My Life in Rugby: Dennis Hickie – former Leinster and Ireland wing

Overall I have to be very thankful for what I was able to achieve in rugby with the help of great team-mates and some excellent coaches: a Lions tour, 62 caps and 29 tries for Ireland and lots of big games and enjoyable moments with Leinster.

I had a career that I could have only dreamed of as a young, rugby-obsessed St Mary’s schoolboy going to watch my heroes at Lansdowne Road.

I wasn’t the first Denis Hickie to play for Ireland. I share the same name as my uncle, who won six caps at No. 8 in the early 1970s and, was part of the last Irish team to win in Paris before the Brian O’Driscoll–inspired effort in 2000.

Unfortunately Ireland were denied a chance at a Grand Slam that year because of ‘The Troubles’. Missing out on a Grand Slam was something I experienced myself, when Vincent Clerc scored a last-minute try to deny us in 2007, and that’s obviously one of my career lows. My father Tony played for the Barbarians and Leinster and my cousin, Gavin Hickie, played with Leinster and Leicester so you could say rugby was in my blood.

My first cap for Ireland came against Wales at Cardiff Arms Park in 1997, aged 20, and luckily I was able to mark my debut with a try in a 26-25 win.

I developed a real affinity with the ground from thereon in. We picked up some good wins there but a bit of heartache too! I also played for the Lions at the Millennium Stadium in 2005: a 25-25 draw against Argentina. Unfortunately it proved to be a portent of things to come. I played in the midweek side and while we went well, the Test series, which is what any Lions tour is all about, was less than memorable as we suffered a 3-0 whitewash to New Zealand. I’d missed out on the 2001 tour. I’d been playing well but the foot and mouth outbreak played havoc with the Six Nations that year and, like my teammates, I was denied the chance to press forward my claims.

The tour I look back on most fondly is the 1998 Ireland tour to South Africa. Neither myself nor the team played that well, but the camaraderie of the group was something special. Under Warren Gatland we fostered a real ‘band of brothers’ mentality in the most hostile of environments.

Other than my debut, the Paris win against France in 2000 was probably my standout moment in an Ireland shirt. Brian O’Driscoll’s life changed forever after his hat-trick; it was an incredible individual performance. It was also great to play a part in the wins over South Africa (2004) and Australia (2002 & 2006) in the old Lansdowne Road, win the Triple Crown and have the privilege to play in the first match to be played at Croke Park, the home of the “GAA”.

I went to two World Cups: 2003 and 2007. I enjoyed the first even though I had to return home early after snapping my Achilles tendon in the final pool match against hosts Australia. But the France tournament four years later was very disappointing. We never got going at all.

It was great to be a part of the journey that saw Leinster go from modest beginnings and a small supporter base to being one of the best-supported – and most successful – teams in Europe. Winning away in Toulouse in the Heineken Cup quarter-final was right up there in terms of memories, especially as I scored a try. It was a bumpy ride at times with Leinster but one hell of a ride!

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