It was quite the journey for Jimmy O’Brien from there to here, a long stint in the Test rugby wilderness and then a sudden return to prominence in July.
He had encouragingly featured off the bench for Ireland in their Rugby World Cup quarter-final loss to the All Blacks in 2023, but the momentum of his breakthrough international season, which began with a November 2022 debut win against the Springboks, quickly stopped.
Just three further Test appearances materialised, 2025 runarounds versus Georgia, Portugal and Japan, but his existence in the Leinster shadows meant his summer 2026 redemption came out of the blue.
He was surplus to requirements with the Irish province qualifying for the Champions Cup final and going on to retain their United Rugby Championship title, but Andy Farrell saw something that has escaped Leo Cullen and named him in his squad of 36 for Nations Championship assignments versus Australia, Japan and New Zealand.
“You’re in, don’t f*** it up…”
Ireland’s cutting of ties with James Lowe forced the door ajar. Then came the pre-tour injury of Tommy O’Brien, followed by Robert Baloucoune’s late first Test cry-off, and the domino effect left Farrell taking a Sydney training ground walk in O’Brien’s direction to deliver a curt message.
“That first week was Rob getting injured and he [Farrell] just said, ‘You’re in, don’t f*** it up’ when I was sitting down beside Hugo [Keenan], maybe. It was back at training,” he revealed to Planet Rugby.
“I wasn’t too nervous when he said it; I was definitely nervous going into the game, but you just back yourself and you take your chances when you get them.”
What the 29-year-old O’Brien found, having finally made the Irish team against a top-tier nation for the first time since October 2023, didn’t surprise him. “Not massively,” he said when asked if he felt there was much change between Ireland back then and how they now go about their business on the field.
“Little tweaks here and there but not like a big overhaul or anything like that. Kind of tweaks, new rules and that, but nothing massively, no.”
O’Brien went on to start all three tour matches, one of just four players to do so (Stuart McCloskey, Jack Conan and Tom O’Toole were the other three), and this unexpected redemption now has him back up the pecking order with the run-in to Rugby World Cup 2027 about to get started.
Not that he’s looking ahead. “There’s no point getting too ahead of yourself or too low; try to stay as even keel as you can, but it is definitely great to get to play,” he said, summing up his tour without predicting what it could mean for him in the long run.
Back to his wilderness years, though. What was his toughest time when out of the loop following all the kudos he received for his abrasive cameo against the All Blacks? “My lowest moment? Probably when I had the next injury after I had just come back from the ’23 World Cup.
“I played four or five matches, then had a neck injury and that knocked me out for about five or something months, so that was pretty frustrating.
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“I was a bit injured going into the World Cup and then only got the game against New Zealand, did alright when I came off the bench, so I was hoping to springboard there in that season but to get that neck injury was frustrating, getting knocked out five, six months.”
Injury setbacks unfortunately became common enough, including last season. “I was probably in and around camps all the way through (since 2023) but just not really getting selected.
“I had hammies and stuff during the (2025/26) season, so I missed the autumn and came in Six Nations, but because I hadn’t played I probably wasn’t getting a look in and stuff. I have kind of been there, kind of in and around the squad the last couple of years, so it doesn’t feel like it’s a massive change.
“You kind of learn what you can’t control, what you can control. You can’t control how many chances you are going to get or how many games you are going to play, so I try and make the most of it when you do play, enjoy it and really take the chance.”
Lowe’s contract situation created that opportunity with Ireland, and now there is the readjustment to life without the New Zealander back at Leinster for the 2026/27 campaign. “He’s a big character,” said O’Brien when asked what the winger’s exit to the Japan league had meant for the dressing room.
“I’d be good friends with him, still stay in touch with him because he was there nearly the same amount of time I’ve been in there.
“There’s a good few lads who have left, like Will Connors, Ciaran Frawley and stuff, so it’s different. Every year lads are going in and out, and it changes slightly, but he [Lowe] will be missed.”