FORMER CORK SENIOR, U21 and minor footballer Ian Jones is part of the coaching team for the USA Women’s Rugby side that take on Ireland in the World Cup tomorrow.
The sides meet in their opening game in Pool B in Paris tomorrow evening at 5pm (local time).
And there’ll be an Irish link to the USA coaching setup as Jones, a native of Bishopstown in Cork, is a strength and conditioning coach with the USA Eagles.
The 24 year-old is a strength and conditioning coach at Penn State University – who will be in action in the upcoming Croke Park Classic in late August – where he works with the hockey and rugby teams. That role resulted in him becoming involved with the USA side that will take on Philip Doyle’s Ireland side tomorrow.
Jones sporting background is in GAA and he won a Munster minor football medal with Cork in 2007 alongside the likes of Aidan Walsh, Ciaran Sheehan and Barry O’Driscoll. They defeated a Kerry team that included current senior Johnny Buckley in that decider by 1-16 to 2-8.
In 2010 Jones was in action for the Cork U21 footballers but their Munster campaign came to an end with a first round loss against Kerry. That Cork team included players like Sheehan and Mark Collins while Kerry’s line-up featured Buckley, James O’Donoghue and both Paul and Michael Geaney.
He went on to play for the Cork senior side in the 2011 McGrath Cup on a team that lost out to Kerry at the semi-final stage.
In 2012, Jones featured for his club Bishopstown in the Cork senior hurling final when they narrowly lost out to Sarsfields by 1-15 to 1-13.