'Still moving alright for an old man': McCloskey living the dream in career twilight

Stuart McCloskey and Tom Stewart, left, during an Ireland rugby squad training session at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

At 33, most international rugby backs start fearing the worse as age catches up to them. But for Stuart McCloskey, the barnstorming midfielder is living the dream in the twilight of his career.

In fact, he might even be getting quicker.

Despite hitting the scales at 118 kegs, the giant midfielder showed that his incredible trysaving tackle on Marcus Smith in the Six Nations was no fluke as he somehow ran down 21-year-old Wallabies flyer Max Jorgensen last weekend.

While McCloskey’s head-turning chase wasn’t quite the viral moment from a few months earlier as the Wallabies’ new poster boy managed to slip away a pass to Ryan Lonergan to score, it once again shocked everyone, including himself.

“It's become a thing, isn't it? I think people are just scared now, they don't try,” McCloskey quipped.

“If only Jimmy (O’Brien) hadn't been having a fag in the back-field, it would have been fine, we could have caught him.

“No, I was just lucky again that I was in that place. Unfortunately, we didn't get him this time.” 

Not only did the epic chase show McCloskey’s pace, it also put to bed any concerns over any lingering hamstring issues, having missed the previous two months after pulling up lame against Exeter during their Challenge Cup win.

“As everybody saw there, the hamstring is grand,” he said.

“The plan that was put in place at the start was great, pretty much ticked every box as we went along, and yeah my heart was in my mouth chasing back, I don't know if Emma [Galvin] the physio’s was as well, but no, it all turned out alright.” 

Making the chase even more remarkable is the fact he could be world rugby’s heaviest midfielder.

“It's over nine metres a second, around nine metres a second anyway, which isn't bad for 118 kilos, so yeah, still moving alright for an old man,” he said.

Ten years on from his debut against England, there’s no doubt that McCloskey is playing some of the best rugby of his career.

So, what’s the secret? Well, according to the man himself, it’s being able to be goldfish and simply move on quickly to the next job.

Stuart McCloskey during an Ireland rugby media conference at the Intercontinental Hotel in Sydney. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

“I suppose I'm a lot different person at 33 now than I was when I was 23,” he said. “I try not to take it all too seriously, and that is a lot easier to do when you're a bit older and you've seen most of the things before and you realise it's not the end of the world if you lose a game or if you make a mistake.

“You have to get over it pretty quickly, and on the field there's no point in sort of worrying about things that have happened. 

"Like, at the weekend I think I missed a tackle, ended up being a linebreak, they scored, but the next play I ended up making a big break down the middle, so it's trying to be a goldfish in a way and try to have that back of memory of all the bad things and just keep going, so that's what I try to do. And I think with the age it's become easier.” 

In an era where players are increasingly reaching the 100-Test milestone, the fact that McCloskey is only just playing his 30th match this weekend goes to show how hard he’s had to work to get back in the international mix.

“It's just the guys in front, like Bundee [Aki], Robbie [Henshaw], Ringer [Garry Ringrose], you put them down in the top three, probably five or six Irish centres ever, so trying to get past them is always going to be tough,” the Ulsterman said.

“I think when I've got into the jersey I've done a fairly good job, I think I played that Grand Slam year, started the first three games and then got injured; Bundee nearly got world player of the year after I got injured, so it was a tough one to get past.” 

Knowing the competitiveness in the midfield, it’s why McCloskey worked his backside off to get back in time for this year’s tour to Australia and New Zealand.

“I suppose I've waited so long to get a decent run on the jersey, and I don't really want to give it up without a bit of a fight,” he said.

With already a bucket load of talent already on the sidelines, it’s a good thing McCloskey got back in time for the Nations Championship opener because his experience has already been invaluable for Ireland on this tour.

He is just one of six players to be asked to go round again against Japan this weekend too, with Andy Farrell freshening up his side ahead of their season finale against the All Blacks next week.