Ciarán Frawley wants more after 'dream' Six Nations start

Ciarán Frawley's first Irish start had been in the post for for quite a while, but it was definitely worth the wait.

The 26-year-old has had to serve a long apprenticeship in the Irish squad. He was still 23 when he was first drafted in by head coach Andy Farrell back in 2021 for the Autumn Nations Series, and he while didn't feature in those three games, it looked for all the world like his day would come sooner rather than later.

A combination of badly times injuries, and the brilliantly timed breakthrough of Jack Cowley, meant that Frawley's Test career eventually came around later rather than sooner, as he made his debut in the World Cup warm-up win over Italy in August.

With an ability to play at out-half, centre and full-back, that versatility was always going to make him a valuable asset, and so it proved when Hugo Keenan picked up a knee injury in Ireland's Guinness Six Nations win over Italy last month.

The Skerries native was handed his first start at full-back for the 31-7 Round 3 win over Wales, and capped off an impressive all-round performance with a try under the posts, ticking off a lifetime ambition.

"I think as soon as I started playing, I dreamed of scoring a try for Ireland," he says, as he reflects on his first international try.

"It was class. I knew my family and friends were down that end [of the stadium] as well, they'd be buzzing. But I obviously couldn’t see them in the crowd, everyone was up on their feet, but it was obviously a very special moment."

To make the occasion even better, he was able to do it in front of his Grandad Justin, who had flown home from San Francisco on the morning of the game, while their embrace in the stands afterwards was picked up by TV cameras.

"He had a bit of jet-lag,