Paul O'Connell

One of the most capped international players in rugby union history, Paul O’Connell is now reflecting on his 20-year long career as a lock to become an after-dinner speaker and help improve the effectiveness of teams and members of management in corporate and sports organisations. Having made over 100 appearances for the Irish national team, Paul is an instantly recognisable name within sport who can give anecdotal insights into both domestic and club rugby.

Beginning his amateur career with Young Munster, Paul played in the Munster Schools Senior Cup before playing games for Ireland Under 21 team and making his senior debut for Munster in 2001. His first victory came when he played for Munster in their winning 2002 Heineken Cup Final against Leicester Tigers.

Throughout his domestic career, O’Connell made a total of 178 appearances for Munster and also collected an outstanding 95 points. He was a key member in Munsters victory at the 2006 Heineken Cup, was captain of the team that took the title at the 2008 Heineken Cup, the 2008-09 Celtic League and at the 2011 Magners League Grand Final.

Internationally, Paul has been selected to tour with the British and Irish Lions on three separate occasions: 2005, 2009 and 2013. He became a pivotal player in Ireland’s success at the 2009 Six Nations Championships final against Wales which earnt the country it’s first-ever Grand Slam in 61 years and also contributed to the winning efforts that won Ireland the 2014 Six Nations Championships.

Most recently, Paul has won his 100th Cap for the Irish national team, was named the Player of the Championship award for the 2015 Six Nations tournament and the IRUPA Players’ Player of the Year Award. Following on from his retirement from the sport in 2016, O’Connell has become an advisor to the Munster Academy, the assistant coach to Ireland Under 20s and has also ventured into the media career as a rugby pundit. He joined the BBC team in 2017 to offer his analysis on the 2017 Six Nations Championships, the 2018 Six Nations Championship and the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

With his career as a coach clarifying his ability in guiding a team to succeed, Paul O’Connell is ideal as an after-dinner speaker to influence corporate, school and sports audiences. With a long list of career anecdotes, Paul can offer a highly entertaining, engaging yet educational speech to a whole variety of audiences.