Scannell brothers get just rewards for super Munster performances

The call-up of the Scannell brothers, Niall and Rory, to Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations squad is as much a cause for celebration at Dolphin as it is Munster.

The AIL club was the port of call for both hooker Niall, now 24 and a former Ireland U20 captain, and versatile back Rory, 23, when they left Cork’s PBC school and each quickly made the leap to first-team regulars in Division One as they found their feet on the first rungs of the professional rugby ladder in the Munster Academy.

Dolphin’s director of rugby Chris Rowe was a second-row playing alongside them at Musgrave Park and then became their captain and he remembers two young players with natural leadership qualities and temperaments to deal with any situation.

“As a club, we’re delighted for them,” Rowe told the Irish Examiner.

“They’re great, down to earth boys and still very much in touch with all the lads, and interested in our games and how we’re getting on.

“Anything they can do for the club to help, they’re always there and they deserve all the success they’re getting at the moment.

“They’re both talented rugby players and we knew that from the beginning really.

“Niall was more the one with the old head on young shoulders. As a hooker, he came straight out of school into senior rugby and adapted very quickly.

“You wouldn’t have said he was an 18 or 19-year-old kid looking at him play senior rugby, and he wasn’t too shy in giving his opinion either, so credit where credit’s due.

“He had a tough couple of years but the last year or so he’s broken through and done extremely well but we never had any doubt he’d make some great strides at some point, it was just a matter of time before he did.

“You could see straight away he was such a natural leader.

“He was captain of the senior team in his second year, always willing to make decisions and calls and it wouldn’t surprise if he ended up as captain of Munster one day.

“Rory’s a good and natural footballer, he has that ability to play 10, 12, or full-back.

“His distribution is great, he’s got that big left boot and he’s able to carry the hard yards as well and be strong in defence and his ability to play in a number of positions, any coach would look for that in picking a matchday squad.”

Rowe, a former Wales U21 team-mate of Grand Slam-winning scrum-half Mike Phillips, believes the way both players have matured over the past few years has been as important as the skills they have developed in that time.

“When Rory came through he started a game on the wing for us, played at out-half, centre, and was a gifted, gifted rugby player while Niall came through playing hooker, which is not an easy position.

“For both of them, it was more than that, though. Off the pitch as well, they are good lads, and good team players, even when they were dropping down from Munster to play with us on a Saturday, you’d always get a nine out of 10 performance from them.

“They wear their hearts on their sleeves and give 100% commitment. It’s a credit to them and their family because they’re really good lads.

“Whatever happens in the next couple of weeks, this is a huge moment for both lads and a great start to the journey with their Irish careers.

“It’s all about gaining experience and it will be great for them and everybody at the club is very proud of them and hopefully it’s just the beginning.”

Meanwhile, Munster A’s top seeding in the British and Irish Cup quarter-finals was yesterday rewarded with a home tie against Ulster A. The game will be staged in Cork at Musgrave Park on Sunday, March 12.

British & Irish Cup quarter-final draw, March 10-12, 2017:

Munster A v Ulster A; London Irish v Yorkshire Carnegie; Jersey Reds v Cornish Pirates; Ealing Trailfinders v Scarlets Premiership Select.