| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert Kearney | |
| Date of birth | March 26, 1986 | |
| Place of birth | Dundalk,[1] County Louth, Ireland | |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | |
| Weight | 14 st 2 lb (90 kg) | |
| School(s) attended | Clongowes Wood College | |
| University(s) | University College Dublin | |
| Relatives | David Kearney (Leinster Rugby Team) | |
| Club information | ||
| Position(s) | Wing / Full-back | |
| Current club | UCD | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| Years | Club | |
| Louth GAA (gaelic football) Cooley Kickhams |
||
| Senior clubs* | ||
| Years | Club | Apps (points) |
| 2005–present | Leinster | 104 (144) |
| Representative teams** | ||
| 2008–present 2009 |
Ireland Lions |
33 (37) 3 (5) |
|
* Professional club appearances and points |
||
Robert Kearney (born March 26, 1986), also referred to as Rob Kearney, is an Irish rugby union footballer who currently plays for UCD, Leinster and Ireland. As a youth he also played rugby union for Clongowes Wood College and Gaelic football for Louth in the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship.[2] Born and raised in the Cooley Peninsula, Kearney, like many of his peers, got involved in athletics at an early age. The dominant sport in the area was (and is) Gaelic football. As a youth, Kearney played Gaelic for Naomh Mhuire, and in the Cooley Kickhams underage setup, before graduating to the Cooley senior football team at the relatively young age of 16.
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Kearney (Pronounced Car ' Nee) attended Clongowes Wood College in Co. Kildare for his secondary education. He then went on from his Leaving Certificate to attend University College Dublin.
Kearney attended University College Dublin where he studied Arts and played for the rugby team. In 2005 he helped the U-20s team win the McCorry Cup, beating Trinity College in the final.[3]
Kearney played for Leinster at both schoolboy and U-19 level before going onto represent them as a senior. He scored a hat-trick of tries on his debut for Leinster in the pre-season friendly win over Parma.
He then made his Magners League debut for Leinster in 2005 in a 22–20 defeat away to the Ospreys. He would go on to make 32 appearances in the competition, scoring 8 tries, with 3 penalties during a period in September 2006, when usual place kicker, Felipe Contepomi was injured. Kearney then played in his first Heineken Cup game in a 19–22 defeat against Bath at the RDS later that same season. It was the first of 10 appearances scoring 4 tries in the process.[4] He was part of Leinster's Heineken Cup winning team in 2009.
Kearney represented Ireland at schoolboy, U-19 and A level before he was called up to the senior squad for the 2008 Six Nations Championship.[5][6] He was first called into the Irish training squad for 2005's autumn internationals and toured with Ireland A in the summer and played in the Churchill Cup. In April 2007, he was named in the Irish squad to tour Argentina in the summer and earned his first cap on 2 June 2007. During the 2008 Six Nations Championship he scored 2 tries, one against Scotland and one against England.[5][6][7] He was a member of the victorious Ireland team that won the 2009 Six Nations Championship, Triple Crown and Grand Slam.[8] One of the most famous incidents in Kearney's career was a high tackle incident involving Italy's Andrea Masi in the first minute of the game. The incident was taken as an indication of the danger posed by Kearney in attack.[9]
On 21 April 2009, Kearney was named as a member of the British and Irish Lions for the 2009 tour to South Africa.[10] He made his Lions test debut as a substitute in the 26–21 1st Test defeat in Durban. Due to an injury to Lee Byrne, Kearney was selected again for the second test in Pretoria. He scored the only try for the Lions, however they lost 28–25. He then played in the final test in Johannesburg where the Lions won 28–9.
Rob is currently dating British actress Susie Amy[11]
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