Maurice Ignatius "Moss" Keane (27 July 1948 – 5 October 2010) was a

Gaelic football Gaelic football (; short name '')'', commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA, or football, is an Irish team sport. A form of football, it is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score ...

er and a

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

footballer who played for

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and the British & Irish Lions.

Life and career

Born at Currow in

County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...

, Keane started out as a

er, playing at college level for

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) () is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork (city), Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of three Queen's Universit ...

and in the process winning a number of medals including three

Sigerson Cup The Sigerson Cup is the trophy for the premier Gaelic football championship among Higher Education institutions (Universities, Colleges and Institutes of Technology) in Ireland. It traditionally begins in mid January and ends in late February. T ...

s, one Cork County Championship and a Munster Club Championship. He also played in an All Ireland Club Final. He represented Kerry Gaelic footballer's at U-21 and Junior level as a full back, winning Munster Championships at both levels, playing in an All Ireland at Junior level. In 2011 the Kerry County Board named the cup for the winners of the Intermediate Shield after him. He then found rugby through a friend in college, playing for the UCC junior rugby team as 'Moss Fenton', during the

Gaelic Athletic Association The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA; ; CLG) is an Irish international amateur sports, amateur sporting and cultural organisation, focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, which include the traditional Irish sports o ...

(GAA)'s ban on foreign games. When asked what he first thought about rugby he answered: "It was like watching a pornographic movie – very frustrating for those watching and only enjoyable for those participating." He made his international debut for

on 19 January 1974 against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, a game Ireland lost 9–6 in the 1974 Five Nations Championship. Keane became the third Irish forward after

Willie John McBride William James McBride CBE, better known as Willie John McBride (born 6 June 1940), is a former rugby union footballer from Northern Ireland who played as a lock for Ireland and the British and Irish Lions. He made 63 appearances for Ireland, ...

and Fergus Slattery to reach 50 international appearances. He scored his one and only test try in a 22–15 victory over

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

in February 1980. He played his 51st and final international against Scotland on 3 March 1984 in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. Ireland lost the match 32–9. Keane was also a part of the famous

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

side that defeated the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...

in Thomond Park in

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

. He toured New Zealand with

Phil Bennett Philip Bennett (24 October 1948 – 12 June 2022) was a Welsh rugby union player who played as a fly-half for Llanelli RFC and the Wales national rugby union team, Wales national team. He began his career in 1966, and a year later he had taken ...

's British and Irish Lions in 1977, making one Test appearance, and was also a key man in Ireland's 1982 Five Nations Championship win and their historic Triple Crown victory in 1982.

Outside sport

Having gained a master's degree in dairy science, Keane worked for the

Department of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

during his rugby playing career and retired in July 2010. He kept active playing golf on a weekly basis. In 1993 he was the victim of a vicious

mugging Mugging (sometimes called personal robbery or street robbery) is a form of robbery and street crime that occurs in public places, often urban areas at night. It involves a confrontation with a threat of violence. Muggers steal money or person ...

. In 2005 he wrote, with Billy Keane (no kin), his

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...

, called ''Rucks, Mauls and Gaelic Football''.

Illness and death

In 2009 it was reported that Keane was being treated for bowel cancer. He died aged 62 on 5 October 2010. Many tributes were made including Taoiseach

Brian Cowen Brian Bernard Cowen (born 10 January 1960) is an Irish former politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 2008 to 2011. Cowen served as a TD for the constituency of Laois–Offaly from 1984 to 2011 and served in several ...

saying "one of the great gentleman of Irish sport, would be sadly missed by his many fans and admirers worldwide, Moss Keane was one of the finest rugby players Ireland has ever produced, He was among rugby's best known characters and a legend of the game at home and abroad". The IRFU paid tribute to Keane, describing him as one of Irish rugby's "most genuine characters and legends of the game", "Moss had ability on the field that no one could doubt from his record at club, provincial and international level, " IRFU President Caleb Powell said, "UCC, Lansdowne, Munster, Ireland and the British & Irish Lions all benefited from his presence and ensured that his reputation will live long in the memories of not only Irish rugby, but world rugby." Keane is survived by his wife Anne and his two daughters Sarah and Anne Marie. His funeral took place on 7 October in St Michael's Church Portarlington. Former Ireland international players, including

Ollie Campbell Seamus Oliver Campbell (born 5 March 1954) is an Irish former rugby union player. He played flyhalf for Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland from 1976 to 1984 and represented the British and Irish Lions, British Lions on two tours. He hel ...

, Tony Ward,

Mick Galwey Michael Joseph Galwey (born 8 October 1966) won an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship with the Kerry GAA, Kerry Gaelic football team in 1986, as a 19-year-old, before turning to rugby union. He is thus the only winner of an "All-Ireland" i ...

, Dick Spring, Donal Lenihan, Donal Spring and Ciaran Fitzgerald were in attendance. Keane's coffin was adorned with the jerseys of Ireland, Munster, UCC, Kerry and Currow.

Honours

Ireland

* Five Nations Championship: **Winner (2): 1974,

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

* Triple Crown: **Winner (1):

References

External links

Career statistics from Irish Rugby

Moss Keane's career in photos
BBC Sport.
Moss Keane: A Rugby Life In Pictures

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keane, Moss 1948 births 2010 deaths Kerry inter-county Gaelic footballers Currow Gaelic footballers UCC Gaelic footballers Irish rugby union players Ireland international rugby union players Lansdowne Football Club players University College Cork RFC players Munster Rugby players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland Deaths from colorectal cancer Gaelic footballers who switched code Rugby union players from County Kerry Rugby union locks