The Leinster back starts against Wales this weekend, having first come into the Ireland camp in 2021.
Ciarán Kennedy THE PATH TO Test rugby is rarely straightforward, and for Ciarán Frawley, Saturday’s Six Nations meeting with Wales will represent the end of a long, frustrating wait to make his first start for Ireland.
Born in Australia, Frawley’s family returned to Ireland when he was three years old. A talented soccer and Gaelic player growing up, Frawley came through the ranks at Skerries RFC and graduated to the Leinster Youths and Ireland underage setups, before going pro with Leinster.He debuted for the province in February 2018 and soon became a valuable versatile option in Leo Cullen’s squad.
It’s been an interesting development given the player has made it clear he’d like to get more time in the saddle at out-half, the position where Farrell initially looked most keen on handing Frawley gametime – even though it went against the grain in terms of what was happening at Leinster. Having been named in Farrell’s wider World Cup training panel, he missed the cut in the final 33-man selection and has had minimal exposure in this Six Nations so far. Frawley got on the pitch for the final minute of the opening round win in France before dropping out of the squad for the home defeat of Italy.
Frawley has the skillset to make an impact at Aviva Stadium but Wales will surely put his positioning to the test and the Skerries man will have to nail his defensive duties.