The Cistercian College class of 2015 that reached the Leinster senior cup rugby summit, interrupting the dominance of the Dublin powerhouses.
That brings us to this weekend: alumni scattered around various sporting arenas, eager to make their mark. Wharton is from Reenard in South Kerry, Wycherley from Bantry in West Cork, and Tynan the local from Roscrea in North Tipperary. Brendan McKeogh is from Ballina, the last community in Tipperary before you cross the Shannon on the bridge that brings you to Killaloe in Clare. He’s been the Director of Sport in Cistercian College for the guts of 16 years.
Tynan’s roll call of sporting excellence in 2015 alone was staggering. A few months on from pulling the strings as Cistercian out-half, he started and got on the scoresheet for Tipperary in both the All-Ireland minor football and hurling finals that September, though ended up on the losing side on both occasions. “I feel a big thing was the competitiveness amongst those boys,” says Swanepoel. “Even if they went for a game of tennis, it wouldn’t be far from a row.
“We played him centre, give that skip one into Rob — incredible speed once he had space,” recalls Swanepoel. Tynan was a standout. His range of playing gifts set him apart, a mix of qualities that looked set to propel him to sporting stardom. That Munster came calling was little surprise. Tynan spent four years with the province’s academy and lined out for Ireland in the U20 World Cup in 2017 in Georgia. He knocked on the door but it stubbornly refused to open and by the end of 2020, his rugby involvement was halted.
Initially there was a tug-of-war between the Tipperary senior managements for Tynan’s services in early 2021. He opted for hurling but injuries placed roadblocks in his way. Liam Cahill, his old minor boss in 2015, took the senior reins in Tipperary last autumn and it has coincided with him flourishing as a regular starter in this spring’s hurling league.“People say Alan has made the transition from rugby to hurling, he’s portrayed as then having a big physical presence.