STILL JUST SIX caps into his international career, Jamie Osborne has already ticked off some special places on his rugby bucket list.
He made his debut in the Springboks’ famous fortress of Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria last July, then got a taste of the lively Kings Park Stadium in Durban.
After three caps at home in Dublin in the autumn, Osborne has now added another of the great rugby stadiums to the list of places he has played.
Visiting the Principality Stadium even just as an observer is always a memorable experience, particularly when the roof is closed and the place is rocking as it was on Saturday. The experience lived up to the billing from Osborne’s point of view on the pitch.
“It was incredible,” said the Naas man after Ireland’s 27-18 win.
“The Principality is probably one of the best stadiums in the world to play rugby in, roof closed, it was just amazing.”
It was a proud day for Osborne with his parents, Joe and Fiona, in Cardiff to watch him along with two of his uncles, Donal and Robbie.
Osborne was handed a big opportunity in Ireland’s number 15 shirt, making his fourth Test start at fullback as Hugo Keenan rotated out of the team, and he showed plenty of his class in a try-scoring performance.
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Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
He was frustrated not to find Garry Ringrose with a possible try-scoring pass wide on the left in the first half but he had some excellent moments too.
“It was a tough game, very physical. We were probably a bit inaccurate in the first half, myself included, it should have been an easy try for Garry in the corner,” said Osborne.
“We spoke at half time about fixing a few of the errors and being a bit more accurate in everything we did. Definitely happy to come away with the win.”
He was able to move on from that pass to Ringrose quickly, as was evident from his positive involvements for the rest of the game.
“It won’t be the last mistake I make, it’s not the first,” said the Leinster back.
“There will be plenty more. If you go through everyone’s game, there is probably a mistake in there from everyone. The work with Gary Keegan we do helps, about staying present and stuff like that. It was fine.”
To be on the end of the Irish try that brought them back to 18-18 was highly satisfying for Osborne.
It came from a clever piece of play by James Lowe as the left wing batted a Jamison Gibson-Park kick infield for Osborne to finish untouched.
As soon as Osborne saw Lowe preparing to leap, he knew what was coming.
Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
“To be fair, he’s probably up against a shorter 15 and you know he’s good in the air, the kick was probably… if he caught it, he probably would have ended up in touch himself so there was only one option for him to do so yeah.
“It was incredible, but probably a bit of relief after the first half. No, it was special.”
Osborne had some important aerial wins of his own, fielding a few Welsh kicks under pressure in the backfield. He enjoyed Dublin footballer Brian Fenton’s recent visit to Ireland camp, that discussion sharpening their focus on the details of the aerial contest.
“The first one, Tom Rogers got up well to be fair, so I felt I had to get up a little fraction earlier,” he said.
“And yeah, I was relatively pleased with the rest of them. It’s definitely nicer under the roof with no wind. It was, yeah, the ball doesn’t really change as much as it would. It definitely made it a bit easier.”
While Keenan is expected to return at fullback against France, next up in Osborne’s burgeoning career could be the job of making a big impact off the bench in a huge game at the Aviva Stadium.
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'It's one of the best stadiums in the world, roof closed, it was just amazing'
STILL JUST SIX caps into his international career, Jamie Osborne has already ticked off some special places on his rugby bucket list.
He made his debut in the Springboks’ famous fortress of Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria last July, then got a taste of the lively Kings Park Stadium in Durban.
After three caps at home in Dublin in the autumn, Osborne has now added another of the great rugby stadiums to the list of places he has played.
Visiting the Principality Stadium even just as an observer is always a memorable experience, particularly when the roof is closed and the place is rocking as it was on Saturday. The experience lived up to the billing from Osborne’s point of view on the pitch.
“It was incredible,” said the Naas man after Ireland’s 27-18 win.
“The Principality is probably one of the best stadiums in the world to play rugby in, roof closed, it was just amazing.”
It was a proud day for Osborne with his parents, Joe and Fiona, in Cardiff to watch him along with two of his uncles, Donal and Robbie.
Osborne was handed a big opportunity in Ireland’s number 15 shirt, making his fourth Test start at fullback as Hugo Keenan rotated out of the team, and he showed plenty of his class in a try-scoring performance.
He was frustrated not to find Garry Ringrose with a possible try-scoring pass wide on the left in the first half but he had some excellent moments too.
“It was a tough game, very physical. We were probably a bit inaccurate in the first half, myself included, it should have been an easy try for Garry in the corner,” said Osborne.
“We spoke at half time about fixing a few of the errors and being a bit more accurate in everything we did. Definitely happy to come away with the win.”
He was able to move on from that pass to Ringrose quickly, as was evident from his positive involvements for the rest of the game.
“It won’t be the last mistake I make, it’s not the first,” said the Leinster back.
“There will be plenty more. If you go through everyone’s game, there is probably a mistake in there from everyone. The work with Gary Keegan we do helps, about staying present and stuff like that. It was fine.”
To be on the end of the Irish try that brought them back to 18-18 was highly satisfying for Osborne.
It came from a clever piece of play by James Lowe as the left wing batted a Jamison Gibson-Park kick infield for Osborne to finish untouched.
As soon as Osborne saw Lowe preparing to leap, he knew what was coming.
“To be fair, he’s probably up against a shorter 15 and you know he’s good in the air, the kick was probably… if he caught it, he probably would have ended up in touch himself so there was only one option for him to do so yeah.
“It was incredible, but probably a bit of relief after the first half. No, it was special.”
Osborne had some important aerial wins of his own, fielding a few Welsh kicks under pressure in the backfield. He enjoyed Dublin footballer Brian Fenton’s recent visit to Ireland camp, that discussion sharpening their focus on the details of the aerial contest.
“The first one, Tom Rogers got up well to be fair, so I felt I had to get up a little fraction earlier,” he said.
“And yeah, I was relatively pleased with the rest of them. It’s definitely nicer under the roof with no wind. It was, yeah, the ball doesn’t really change as much as it would. It definitely made it a bit easier.”
While Keenan is expected to return at fullback against France, next up in Osborne’s burgeoning career could be the job of making a big impact off the bench in a huge game at the Aviva Stadium.
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CAULDRON Ireland Jamie Osborne six nations 2025 Wales