Raymond John McLoughlin (21 August 1939 – 20 November 2021) was an Irish

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 ...

international who was capped 40 times at prop, an Irish record at the time. He began at tight head, moving to the open side on his return to the Ireland team in 1971 after a five-year absence. McLoughlin captained his country on seven occasions. He was selected for two test series with the British Lions and played for invitational tourists the Barbarians. McLoughlin also had a long career at club and provincial level, representing

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

. After his death he was credited with developing the eight-man scrum.Peter Jackson
'Thinking prop Ray believed persistence trumped all'
The Rugby Paper, 28 November 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2025

Early life

He was born in Ahascragh,

Ballinasloe Ballinasloe ( ; ) is a town in the easternmost part of County Galway, Ireland. Located at an ancient crossing point on the River Suck, evidence of ancient settlement in the area includes a number of Bronze Age sites. Built around a 12th-centur ...

, Co Galway,

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 received his secondary school education at Garbally College and

Blackrock College Blackrock College () is a voluntary day and boarding Catholic secondary school for boys aged 13–18, in Williamstown, Blackrock, County Dublin, Ireland. It was founded by French missionary Jules Leman in 1860 as a school and later became al ...

. He is one of five children of Tadhg Mac Lochlainn and Mel Kelly. He was a brother of Colm and Feidlim McLoughlin. McLoughlin played for Ballinasloe, Athlone and Blackrock and studied at

University College Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

, graduating with a degree in chemical engineering and playing for the university club; later he represented Gosforth, Northumberland and the British Universities.

Rugby career

He toured twice with the British Lions, in

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

and again in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...

to New Zealand. Both tours saw McLoughlin injured, though in the 1966 tour he managed to play in three Tests before being forced to retire. However, in 1971 he managed just five provincial games before he broke his thumb in a very violent game against

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

. McLoughlin's knowledge and scenario planning were highly valued by other good players.

John Taylor John Taylor, Johnny Taylor or similar is the name of: Academics *John Taylor (Oxford), Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University, 1486–1487 * John Taylor (classical scholar) (1704–1766), English classical scholar *John Taylor (English publisher) ...

, who toured with McLoughlin with the British Lions in 1971, described him as "one of the best technicians the game has ever known". Sports columnist Bill Bridge in 2008 named him as Ireland's best open-side prop of the previous 40 years.

Business career

Outside rugby, McLoughlin was a business man. In 1973 he was the chief executive of James Crean, an industrial holdings company. As of 2006 he was the chairman of Oakhill printing group.

Death

He died on 20 November 2021, aged 82.

References

External links

The Artful Delicacies of a Loose Head Prop

London Irish profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:McLoughlin, Ray 1939 births 2021 deaths Blackrock College RFC players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland Connacht Rugby players Irish rugby union players Ireland international rugby union players Ireland national rugby union team captains London Irish players Sportspeople from Ballinasloe Rugby union props University College Dublin R.F.C. players Barbarian F.C. players Rugby union players from County Galway People educated at Garbally College Newcastle Falcons players