Maurice Ignatius "Moss" Keane (27 July 1948 – 5 October 2010) was a

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

er and a

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 ...

footballer who played for

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

and the

British and Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their nationa ...

Life and career

Born at Currow in

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

, Keane started out as a

er, playing at college level for

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one o ...

and in the process winning a number of medals including three

Sigerson Cup The Sigerson Cup is the trophy for the premier Gaelic football championship among Higher Education institutions (Universities, Colleges and Institutes of Technology) in Ireland. It traditionally begins in mid January and ends in late February. ...

s, one Cork County Championship and a Munster Club Championship, he also played in an All Ireland Club Final. He represented Kerry Gaelic footballer's at U-21 and Junior level as a full back, winning Munster Championships at both levels, playing in an All Ireland at Junior level. In 2011 the Kerry County Board named the cup for the winners of the Intermediate Shield after him. He then found rugby through a friend in college, playing for the UCC junior rugby team as 'Moss Fenton', during the

Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include the traditional ...

(GAA)'s ban on foreign games. When asked what he first thought about rugby he answered: "It was like watching a pornographic movie – very frustrating for those watching and only enjoyable for those participating." He made his international debut for

on 19 January 1974 against France in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, a game Ireland lost 9–6 in the

1974 Five Nations Championship The 1974 Five Nations Championship was the forty-fifth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eightieth series of the northern hemisphere rugby u ...

. Keane became the third Irish forward after

Willie John McBride William James McBride, CBE, better known as Willie John McBride (born 6 June 1940) is a former rugby union footballer who played as a lock for Ireland and the British and Irish Lions. He played 63 Tests for Ireland including eleven as captain, ...

and

Fergus Slattery John Fergus Slattery (born 12 February 1949 in Dún Laoghaire, Ireland) is a former rugby union player who represented Ireland. He played schools rugby for Blackrock College and then moved on to play senior rugby for UCD, before earning a call ...

to reach 50 international appearances. He scored his one and only test try in a 22–15 victory over

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

in February 1980. He played his 51st and final international against Scotland on 3 March 1984 in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...

. Ireland lost the match 32–9. Keane was also a part of the famous

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

side that defeated the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987, ...

Thomond Park Thomond Park is a stadium in Limerick in the Irish province of Munster. The stadium is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union and has Munster Rugby, Shannon RFC and UL Bohemian RFC as tenants. Limerick FC played home games in Thomond Park f ...

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd government). * January 6 � ...

. He toured New Zealand with

Phil Bennett Philip Bennett (24 October 1948 – 12 June 2022) was a Welsh rugby union player who played as a fly-half for Llanelli RFC and the Wales national team. He began his career in 1966, and a year later he had taken over from Barry John as Llanell ...

's British and Irish Lions in 1977, making one Test appearance, and was also a key man in Ireland's

1982 Five Nations Championship The 1982 Five Nations Championship was the fifty-third series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eighty-eighth series of the northern hemisphere rugb ...

win and their historic

Triple Crown Triple Crown may refer to: Sports Horse racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States) ** Triple Crown Trophy ** Triple Crown Productions * Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Tr ...

victory in 1982.

Outside sport

Having gained a master's degree in dairy science, Keane worked for the Department of Agriculture during his rugby playing career and retired in July 2010. He kept active playing golf on a weekly basis. In 1993 he was the victim of a vicious mugging. In 2005 he wrote, with Billy Keane (no kin), his

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

, called ''Rucks, Mauls and Gaelic Football''.

Illness and death

In 2009 it was reported that Keane was being treated for bowel cancer. He died aged 62 on 5 October 2010. Many tributes were made including Taoiseach

Brian Cowen Brian Bernard Cowen (born 10 January 1960) is an Irish former politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 2008 to 2011. Cowen was elected to Dáil Éireann in 1984, for the constituency of Laois–Offaly and served in a ...

saying "one of the great gentleman of Irish sport, would be sadly missed by his many fans and admirers worldwide, Moss Keane was one of the finest rugby players Ireland has ever produced, He was among rugby's best known characters and a legend of the game at home and abroad". 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 ...

paid tribute to Keane, describing him as one of Irish rugby's "most genuine characters and legends of the game", "Moss had ability on the field that no one could doubt from his record at club, provincial and international level, " IRFU President Caleb Powell said, "UCC, Lansdowne, Munster, Ireland and the British & Irish Lions all benefited from his presence and ensured that his reputation will live long in the memories of not only Irish rugby, but world rugby." Keane is survived by his wife Anne and his two daughters Sarah and Anne Marie. His funeral took place on 7 October in St Michael's Church Portarlington. Former Ireland international players, including

Ollie Campbell Seamus Oliver Campbell (born 5 March 1954) is an Irish former rugby union player. He played flyhalf for Ireland from 1976 to 1984. He is most well known for his role in orchestrating Ireland's Triple Crown victory at the 1982 Five Nations Champ ...

, Tony Ward,

Mick Galwey Michael Joseph Galwey (born 8 October 1966) won an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship with the Kerry Gaelic football team in 1986, as a 19-year-old, before turning to rugby union. He is thus the only winner of an "All-Ireland" in both rug ...

Dick Spring Dick Spring (born 29 August 1950) is an Irish businessman and former politician. He was a Labour Party Teachta Dála (TD) for the Kerry North from 1981 to 2002. He became leader of the Labour Party in 1982, and held this position until 1997 ...

Donal Lenihan Donal Gerard Lenihan (born 12 September 1959) is a retired Irish rugby union player. He appears regularly as a co-commentator on TV and radio for rugby matches and writes for the Irish Examiner. He also works as a financial consultant in Cork. ...

, Donal Spring and

Ciaran Fitzgerald Ciaran Fitzgerald (born 4 June 1952) is an Irish former rugby union player. He captained Ireland to the Triple Crown in 1982 and 1985, and the Five Nations Championship in 1983. Fitzgerald also captained the Lions on their 1983 tour. After t ...

were in attendance. Keane's coffin was adorned with the jerseys of Ireland, Munster, UCC, Kerry and Currow.

Honours

Ireland

Five Nations Championship The Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The current champions ...

: **Winner (2):

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C., U ...

: **Winner (1):

References

External links

Career statistics from Irish Rugby

Moss Keane's career in photos
BBC Sport.
Moss Keane: A Rugby Life In Pictures

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keane, Moss 1948 births 2010 deaths Kerry inter-county Gaelic footballers Currow Gaelic footballers UCC Gaelic footballers Irish rugby union players Ireland international rugby union players Lansdowne Football Club players University College Cork RFC players Munster Rugby players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland Deaths from colorectal cancer Gaelic footballers who switched code Rugby union players from County Kerry Rugby union locks