Powerade One To Watch: Billy Dardis

In a team packed with stars, Terenure College full-back Billy Dardis may be the pick of the bunch.

While Ireland is blessed with probably the best full-back in the northern hemisphere right now in Rob Kearney, the future for the position, in Leinster and Ireland colours, looks pretty bright too.

Terenure College’s No 15 is Billy Dardis and if he pilots his team to Leinster Senior Cup glory this year, expect his name to be even better known than it already is.

Like a huge number of his team-mates, Dardis won the Junior Cup with Terenure back in 2010 and now he is looking to complete the double. They have negotiated the first leg, beating Belvedere, in tricky conditions last week, and while Dardis didn’t get many opportunities to show what he can do in that win, we expect that to change.

Outside of the all-important Schools competitions, Dardis really made his splash in September following his selection for the Leinster Under-18 squad for the inter-pro competition.

Leinster were fantastic, running away with the title, scoring 23 tries in three games, scoring 163 points, and conceding just 20. Of that tally, Dardis was the scorer in chief, crossing for five tries.

In the match reports of those games, the Irish Independent describes the youngster as having ‘dazzling feet’ and being ‘lightning quick’.

Considering the weather we have had so far, it’s not ideal conditions for a fleet-footed full-back but the climate should be kinder for the next round, so we expect Dardis to show what he can do then.

As for what happens after that, the future looks very bright for Dardis. Some believe he has the requisite skills and vision to even play as a 13 if the full-back slot is tied up.

Let’s just say that Lions watch 2017 starts here...