Reds’ players in fond farewell to Keatley

“There was a yawning gap when we turned up for training after our few days off.”

That summed up the reaction of several players at UL this week when Ian Keatley’s name was mentioned.

The Dubliner had already departed Munster on his way to Benetton Treviso via London Irish and many of his teammates over the last eight years didn’t have the opportunity to say their goodbyes and wish him well.

Each and every one agreed that was a great pity, for Keatley had been a favourite both on and off the field, with a huge percentage of the Red Army taking him to their hearts as he manfully attempted to fill the boots of Ronan O’Gara.

Having played the lead role in Belvedere College’s first Leinster Schools Cup success in 33 years in 2005, Keatley was earmarked as a star of the future.

But Leinster didn’t exactly appreciate his talents so he moved on after a year to Connacht where his general play and deadly place-kicking ensured he hardly missed a meaningful game and ran up a total of 688 points between 2008 and 2011.

From Connacht it was on to Munster and an eight-year spell that saw him contribute a massive 1,247 points to the cause in 180 appearances, second only to O’Gara in the province’s history.

Seven Irish caps hardly did justice to his outstanding record of achievement.

Keatley remained a valued member of the Munster squad until this season when his appearances in the red jersey were confined to 74 minutes in four matches as a replacement.

Even so, all his colleagues gave testimony to his unfailing good humour.

“I really enjoyed Keats,” said Munster coach Johann van Graan this week.

“He was a guy who always had a smile on his face. He was one of the first guys that I had a chat with when I came two seasons ago.

“His daughter had just been born back then. Off the field first, I think his smile and the way he treated people was such a big trait of him, he always had time for kids and supporters.

He set an example for the rest of the squad.

“On the field, he was massive for us last season. He took us into that European semi-final and won some big games for us.

“That is the beauty of rugby, people come and go, but the memories you leave behind are so special. We have some fantastic memories of Keats and I am sure he will be back at the end of the season for the squad to give him a proper send-off.

“On a personal note, I said to him, ‘thank you for what you have done for Munster and, most importantly, the way you treated others’.”