Irish Examiner view: Tragic deaths

Irish rugby in mourning

The U20 Ireland rugby team huddle after the game. Picture: Inpho/SteveHaagSports/Darren Stewart

It is a well-worn cliché to say a particular event has the power to put everything else in perspective, but in the case of the Ireland U20 rugby team it has certainly been true this week.

The team observed a minute’s silence before their final pool match in South Africa yesterday following the death of former Munster rugby elite performance officer Greig Oliver, father of their teammate Jack, in a freak mid-air paraglider collision over Cape Town this week. The players were already wearing black armbands in memory of St Michael’s College students Andrew O’Donnell and Max Wall, who died in separate incidents while on holiday in Ios last weekend — several members of the squad attended the school themselves and knew the two boys.

Processing these shocking and unexpected deaths would be difficult enough in ordinary circumstances, but doing so thousands of miles from home in the competitive environment of a World Rugby U20 Championship makes the situation even more challenging.

The result of yesterday’s game between Ireland and Fiji — who also paid tribute to those who lost their lives — was the least important element in a very difficult day for all those involved with the team.

Condolences to the Oliver, O’Donnell, and Wall families.