deserved winner and Tipperary’s first rugby player to receive the award.

“His outstanding achievements in the field of rugby provided an inspiration to thousands of young men today.”

He will be presented with the award at a dinner in the Louis Fitzgerald Hotel on May 5.