IT SAID MUCH about how durable and high-performing Hugo Keenan is that when he missed Ireland’s tour of South Africa in the summer of 2024, it wasn’t very clear who would replace him.
With Keenan at the Olympics, Andy Farrell sprung a surprise by picking Jamie Osborne in the number 15 shirt to face the Springboks, despite the Naas man having played nearly all of his senior rugby for Leinster in midfield.
Yet those who worked with Osborne as an underage player weren’t shocked. He was a fullback in those days, right up until impressing there for the Ireland U20s at number 15 in the 2021 Six Nations. Many of his old coaches feel he was always going to end up as a fullback, despite being so good in midfield.
Since those first two caps in South Africa two summers ago, Osborne has been the back-up to Keenan at fullback for Ireland, even if the latter hasn’t missed much rugby in that time.
When Keenan was rested for Ireland’s 2024 November Test against Fiji, it was Osborne who came in at fullback.
The same thing happened for the 2025 Six Nations game against Wales in Cardiff, with Keenan sitting that game out as Osborne got another valuable experience under the roof at the raucous Principality Stadium.
So with Keenan now ruled out of Ireland’s entire upcoming 2025 November campaign after having hip surgery in the wake of the Lions tour, Osborne could be set for an extended chance to shine in the green jersey.
The 23-year-old did start at outside centre for Ireland against Georgia in July when Keenan was away, but it’s evident that Farrell rates him highly as a fullback.
Put simply, it’s clear that Farrell rates Osborne very highly indeed.
He called the Leinster man into his Lions squad as injury cover ahead of the Test series in Australia and kept him there until the end of the tour, giving Osborne his Lions debut against the First Nations & Pasifika XV.
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Osborne at Canterbury and Intersport Elverys’ launch of the 2025/26 Ireland jersey James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
Having had a holiday in Bali en route home and then spent time switching off from rugby with family and friends in Ireland, Osborne is back up and running and can now reflect on a whirlwind Lions experience.
“To go from Lisbon [where Ireland were preparing to play Portugal] and then all of a sudden be in Australia to train with the lads and then get an opportunity to play, it was a pretty crazy couple of weeks,” said Osborne of his stint Down Under.
“But I enjoyed every minute of it, and to be involved in the squad for the weeks of the Test games just to see the preparations and how the games unfolded was amazing.”
Osborne said he learned lots from the world-class players around him in the Lions squad. He impressed them too.
Among those who lauded his ability was Owen Farrell, a fellow late call-up.
“Jamie hit the ground running and he got across the detail very quickly, quicker than I did,” said Farrell after playing alongside Osborne.
“He’s a lot bigger than I thought he would be when I came into camp. He’s an athlete with a massive left boot on him as well and he runs great lines, so nothing but good things to say about him.”
Osborne enjoyed getting to know players from the other nations but laughed as he said they “probably won’t be too friendly on the pitch” when the Six Nations rolls around.
Before then, the big November Tests are only around the corner, with Ireland opening their campaign against New Zealand in the US.
“Chicago, we know what happened there almost 10 years ago at this point and that’ll be special,” said Osborne. “Then tough games against Japan, Australia, and South Africa.
“Everyone in Ireland is probably really looking forward to them.
“For me, the focus is obviously on the season with Leinster. It starts soon, so you go down to South Africa first two rounds [in the URC] and hopefully I can get a bit of game time early on and kick on from there. Then we can look forward to the autumn, but first and foremost, definitely thinking about Leinster.”
Osborne in action for the Lions. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
It will be interesting to see if Osborne is at fullback for Leinster early on this season ahead of a possible role there for Ireland, but there’s no doubt that he offers huge quality in midfield as well.
It’s another important year for Osborne. Last season, the addition of Jordie Barrett and the form of the likes of Keenan and Tommy O’Brien in the back three meant Osborne missed on Leinster’s matchday 23 for the Champions Cup quarter-final and semi-final.
Rieko Ioane, another versatile All Black back, is arriving this December, so the level of competition will be very high again.
For now, Osborne can only focus on making an excellent start to the campaign with his province as he looks to continue developing already impressive skills like his instinctive offloading and powerful left-footed kicking.
“I think there’s a lot of progress to make in that area,” said Osborne of his kicking.
“It’s something that’s probably a strength of mine, having a big boot, but I can be more consistent and maybe have a bit more variation in terms of mixing it up with different types of kicks, especially on edges and little attacking kicks.”
He loves honing his craft on the defensive side of the game too, where his ability to play at inside centre, outside centre, on both wings, and at fullback means he has lots to be on top of.
“I’m definitely more confident, way more confident now than I was at the start of my career,” said Osborne of his defence.
“I’ve managed to get different insights from the likes of Jacques Nienaber coming in, obviously Simon [Easterby] with Ireland. They teach you different things, different bits of information that you can take on board from both.
“It has really helped me working with Garry [Ringrose], Robbie [Henshaw], and Bundee [Aki] in the centres. They’re unbelievable defenders. Then backfield stuff, Hugo [Keenan]‘s obviously an unbelievable tackler, a great defender.
“I think I’ve gained a lot of confidence the more I’ve played in each position.”
It remains to be seen exactly where Osborne finds himself defending in blue and green this season, but he seems to be ready to take things to the next level.
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Osborne could be Ireland's man with Keenan to miss November Tests
IT SAID MUCH about how durable and high-performing Hugo Keenan is that when he missed Ireland’s tour of South Africa in the summer of 2024, it wasn’t very clear who would replace him.
With Keenan at the Olympics, Andy Farrell sprung a surprise by picking Jamie Osborne in the number 15 shirt to face the Springboks, despite the Naas man having played nearly all of his senior rugby for Leinster in midfield.
Yet those who worked with Osborne as an underage player weren’t shocked. He was a fullback in those days, right up until impressing there for the Ireland U20s at number 15 in the 2021 Six Nations. Many of his old coaches feel he was always going to end up as a fullback, despite being so good in midfield.
Since those first two caps in South Africa two summers ago, Osborne has been the back-up to Keenan at fullback for Ireland, even if the latter hasn’t missed much rugby in that time.
When Keenan was rested for Ireland’s 2024 November Test against Fiji, it was Osborne who came in at fullback.
The same thing happened for the 2025 Six Nations game against Wales in Cardiff, with Keenan sitting that game out as Osborne got another valuable experience under the roof at the raucous Principality Stadium.
So with Keenan now ruled out of Ireland’s entire upcoming 2025 November campaign after having hip surgery in the wake of the Lions tour, Osborne could be set for an extended chance to shine in the green jersey.
The 23-year-old did start at outside centre for Ireland against Georgia in July when Keenan was away, but it’s evident that Farrell rates him highly as a fullback.
Put simply, it’s clear that Farrell rates Osborne very highly indeed.
He called the Leinster man into his Lions squad as injury cover ahead of the Test series in Australia and kept him there until the end of the tour, giving Osborne his Lions debut against the First Nations & Pasifika XV.
Having had a holiday in Bali en route home and then spent time switching off from rugby with family and friends in Ireland, Osborne is back up and running and can now reflect on a whirlwind Lions experience.
“To go from Lisbon [where Ireland were preparing to play Portugal] and then all of a sudden be in Australia to train with the lads and then get an opportunity to play, it was a pretty crazy couple of weeks,” said Osborne of his stint Down Under.
“But I enjoyed every minute of it, and to be involved in the squad for the weeks of the Test games just to see the preparations and how the games unfolded was amazing.”
Osborne said he learned lots from the world-class players around him in the Lions squad. He impressed them too.
Among those who lauded his ability was Owen Farrell, a fellow late call-up.
“Jamie hit the ground running and he got across the detail very quickly, quicker than I did,” said Farrell after playing alongside Osborne.
“He’s a lot bigger than I thought he would be when I came into camp. He’s an athlete with a massive left boot on him as well and he runs great lines, so nothing but good things to say about him.”
Osborne enjoyed getting to know players from the other nations but laughed as he said they “probably won’t be too friendly on the pitch” when the Six Nations rolls around.
Before then, the big November Tests are only around the corner, with Ireland opening their campaign against New Zealand in the US.
“Chicago, we know what happened there almost 10 years ago at this point and that’ll be special,” said Osborne. “Then tough games against Japan, Australia, and South Africa.
“Everyone in Ireland is probably really looking forward to them.
“For me, the focus is obviously on the season with Leinster. It starts soon, so you go down to South Africa first two rounds [in the URC] and hopefully I can get a bit of game time early on and kick on from there. Then we can look forward to the autumn, but first and foremost, definitely thinking about Leinster.”
It will be interesting to see if Osborne is at fullback for Leinster early on this season ahead of a possible role there for Ireland, but there’s no doubt that he offers huge quality in midfield as well.
It’s another important year for Osborne. Last season, the addition of Jordie Barrett and the form of the likes of Keenan and Tommy O’Brien in the back three meant Osborne missed on Leinster’s matchday 23 for the Champions Cup quarter-final and semi-final.
Rieko Ioane, another versatile All Black back, is arriving this December, so the level of competition will be very high again.
For now, Osborne can only focus on making an excellent start to the campaign with his province as he looks to continue developing already impressive skills like his instinctive offloading and powerful left-footed kicking.
“I think there’s a lot of progress to make in that area,” said Osborne of his kicking.
“It’s something that’s probably a strength of mine, having a big boot, but I can be more consistent and maybe have a bit more variation in terms of mixing it up with different types of kicks, especially on edges and little attacking kicks.”
He loves honing his craft on the defensive side of the game too, where his ability to play at inside centre, outside centre, on both wings, and at fullback means he has lots to be on top of.
“I’m definitely more confident, way more confident now than I was at the start of my career,” said Osborne of his defence.
“I’ve managed to get different insights from the likes of Jacques Nienaber coming in, obviously Simon [Easterby] with Ireland. They teach you different things, different bits of information that you can take on board from both.
“It has really helped me working with Garry [Ringrose], Robbie [Henshaw], and Bundee [Aki] in the centres. They’re unbelievable defenders. Then backfield stuff, Hugo [Keenan]‘s obviously an unbelievable tackler, a great defender.
“I think I’ve gained a lot of confidence the more I’ve played in each position.”
It remains to be seen exactly where Osborne finds himself defending in blue and green this season, but he seems to be ready to take things to the next level.
Jamie Osborne was speaking at Canterbury and Intersport Elverys’ launch of the 2025/256 Ireland jersey.
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fullback Ireland Jamie Osborne Leinster Lion Midfield