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Tom Court

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Tom Court
Birth nameTom Court
Date of birth (1980-11-06) 6 November 1980 (age 44)
Place of birthBrisbane, Australia
Height1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Weight122 kg (19 st 3 lb; 269 lb)
SchoolLowood State High School
UniversityUniversity of Queensland
Occupation(s)Professional rugby union player
Rugby union career
Position(s) Prop
Amateur team(s)
Years Team Apps (Points)
2004 University of Queensland ()
2004 Queensland A ()
2004 Manawatu ()
Senior career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2004–2006 Queensland Reds 3 (0)
2006 Pertemps Bees 9 (0)
2006–2014 Ulster 154 (55)
2014–2017 London Irish 74 (10)
2018–2019 Independiente RC 12 (5)
Correct as of 2 June 2020
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2006–08 Ireland Wolfhounds 7
2009–2013 Ireland 32 (5)
2013 British & Irish Lions 0 (0)
Correct as of 15 Jun 2013

Tom Court (born 6 November 1980) is an Australian-born former rugby union footballer. He most recently played for London Irish as a loosehead prop. He primarily played at tighthead in his early career at Ulster but switched to loosehead in the 2007/2008 season when BJ Botha arrived at Ulster. He has a son who attends St Jospeh’s Nudgee College.

Early life

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Court was born in Brisbane, Australia and began his sporting career as a shotputter.[1] He was Australian University Champion for three years running and had Olympic trials in 2002. He started playing rugby in 2004 and has represented Queensland Reds and Manawatu as well as Ulster.[1] In an interview with the Ulster Rugby Website, Court intimated that he had begun playing rugby in order to lose weight.

Ulster and Ireland

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Court represented the Ireland A side at the 2006 Churchill Cup only 16 months after first playing rugby union, before he had played his first game for Ulster. He qualified to play international rugby for Ireland through his grandfather, Patrick Carey, who was born in County Limerick, Ireland. He was also named in the 2008 Churchill Cup squad [2] and appeared as a substitute in all three games; against USA, England Saxons and a representative Argentina XV. He made his full Ireland debut in an uncapped match against The Barbarians at Kingsholm Stadium in Gloucester.[3]

Court was named as a replacement for all Ireland's matches of the 2009 Six Nations and earned his first cap as a replacement for Marcus Horan during Ireland's 38–9 victory over Italy on 15 February 2009. Court was named as part of Ireland's 2011 Rugby World Cup squad, and played in the Irish 15-6 victory over Australia (17 Sep 2011), coming on as a substitute against the country of his birth. Court made another appearance as a substitute, coming on in Ireland's final game of the 2012 Six Nations against England.

On 23 June 2013, Court was called up by the British & Irish Lions for their tour of Australia to act as cover for Alex Corbisiero.[4]

On 27 January 2014, it was announced that Court has been signed by London Irish on a 3-year contract with the club, joining from the start of the 2014/15 season.

References

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  1. ^ a b Tom Court (31 July 2008). "Tom Court". Irish Rugby. Archived from the original on 2 April 2009. Retrieved 5 February 2009.
  2. ^ "Ireland 'A' Squad Announced For Churchill Cup". Irish Rugby. 9 May 2008. Retrieved 5 February 2009. [dead link]
  3. ^ "Barbarians 14–39 Ireland". BBC News. 27 May 2008. Retrieved 5 February 2009.
  4. ^ "BBC Sport - Lions 2013: Paul O'Connell & Alex Corbisiero are injury concerns". Bbc.co.uk. 1 January 1970. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
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