Former Irish rugby player and coach Tom Tierney lived in west Tipperary with his family

The unexpected death last Friday of former Ireland rugby player and women’s international coach Tom Tierney has been widely mourned.

The 46-year-old was originally from Fairgreen, Limerick city, and lived with his wife Mary and daughters Isabel and Julia at Monard in west Tipperary.

The scrum half, who was capped eight times for Ireland and started four games at the 1999 World Cup, played with Richmond, Garryowen, Munster, Galwegians, Connacht and Leicester at club level during his career.

He worked with Garryowen and Cork Constitution as a coach before taking charge of the Ireland Club International squad in 2013.

Tom Tierney was named as head coach of the Ireland women’s team the following year, and his high point in that role came in 2015 when he led Ireland to their second Six Nations title, with only a narrow defeat against France denying them a Grand Slam.

He stepped down from his role with the women’s team after a disappointing 2017 World Cup campaign, but remained with the IRFU and worked with the Irish men’s Under 20 and Under 19 teams.

Most recently he was an IRFU national talent coach based out of Munster Rugby’s high performance centre in UL.

Solohead GAA Club’s car park at Solohead Cross will be open this afternoon, Wednesday from 3.30pm and Thursday morning from 10am to facilitate car parking for those attending the reposing, and the Requiem Mass in St Nicholas' Church, Solohead on Thursday at 11am.

His remains are reposing at St Nicholas’ Church, Solohead, today, Wednesday, March 1, from 4.30pm to 6.30pm.

As well as his wife and children, Tom Tierney is also survived by his siblings Anne-Marie, Denis and Elaine, his parents-in-law, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, extended family and his many friends and colleagues in the wider rugby community, to whom sincere sympathy is extended.