Edwin Edogbo savours Ireland debut and all that comes with it

The Cobh man marked a special day at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

IF THE CAPS FITS: Edwin Edogbo of Ireland with his first cap after the Guinness 6 Nations Rugby Championship match against Italy. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Think, for a second, about the sheer volume of noise that must orbit a young man’s mind in the week when he has been named on an Ireland Test team for the first time. Endless satellites circling, all transmitting their signals on endless frequencies.

Some run nothing but interference, others enhance the whole experience.

Edwin Edogbo seems to have tuned seamlessly into all the right ones. The eight-foot projection of him in an Ireland shirt on Belvelly Castle back home in Cobh? 

“Unreal.” 

His family’s part in the jersey presentation at the Shelbourne Hotel?

 “Very special.” 

“You can be quite focused on yourself and the team form so you don't really look outwards, but just seeing the smiles on their faces… And the message they were sending came from the heart. It meant a lot.” 

That experience was amplified for the 23-year old Munster man by a few videos from friends and old teammates back home in Cobh and with the Pirates. And by the fact that it was Craig Casey who handed over that No.19 jersey two days out from the game.

“It was nice, I absolutely liked it. Craig’s one of the lads I know most in the squad. It's nice just hearing nice words from him. I've known him for a good while now. I know what kind of professional he is. It was a nice feeling.” 

Everything we have heard and read about Edogbo spoke for a man who had the temperament to absorb all these emotions and moments, but making your senior Ireland debut poses new challenges long before your first tackle or carry.

One of his old coaches, Cathal Sheridan, had made a point of mentioning the national anthems pre-game and how he might need a plan for the moment he would find himself standing there when the magnitude of it all might sink in.

“I tried my best but there’s nothing quite like it, singing the national anthem, so it was a pretty special moment.” 

All these little things add up and zip by. Try as he might, he couldn’t spot his family in the crowd of over 51,000 people inside the Aviva Stadium. It was only after his cameo that they were spotted and another special moment could be shared.

Plenty more had made the long road up from Cobh. Any idea how many?

“Oh, about 8,000!” This has all happened so fast and, at the same time, taken longer than anyone would have liked. Long-term injuries have hampered his progress with Munster for too long. So much so that Edogbo remains a player with remarkably little big-game exposure.

The stats show he has played just 24 times for Munster. Boil those actual minutes down and he has less than 13 full games of professional men’s rugby to his name. It’s little wonder Andy Farrell has spoken recently of the need to make sure he is ready for this step.

“Again, my main goal with this campaign… I've had a few chances with Faz and a few chats with Paulie [O’Connell], I just want to learn as much as possible. Obviously every player wants to play all the games but I understand that this is a normal situation.

“This is a very special place, a very privileged place to be, and it takes time. Faz did an interview about how I need to find my feet and he's 100% right. There is an element of knowing the system, knowing your teammates.

“Ultimately, international rugby is a different beast and I suppose I got a taste of that [on Saturday]. I know from that little block I had there, there's a lot of work to be done, and I'm looking forward to it.” 

His first effort bodes well. Brought on for James Ryan with 70 minutes played, Ireland were just seven points in front and being made to work by the Italians. Edogbo made nine tackles in that brief spell. Only four Irishmen had more all day.

Other replacements made similar inputs. It was all hands on deck at that point.

“It's a different, added pressure, but the training we did during the week prepped us for that moment and coming into it, of course it's going to be challenging and the lungs are going from moment go. We were pretty confident.” 

The excitement surrounding Edogbo and what he could bring to Farrell’s second row would be enough in itself but then it’s only heightened by the knowledge that his younger brother Sean is following a similar trajectory.

A back row, the 21-year old made his Munster senior debut against the Dragons in Cork only a matter of weeks ago. His older brother was among the crew there to take it all in and Edwin is hopeful that, all going well, his path will take him to the same heights.

“He's kind of… not burst on scene. He's been there for a little bit, but he's kind of really come to the forefront the last couple of weeks. And, look, he's always a different beast being completely honest with you. I'm really excited to see where he goes.”

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