Neil McMillan (born 15 May 1981) is an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

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 ...

flanker. McMillan was educated at

Belfast Royal Academy The Belfast Royal Academy (commonly shortened to ) is the oldest school in the city of Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is a co-educational, non-denominational voluntary grammar school in north Belfast. The Academy is one of 8 schools in Northern ...

, and at the age of fifteen was part of the BRA Schools' Cup winning team in 1997. He he was selected for Ireland's Under-19, Under-21, Sevens and 'A' teams, spent a year with

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...

' under-21 team, before signing 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 ...

before the 2001–02 season, soon making his debut against

Llanelli Scarlets The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup (which ...

. He won the

IRUPA The Rugby Players Ireland is the representative body for professional rugby players in Ireland. Founded in October 2001, its aims are to promote and protect the welfare of professional rugby players in Ireland. The Chief Executive Officer is Si ...

Young Player of the Year award in 2003. He played for Ulster for eight years, and was part of the team that won the 2005–06 Celtic League, but was frequently injured, and had major surgery five times. He moved to Harlequins in 2008. He joined

Sale Sharks Sale Sharks is a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. Originally founded in 1861 as Sale Football Club, now a distinct amateur club, they adopted the n ...

in 2010, leaving at the end of the 2010-11 season."Sale announce clear out"
Sky Sports, 9 May 2011

References

1981 births Living people Irish rugby union players Ulster Rugby players Ireland Wolfhounds international rugby union players Harlequin F.C. players Sale Sharks players Rugby union flankers {{Ireland-rugbyunion-bio-stub