We’re all in this together.
The party is still going on in Connacht and it may not stop for several days. The province woke up this morning as it did on Sunday – home to the Guinness PRO12 champions.
Connacht’s senior squad, coaching staff and academy players are still immersed in revelry, over in Galway, but five will have to tear themselves away by the week’s end for Ireland duty.
50 Connacht players made the trip from Knock to Edinburgh for the final, at Murrayfield, and they made the return journey just before midnight on Saturday – four hours after the final whistle sounded in their 20-10 triumph over Leinster.
. @connachtrugby win @PRO12rugby title playing sort of rugby we scarcely knew was possible https://t.co/MumTO1Zte3
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) May 28, 2016
There were only supposed to be 46 players on those flights but the rest of the Connacht senior squad had a whip around to pay for the air-fare of four younger players – Cormac Brennan, Ciarán Gaffney, Rory Moloney and Saba Meunargia. Connacht captain John Muldoon told reporters:
“We had four players this year that trained with us, didn’t get any game time. One of the lads [Brennan] was on the bench for the Ulster game and for various reasons they had to cut the line somewhere and they decided not to bring four of the lads that hadn’t played.
“That was obviously the management’s perspective – 46 lads is a lot to bring. But the lads got together and chipped in and brought the other four lads, and that shows what the team is about.
“The fact that we’re not willing to leave the four lads behind, and the four lads are inside in the dressing room and they deserve to be here as much as anybody else, and that shows the togetherness and what it means to everyone.
“To me that sums up the group massively.”
The four players were a full part of the Connacht entourage, sat with the non-playing squad members – such as Quinn Roux, George Naoupu and Danie Poolman.
Post-match, they headed along to the changing room for the beginning of a party to end all parties.
