Dion O'Cuinneagain
Dion O'Cuinneagain is a former rugby union player who represented both [South Africa national rugby South Africa national rugby sevens team|sevens team|South Africa] and Ireland. Since retiring as a rugby player, O'Cuinneagain has worked as a doctor and as a rugby coach.
Early years
O'Cuinneagain was born and raised in Cape Town. His father, Connell, was a dentist who came from County Dublin, Ireland. The O'Cuinneagain family originally came from Enniscorthy in County Wexford. His mother was an English nurse who came from Lancashire. O'Cuinneagain was educated at Rondebosch Boys' School before going on to study medicine at Stellenbosch University. As a youth he showed potential in several sports. He also represented Western Cape at schoolboy cricket and was a notable hurdler.Clubs and Provinces
O'Cuinneagain played rugby at various levels with University of Cape Town and then Western Province where his teammates included, among others, Tiaan Strauss, Corné Krige and Bobby Skinstad. However his career was initially hindered by a serious hip injury and in 1997 he left South Africa and moved to England where he joined Sale Sharks. Then in 1999 he switched to playing for Ballymena RFC and Ulster. He made five appearances for the latter in the Heineken Cup. Injuries continued to hinder O'Cuinneagain's career and in 1999 he suffered two shoulder injuries and a broken wrist. In 2000 he decided to return to South Africa to complete his medical studies. However, in 2001 he made a brief comeback when he agreed to help out an injury depleted Munster. On 13 April 2001 he played in a 24–22 win against a Rest of Ireland XV at Thomond Park before making a late appearance as a replacement against Stade Français in the Heineken Cup semi-final defeat on 22 April.