The Heroic Return: Ian McKinley signs for Zebre Rugby

There are plenty of players who have been forced to give up the game they love on account of injuries. Ireland alone has seen some greats forced to step away in the last few years, such as Kevin McLaughlin, Damien Varley, Eoin O’Malley and Ian McKinley. Except, McKinley isn’t quite done just yet.

A promising youngster fast climbing through the ranks at Leinster, Ian McKinley has had an injury that was rather more severe than most of his teammates had ever heard of. After a teammate stepped on his eye while wearing boots at training, McKinley continued to play despite the damage, and then a few matches later, his eye was gouged, and after 4 Leinster appearances, he was forced to retire from the game.

McKinley then headed over to Italy to try and land a coaching job, when his brother told him about a World Rugby trial with goggles to help player who had suffered an injury similar to his own. McKinley gave the goggles a shot, and hasn’t looked back since. He scored three tries in his first match in the Italian Serie C, before being quickly moved up to the Super 10, and was even called up by the Barbarians for their match against the Scottish club Heriots. This year, McKinley made perhaps the biggest step of all though, earning a contract with Zebre in the Pro12.

A superbly talented player, McKinley has a lot of potential, and is determined that his injury will not stop him from finding success at Zebre. He will play a big role for them this season, especially with some of their best players at the World Cup with the Italian team. This is his opportunity, and you can rest assured he will make the most of it.

Now, there are one or two small issues. Firstly, he cannot play in England or Ireland because they are not part of the World Rugby trial and therefore do not allow the goggles, and his peripherals aren’t all there, but he has pushed past these setbacks, and is once again a professional rugby player.

He should be an inspiration to all rugby players, as his mental toughness and desire are well and truly exemplary. We at RBP continue to wish Ian all of the best as he continues his journey, and we hope that World Rugby finds the goggles to be a successful trial, allowing Ian to play all over the world.