Thomas Niall O'Toole, born on 23 September 1998, is an Irish professional rugby union player who plays as a prop. He is currently associated with the United Rugby Championship club Ulster and represents the Ireland national team.
O'Toole was born in Drogheda, Ireland, and lived in Ratoath, County Meath, until the age of six. Due to his father's work commitments, he then moved to Brisbane, Australia, where he attended Padua College.
During his time in Australia, O'Toole was selected for the Queensland Reds development side and the Queensland Schoolboys in 2015. Subsequently, he became connected with the Irish Exiles setup. Later on, he moved to Northern Ireland and attended Campbell College, which allowed him to join the Ulster and Ireland age-grade setups. O'Toole represented Ireland at the under-18, under-19, and under-20 levels.
O'Toole joined the Ulster Rugby academy directly after finishing school in 2017. He made his senior debut for Ulster on 6 April 2018, starting in a Pro14 match against Edinburgh, which Ulster won 32-20. In his debut season, he made five senior appearances, including two starts, and was awarded the Academy Player of the Year at the 2018 Ulster Rugby Awards.
O'Toole was then awarded a development contract for the 2018-19 season, which later turned into a senior contract starting from the 2019-20 season until June 2022. During the 2018-19 season, he made 18 appearances, including three starts.
In the 2019-20 season, O'Toole made 22 appearances for Ulster, including ten starts. He was named Young Player of the Year at the Ulster Rugby Awards. On 15 January 2020, he received his first call-up to the senior Ireland squad for the 2020 Six Nations Championship.
During the 2020-21 season, O'Toole made 15 appearances for Ulster, including two starts, and also earned a call-up to the senior Ireland squad for the Summer tests in June 2021. He made his senior international debut for Ireland in a 71-10 victory over the United States on 10 July 2021. In the 2021-22 season, he made 15 appearances for Ulster, including eight starts, and came off the bench for Ireland in their 53-7 win over Argentina in the 2021 Autumn internationals. He was selected for the Ireland squad for their 2022 tour of New Zealand and was also part of the Ireland squad for the 2023 Six Nations Championship, where Ireland won the championship and Grand Slam.
Before pursuing rugby, O'Toole initially played Gaelic football and soccer, and he also had a stint playing Australian Rules football. He is regarded as one of the finest prospects in the Ulster set-up and has shown great potential in his appearances for both the Ulster senior team and the Ireland national team. As of 25 January 2021, he had made 51 appearances for Ulster, scoring two tries.
Ahead of the Rugby World Cup 2023, O'Toole has been named in the squad for Ireland.
KG(30/06/2023)
Career
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Ulster Rugby Tighthead Prop |
2018 - present |
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Ireland Tighthead Prop |
2020 - present |
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Ireland A Tighthead Prop |
2022 - present |
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Ireland U20's Tighthead Prop |
2018 - 2019 |
