William Patrick Duggan (12 March 1950 – 28 August 2017) was 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 ...

international

rugby union player 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 ...

. He won 41 Irish caps, the first in 1975 and finished his international career in 1984 as captain. He toured

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

in 1977 with 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 national ...

, and at the time played club rugby for

Blackrock College RFC Blackrock College Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club located in Blackrock, Dublin, Ireland. The club was founded in 1882 by former pupils of Blackrock College. Their senior team currently plays in Division 2A of the All-Ireland League ...

, after commencing his career with Sunday's Well RFC in Cork.

Career

On the pitch, Duggan was widely regarded as the premier No. 8 in Europe at the time, which was reflected in his being picked for the Lions in 1977. He was widely regarded as one of the hard men of world rugby at the time, despite not enjoying training and being a heavy smoker. On one occasion he was smoking a cigarette as he ran onto the pitch to play against France, passing the cigarette to referee Allan Hosie, who was pictured holding the cigarette in the television coverage.Shields, Tom (2003) "Throwing a rugby rule-book at a football fan; SRU president Allan", ''

Sunday Herald The ''Sunday Herald'' was a Scottish Sunday newspaper, published between 7 February 1999 and 2 September 2018. Originally a broadsheet, it was published in compact format from 20 November 2005. The paper was known for having combined a centre- ...

'', 16 March 2003, retrieved 2010-08-27 Told by a coach that if he gave up the smokes he would be faster around the pitch, he replied "but then I would spend most of the match offside". In January

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

, he became, along with Wales'

Geoff Wheel Geoff Wheel (born 30 June 1951, in Swansea) is a former Wales international rugby union player who attained 32 international caps. A lock-forward, he played club rugby for Mumbles RFC and then Swansea RFC Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Wels ...

, the first player to be sent off in a Five Nations match.When Duggan set an unwanted 'Nations' record
, ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'', 12 February 2006, retrieved 2010-08-27Hewett, Chris (2010)
Chris Hewett’s Six Nations A to Z
, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 6 February 2010, retrieved 2010-08-27 According to fellow player

Moss Keane Maurice Ignatius "Moss" Keane (27 July 1948 – 5 October 2010) was a Gaelic footballer and a rugby union footballer who played for Ireland and the British and Irish Lions. Life and career Born at Currow in County Kerry, Keane started out as a ...

, Duggan did not consider himself to have been sent off, simply being asked by the referee "would he mind leaving the field", to which he replied "Sure not at all. I was buggered anyway".

Personal life

He lived and worked in

Kilkenny Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilken ...

, where he ran the lighting shop that he took over from his father (Willie Duggan Lighting Ltd.).Lighting: Ireland
, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 23 February 2008, retrieved 2010-08-27 He remained a huge supporter of the game and was one of the most revered and loved rugby players in the history of the Irish game. On 28 August 2017, Duggan died from an aneurysm at his home in Dunmore, just outside Kilkenny city.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Duggan, Willie 1950 births 2017 deaths Irish rugby union players Ireland international rugby union players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland Blackrock College RFC players People educated at Rockwell College Rugby union number eights