Exeter Chiefs centre/wing Rory O’Loughlin has been advised to retire from rugby on medical grounds, the club confirmed in a statement.
The Dubliner suffered a serious shoulder injury at the beginning of the season and despite an intensive rehab period and attempts to get back playing, having sought medical advice, he has been advised to retire from the sport.
O’Loughlin joined Chiefs at the outset of the 2022/23 season from United Rugby Championship, Leinster and he has since made 24 Chiefs appearances.
The 30-year-old, who is a former St Michael’s College student, made his senior Leinster debut in September 2016 against Benetton at the RDS. In the years that followed, he amassed 99 appearances for the region as he took a winner’s medal in the Champions Cup and four Pro14 finals.
Having already enjoyed international appearances on the 7s circuit, O’Loughlin made his full international debut for Ireland against Japan in 2017.
O’Loughlin says, while it is a bittersweet ending, he has enjoyed every part of his rugby journey and the valued friendships he has made along the way.
“While it has been a tough couple of months coming to terms with this new reality, I do count myself incredibly lucky to have played for two great clubs, alongside some of the game’s best players and more importantly some of my best mates.
“Although this season hasn’t gone to plan for me, I have loved my time here at Exeter. I was lucky enough to play in front of a packed-out Sandy Park many times in my first season.
“I’ve made friends here for life and the people of Exeter have been incredibly welcoming to me and my family. I’m looking forward to returning as a Chiefs fan and supporting the boys.”
The latest odds for the 2025 British & Irish Lions Tour Captain – by BonusCodeBets
1/1 – James Ryan (50%)
4/1 – Maro Itoje (20%)
5/1 – Jac Morgan (16.7%)
10/1 -Jamie Ritchie (9.1%)
16/1 – Owen Farrell (5.9%)
20/1 – Peter O’Mahony (4.76%)
The current 36-man British & Irish Lions squad for 2025, according to the bookies
Andy Farrell faces numerous challenging decisions leading up to finalising his Lions squad, yet bookmakers appear confident in predicting the players destined for Australia next summer.
We found it intriguing to project a smaller squad based on the favored contenders according to bookmakers’ odds as of April19, 2024.
The Lions will play a New Zealand and Australia invitational XV as part of their nine-match tour down under in 2025.
The historic fixture in Adelaide will precede Test matches with the Wallabies in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.
A sell-out at the 100,000-capacity Melbourne Cricket Ground would smash records for a Lions Test match.
The series finale will be played in front of more than 80,000 fans in Sydney’s Olympic Park.
The 2025 Lions tour fixtures in full
- Saturday 28 June: v Western Force, Optus Stadium, Perth
- Wednesday 2 July: v Queensland Reds, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
- Saturday 5 July: v New South Wales Waratahs, Allianz Stadium, Sydney
- Wednesday 9 July: v ACT Brumbies, GIO Stadium, Canberra
- Saturday 12 July: v Invitational Australia & NZ XV, Adelaide Oval
- Saturday 19 July: First Test, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
- Tuesday 22 July: v Melbourne Rebels, Marvel Stadium, Melbourne
- Saturday 26 July: Second Test, Melbourne Cricket Ground
- Saturday 2 August: Third Test, Accor Stadium, Sydney
The bolded players in our proposed Lions squad represent the starting XV, according to current odds.
2025 BRITISH & IRISH LIONS SQUAD (36)
BACK-THREE (6)
- Duhan van der Merwe (Scotland) – 1/16
- James Lowe (Ireland) – 1/8
- Hugo Keenan (Ireland) – 1/5
- Tommy Freeman (England) – 4/9
- Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (England) – 8/11
- Mack Hansen (Ireland) – 2/1
CENTRE (4)
- Bundee Aki (Ireland) – 1/5
- Ollie Lawrence (England) – 1/4
- Sione Tuipulotu (Scotland) – 2/7
- Robbie Henshaw (Ireland) – 8/11
FLY-HALVES (3)
- George Ford (England) – 1/10
- Marcus Smith (England) – 8/15
- Finn Russell (Scotland) – 8/11