CIAN PRENDERGAST HAS been named as Connacht captain for the season ahead.
The back row forward joined the Connacht academy in 2020, making his professional debut away to Edinburgh in October of that year.
In March 2021 the Co Kildare native signed his first professional contract and has since gone on to represent the province on 68 occasions, including 21 appearances last season.
He has scored 13 tries with seven of them coming last season.
The 24-year-old was awarded his first international cap in 2022 and was part of the Ireland squad that travelled to South Africa during the summer.
Prendergast will be supported by Dave Heffernan and Joe Joyce who will act as vice-captains for the season ahead.
“It is a huge honour for me to become the captain of Connacht Rugby,” Prendergast said.
“I have loved my time here ever since Eric (Elwood) invited me to join the Connacht Academy and when Pete (Wilkins) asked me to take on the role of captain, I felt privileged to have even been considered.
“These are exciting times at Connacht Rugby, and we are all very positive about the potential of this group and the future of the club as a whole.”
Great player. Best of luck to him.
Good shout – I do think Carty was a good captain in the way he communicated with referees, etc., but there is not guarantee he will be starting matches, whereas Prendergast most likely will. Having more leaders is something that the team needs, and there would be no harm having two in him and Carty on the pitch
Hopefully this raises his game to next level. He definitely has international potential. Excited to see how he fares
Will be interesting to see how this goes. The role of captain is a double edged sword. It can make some players raise their games and can be too much of a burden on others. I’m sure Connacht fans will agree with me when I say the captaincy didn’t suit Blade last year and he performed better without the added pressure