Denis Anthony Hickie (

Irish name A formal Irish name consists of a given name and a surname. In the Irish language, surnames are generally patronymic in etymology but are no longer literal patronyms as, for example, most Icelandic names still are. The form of a surname varies ...

: ''Donnacadh Antoin Ó hIceadh''; born 13 February 1976), is a retired professional

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 it ...

player formerly employed by the

Irish Rugby Football Union 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 ...

. He played his club rugby for

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 ...

. His primary position was on the

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is e ...

. He earned 51 caps for Ireland, scoring 29 tries for Ireland and held the Irish try-scoring record until his Leinster colleague Brian O'Driscoll broke it in 2008. He is also known as Disco Denis as a result of his quick feet. Other names include Le Hique, Tickets, and DenDen.

Youth

Hickie was educated at St Marys College in Rathmines and led them to the Leinster Schools Senior Cup title in 1994. He went on to university in UCD, where he completed a commerce degree. At UCD Denis was on a dual scholarship for rugby union and athletics.

Career

Hickie made his senior debut for Leinster on 6 September 1996 in a friendly match away to a Genoa President's XV and his senior Irish debut on 1 February 1997 against Wales. He earned 51

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

for Ireland, scoring 29 tries for Ireland and held the Irish try-scoring record until his friend and

colleague Brian O'Driscoll broke it in 2008. He missed out on selection to the

2001 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia The 2001 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia was a series of matches played by the British & Irish Lions rugby union team in Australia. The Lions squad was captained by Martin Johnson, the first player to lead the Lions on two tours. The ...

. He overcame a ruptured Achilles tendon sustained during the 2003 World Cup and forced his way back into the Irish line-up, apparently losing nothing of his pace. His solid form in the

2005 Six Nations The 2005 Six Nations Championship was the sixth Six Nations Championship played since the competition expanded in 2000 to include Italy. Including the Home Nations and Five Nations Championships, this was the 111th season of the tournament. Wales ...

earned Hickie a call-up for the 2005 British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand and the Leinster back became a key member of the successful midweek team. Hickie suffered many injuries throughout his career. In October 2005, in the week coming up to the European Cup, he dislocated his right

fibula The fibula or calf bone is a leg bone on the lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long bones. Its upper extremity ...

following a training ground accident and missed the autumn tests. This injury kept him out of the 2005 autumn international series and he subsequently lost his place on the Irish team to Ulster's Andrew Trimble for the duration of 2006, despite his excellent form for Leinster. This was best captured in his try in Leinster's

Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Heineken Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

quarter-final match against

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...

in France which saw him run the length of the pitch partnered by

Gordon D'Arcy Gordon William D'Arcy (born 10 February 1980, in Ferns, County Wexford) is a retired Irish rugby player who played most of his career at inside centre. He played for Irish provincial side Leinster for his entire professional career and is secon ...

to score in the corner. An injury to Trimble saw Hickie retake the number 11 shirt for Ireland against Australia in the 2006 Autumn tests where he scored a notable try, beating four Australian defenders with his trademark 'dancing' footwork. Making the number 11 jersey his own, and scoring two further tries in the 2007 Six Nations, Hickie was first choice left wing for the 2007 World Cup, after which he retired. Brian O'Driscoll respectfully mentioned Denis & his contribution to Leinster Rugby in his after match interview after the final whistle in the 2009 Heineken Cup Final which Leinster won. Hickie is a committee member of the rugby sevens club, Shamrock Warriors RFC.

Miscellaneous

A box in Dublin's popular concert venue, the Olympia Theatre, carries a nameplate "The Denis Hickie Box" as it is where he tends to watch gigs from. Hickie proved to be a hit when he stood in for

Jenny Huston Jenny Huston (born 24 August 1973) is a Canadian presenter of radio and television in Ireland. She was disc jockey on RTÉ 2fm, an occasional presenter on RTÉ Radio 1 and a television presenter with channels operated by Raidió Teilifís Éir ...

on her ''Waiting Room'' show on 2fm on Friday 20 October 2006 from 8pm until 10pm for one night only. He had previously filled in for her when she was on holiday before the summer. An avid music fan, Hickie said, when interviewed by Ireland's

Hot Press ''Hot Press'' is a fortnightly music and politics magazine based in Dublin, Ireland, founded in June 1977. The magazine has been edited since its inception by Niall Stokes. History ''Hot Press'' was founded in June 1977 by Niall Stokes, who co ...

magazine: "Unfortunately a lot of the people I seem to like are dead now. I’m a huge Elliott Smith fan and I really love Nick Drake’s stuff. Obviously, though, I won’t be seeing them in concert anytime soon."

Quotes

''“I’ve always been a Leinster player. My dad played for Leinster, my uncle played for Leinster, my cousin played for Leinster. I’m a Leinster lad. I don’t make any apologies for it. That’s my team."''Sky Sports http://www.skysports.com/rugbyunion/World_Cup/Story/0,21043,13144_2651378,00.html

References

External links

Ireland profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hickie, Denis 1976 births Living people British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland Ireland international rugby union players Irish rugby union players Leinster Rugby players RTÉ 2fm presenters Rugby union players from County Dublin St Mary's College RFC players University College Dublin R.F.C. players Ireland international rugby sevens players People educated at St Mary's College, Dublin