James Coughlan
Encyclopedia
James Coughlan is an Irish rugby union
player for Munster
in the RaboDirect Pro12
and Heineken Cup
. He normally plays at Number 8 but has also played at both Blindside and Openside Flanker.
in the Magners League
in September 2006, and his performances in his first season earnt him a full contract. He made one appearance for Munster during their victorious 2007-08 Heineken Cup
campaign. Coughlan was one of the stars for Munster in their 16–18 defeat by New Zealand at the opening of Thomond Park
in November 2008. Denis Leamy's injuries propelled Coughlan into the Munster starting XV in the 2009/2010 season, and since then he has become a mainstay in the team. Coughlan captained Munster during their historic 15–6 win over Australia
in November 2010, and he won the Munster Player of the Year award for 2011, beating fellow nominees Keith Earls
, Ronan O'Gara
and Doug Howlett
. He started at Number 8 for Munster as they beat old rivals Leinster
19-9 to win the 2011 Magners League Grand Final.
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player for Munster
Munster Rugby
Munster Rugby is an Irish professional rugby union team based in Munster, that competes in the RaboDirect Pro12 and Heineken Cup.The team represents the Irish Rugby Football Union Munster Branch which is one of four primary branches of the IRFU, and is responsible for rugby union in the Irish...
in the RaboDirect Pro12
Celtic League (rugby union)
The Celtic League is an annual rugby union competition involving professional sides from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
and Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
. He normally plays at Number 8 but has also played at both Blindside and Openside Flanker.
Early rugby career
Coughlan started playing rugby with Old Christians at the age of 10. He continued playing when he went to CBC, and was selected for Irish Schools. He went to UCC, and played for Irish Universities. He joined Dolphin in 2001 and has played 85 times for them in AIB League/Cup, scoring 32 tries, a club record. Coughlan also played on the Irish Sevens team in 2008 that qualified for the 2009 Rugby Sevens World Cup, which was held in Dubai.Munster
Coughlan made his Munster debut against Cardiff BluesCardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....
in the Magners League
Celtic League (rugby union)
The Celtic League is an annual rugby union competition involving professional sides from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
in September 2006, and his performances in his first season earnt him a full contract. He made one appearance for Munster during their victorious 2007-08 Heineken Cup
2007-08 Heineken Cup
The 2007–08 Heineken Cup was the 13th edition of the Heineken Cup, the annual rugby union European club competition for clubs from the top six nations in European rugby.The start of the tournament was delayed because of the 2007 Rugby World Cup...
campaign. Coughlan was one of the stars for Munster in their 16–18 defeat by New Zealand at the opening of Thomond Park
Thomond Park
Thomond Park is a stadium located in Limerick in the Irish province of Munster. The stadium is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union and count Munster Rugby, Shannon RFC and UL Bohemian RFC as tenants. The capacity of the stadium is 26,500 following its large scale redevelopment in...
in November 2008. Denis Leamy's injuries propelled Coughlan into the Munster starting XV in the 2009/2010 season, and since then he has become a mainstay in the team. Coughlan captained Munster during their historic 15–6 win over Australia
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
in November 2010, and he won the Munster Player of the Year award for 2011, beating fellow nominees Keith Earls
Keith Earls
Keith Earls is an Irish rugby union footballer for Munster in the RaboDirect Pro12 and Heineken Cup. Internationally, Earls plays for Ireland, and he represented the British and Irish Lions on their 2009 tour to South Africa. He plays as an Outside Centre, Winger or Fullback. He won a Munster...
, Ronan O'Gara
Ronan O'Gara
Ronan John Ross O'Gara is an Irish rugby union player, playing at fly-half for both Munster and Ireland. He is the all time highest point scorer for both Munster and Ireland. In addition to his prolific point-scoring, he has captained Munster, Ireland and the British and Irish Lions...
and Doug Howlett
Doug Howlett
Douglas Charles Howlett is a professional New Zealand rugby union player of Tongan descent. He is primarily a wing but he has also covered fullback at national and international levels. He currently plays in Ireland with Munster. He is the brother of former Tongan rugby league international Phil...
. He started at Number 8 for Munster as they beat old rivals Leinster
Leinster Rugby
Leinster Rugby, usually referred to simply as Leinster, is an Irish professional rugby union team based in Dublin, representing the Irish province of Leinster, that competes in the RaboDirect Pro 12 and also competes in the Heineken Cup...
19-9 to win the 2011 Magners League Grand Final.