Cormac Izuchukwu (born 28 January 2000) is an Irish

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player who plays

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

for

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

in the

United Rugby Championship The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...

. He was born in London to an Irish mother and Nigerian father. He moved to Offaly when he was 7 where he and his brother and sister were raised by their mother. He started playing rugby with

Tullamore RFC Tullamore RFC is an Irish rugby team based in Tullamore, County Offaly, playing in Division 2C of the All-Ireland League Early attempts to start a club Tullamore is said to have had a club as far back as 1879. But it was not sufficiently org ...

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

, before going to Roscrea College, where he played for the first XV in the Leinster Schools Cup quarter-finals. He was offered an opportunity to try out for

Connacht Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbhn ...

at under-19 level, but twisted his ankle and was unable to attend. He signed up for a coaching course in Kelso, Scotland, which included training with

Newcastle Falcons Newcastle Falcons is a rugby union team that play in Premiership Rugby, England's highest division of rugby union. The club was established in 1877 as the Gosforth Football Club. Around 1882 the club merged with the Northumberland Football Cl ...

. The resulting highlights video came to the attention of

Anthony Eddy Anthony Eddy is a rugby union coach who recently was employed by the Ireland Rugby Football Union from December 2014 to March 2022.

at the

IRFU The Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) ( ga, Cumann Rugbaí na hÉireann) is the body managing rugby union in the island of Ireland (both Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland). The IRFU has its head office at 10/12 Lansdowne Road and home ...

, who signed him up for Ireland Sevens.John O'Sullivan
"Cormac Izuchukwu ready to take a giant step with Ulster"
''The Irish Times'', 19 June 2020 He represented Ireland at two sevens competitions in 2019. He joined the Ulster academy ahead of the 2020–21 season, and made his Ulster debut coming in the 63rd minute of 21―7 victory over

Ospreys The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

on 26 February 2021. He played in the subsequent games against

Glasgow Warriors Glasgow Warriors are a professional rugby union side from Scotland. The team plays in the United Rugby Championship league and in the European Professional Club Rugby tournaments. In the 2014–15 season they won the Pro12 title and became t ...

and

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

when he received a yellow card. He signed a two-year contract with the province in April 2021. He was selected for the

Emerging Ireland Emerging Ireland is an Irish rugby union team that represents Ireland in the World Rugby Nations Cup. History 2013 Tbilisi Cup The team was created to offer Tier 1 level opposition for Tier 2 sides in the IRB Tbilisi Cup, held in Tbilisi, Georgia ...

squad for the

Toyota Challenge The Toyota Challenge is a rugby union competition hosted in South Africa by the Cheetahs, a team sponsored by Toyota SA. The first tournament took place at the Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein between 13 November and 26 November 2021. In 2021, ...

in South Africa in September 2022."Emerging Ireland Squad Named For Toyota Challenge In Bloemfontein"
Irish Rugby, 14 September 2022

References

External links

Ulster Rugby profileUnited Rugby Championship profile
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2000 births Living people Irish rugby union players Ulster Rugby players Rugby union locks Rugby union flankers Ireland international rugby sevens players English emigrants to Ireland Irish people of Nigerian descent Black Irish sportspeople Rugby union players from County Offaly 21st-century Irish people {{Ireland-rugbyunion-bio-stub