Connacht legend John Muldoon deserves a glorious send off
Muldoon is deserving of a glorious Euro farewell
IT’S hard to think of a more committed ‘one-club’ man than Connacht skipper John Muldoon who announced this week that he will be retiring in May after a mighty 15-season shift at the coalface
To date Muldoon, 35, has logged 319 competitive appearances for Connacht – 247 in the League and 72 in Europe– and, given his excellent fitness record he should be able to nudge that up to the 330 mark given the rest of the PRO 14 season and Connacht’s continued involvement in the European Challenge Cup.
Indeed getting to the final of the latter in Bilbao – and winning it – is Muldoon’s last stated ambition and when Connacht get the bit between their teeth they can be incredibly hard to beat.
Looking around Europe I can only think of one current individual and one club man still playing at the top level who surpasses Muldoon and that is the remarkable Aurilen Rougerie with a mind-boggling 406 and counting for Clermont.
Rougerie, 37, is still going strong for Clermont although in the last couple of seasons his appearances have tended to be off the bench while Muldoon remains the first name on the teamsheet at Connacht.
Not that you would ever judge Muldoon purely on stats alone, but his figures are even more remarkable given that he was by no means a schoolboy prodigy. He eased his way into the side in his early 20s, and his ferocious commitment is such that he can barely drag his battered body off the pitch after most matches.
In the 12 seasons from the start of 2004-05 to Connacht’s glorious PRO12 final victory over Leinster at Murrayfield in May 2016, Connacht played a total of 329 competitive games in the league and Europe and Muldoon started in 271 of them.
The comparison with Rougerie is apt. Not only have both players been massive performers on the pitch, they have been the heartbeat of the club and even the local community.
Connacht are a thriving successful club now but for many years – and for the majority of Muldoon’s playing career – they were rather looked down on by the IRU who actively tried to close them down at one stage.
Muldoon could have earnt much more elsewhere – Ulster in particular regularly came knocking on his door – but Muldoon has only ever wanted to play for one team and represent one region.
“I am determined to finish my career on a high and for the remainder of the season I will be doing everything in my power to bring further success to Connacht,” says Muldoon. “The Connacht supporters have also been incredible throughout my career and have made the Sportsground a fortress where I have always been immensely proud to play and represent this fantastic province.”
Meanwhile there are a couple of admirable one-club men to keep an eye on. Mike Brown is up to 293 appearances for Harlequins while Alex Goode, still only 29, passed the 250 mark for Saracens recently and surely has four or five season left with Sarries.
Players and individuals hewn from the same rock.