Farewell Marcus

Former Irish prop Marcus Horan announced his retirement at the end of last week. He becomes the latest in a growing line of Munster stalwarts who have called time on their professional careers.

Marcus Horan was never a renowned scrummager, but he proved more than willing in the loose, and he formed an integral part of a Munster front row, alongside Jerry Flannery and John Hayes which contributed to Ireland's grand slam triumph of 2009. Horan soon fell away from the international scene after reaching this height, but he had been an ever-present for several years in an excellent Ireland team. Marcus joins the likes of Flannery, Hayes, Denis Leamy, and David Wallace as Irish players from Munster who have hung up their boots for the last time. One wonders how much longer we can expect to see Donnacha O'Callaghan, Ronan O'Gara, and Peter Stringer competing in professional rugby. Oh well. The end of an era looms. Let us hope that Ireland and Munster can adequately fill the void left by some of these highly accomplished performers. Still, this is how competitive sport should be: a revolving door in which the elder statesmen are eased out or bow out, allowing new pups to enter the fray and demonstrate their abilities.