Canberra local Connal McInerney has re-signed with the Plus500 Brumbies for a further two seasons, keeping the hooker in the capital until the end of 2023.
The 26-year-old made his debut for the Brumbies as injury cover in 2018 and has gone on to become a core member of the side, playing 36 games for the club over four seasons.
A Junior Wallaby, McInerney is a classic ACT product story, coming through the school system at Erindale College before joining the Brumbies pathway programs where he honed his craft for the Royals in the John I Dent Cup and the Canberra Vikings in the National Rugby Championship.
McInerney has been sidelined for much of 2021 with a fractured fibula but made a return to the field during the side's three-game Harvey Norman Super Rugby Trans-Taman tour of New Zealand.
Called into Dave Rennie's Wallabies training squad at the end of 2020, the future looks bright for McInerney who continues to grow and improve as a player on and off the field in Brumbies colours.
Plus500 Brumbies hooker Connal McInerney said: “It’s awesome to be staying here at the Brumbies for at least the next two years.”
“I grew up in Canberra and dreamed of playing for the Brumbies and to be able to live out that dream every day is something I don't take for granted.
"I have a lot of goals I want to achieve on the field with this team and I’ll continue to work hard and put everything into the jersey for my teammates, our supporters and for the club.”
Plus500 Brumbies head coach Dan McKellar said: “We’re delighted to be keeping Con at the Brumbies until at least the end of 2023.”
“He's the classic Brumbies story of someone who earned an opportunity by staying ready and taking that chance with both hands when he got it.
"His growth and maturity as a player and as a person over the last few seasons has been impressive but he knows he's got plenty of improvement left in him.
“Seeing Con go from a good club player to someone who’s on the national radar is a testament to his dedication and attitude which he'll no doubt continue to show while here at the Brumbies."
CONNAL MCINERNEY
Position: Hooker
Date of Birth: 2/3/1995 (age: 26)
Place of Birth: Canberra, ACT
Height: 181cm
Weight: 105kg
School: Erindale College, Canberra, ACT
Brumby Number: 204
Super Rugby Debut: 2018 v Sharks (h), Canberra
Super Rugby Caps: 36
ACT Club: Canberra Royals
The Plus500 Brumbies will play the Hurricanes in Round Four of Harvey Norman Super Rugby Trans-Tasman at GIO Stadium in Canberra on Saturday June 5 at 7:45pm AEST. LIVE and AD FREE on the new Home of Rugby, Stan Sport and simulcast on Nine Gem. Tickets available here.
