“I was always a soccer player growing up – I loved soccer.” Munster Rugby star Alex Kendellen on playing multiple sports growing up, choosing rugby and the influence of soccer on his own rugby development.
Ringmahon Rangers have a renowned reputation for producing some of Ireland’s best young Irish footballing talents; Caoimhin Kelleher (Liverpool), Alan Browne (Sunderland), Cathal Heffernan (Newcastle United) – impressive for a small club on the outskirts of Cork City. Little do they know that they have simultaneously (and perhaps unwittingly) also been developing some of the top Irish rugby talent, with Munster Rugby back-row Alex Kendellen among their ever-growing list of notable alumni.
Speaking to Limerick Voice, Kendellen spoke fondly of his experiences playing soccer growing up and of his time at Ringmahon as a teenager.
“I’m forever grateful to everyone at Ringmahon. They were incredibly good to me and I brought a lot of skills over from soccer into rugby.”
Kendellen looked to have a promising future as a footballer during his time at Ringmahon Rangers, but like most top young athletes, he had to make a choice which sport to pursue and ultimately it was rugby which became his main passion and at which he excelled during his formative years as an athlete.
“I was still playing National Cup when I was 16 for Ringmahon, and I loved playing soccer. But then it became a small bit serious with the rugby and you do have to make a choice, I don’t think I would have went as far in soccer as I did in rugby so I think I made the right choice.”
The topic of playing multiple sports at a young age has long been debated within sporting circles. In 2020, following an FAI statement encouraging young athletes to choose a single sport to pursue from an early age, former Ireland international David Meyler spoke out against this view, stating that “it is a shame that there are not enough dual players.”
Kendellen echoed this sentiment, speaking of the importance for kids to play and experience multiple sports growing up.
“I always say that as many sports as you can play as a little kid, it’s always going to benefit you. I think I took a load of skills from soccer that I brought into rugby.”
He’s not the only one – Ireland internationals Tomás O’Leary, Rob Kearney, Tommy Bowe, Seán Cronin, Simon Zebo and Robbie Henshaw are all reported to have excelled at Gaelic football before pursuing a career in rugby. Keeping his options open and developing this unique skillset has clearly benefitted Kendellen in terms of his acceleration into professional rugby at Munster; after eventually choosing rugby as his primary sport, his passion and determination saw him rise rapidly through the ranks and he was named Academy Player of the Year in 2022.
“Ever since I stepped into first year in Pres (Presentation Brothers College), it’s all I wanted, to get an academy slot at Munster..get a senior contract..I wanted to play with Munster, win with Munster, win trophies for Munster and that was it. I always wanted the next thing.”
Some things never change. Now 24, the former Cork Constitution star has his eyes on the next big target for his rugby career – breaking into the Ireland setup and gaining his first international cap for his country.
“It’s always been a goal for me to try and get an Irish cap. I’d be sitting here lying to you to tell you that it wasn’t. But that’s now in the back of my mind, at the moment my focus is just winning as many games for Munster as possible.”
Munster travel to France this Saturday 5th April as they face Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle in the Last 16 of the Investec Champions Cup, with kick-off at 5.30pm at Stade Marcel Deflandre.
Paul Madden 