As Conor Murray ran in Munster's bonus-point try in their recent BKT United Rugby Championship win against Connacht, the scrum-half was guided to the line by a beaming Simon Zebo.
The full-back had played the final pass which afforded Murray a jog to the line from the edge of the 22, having exploded onto Alex Nankivell’s inside ball to open Connacht up at the seam.
And as he escorted Murray towards the post, Zebo zig-zagged with arms spread wide like an airplane coming in to land.
In a professional career that’s lasted more than 250 games between Munster, Racing 92 and Ireland, across a spell of 14 years, the Corkman has never missed a chance to remind us all that rugby, and sport, is meant to be fun.
We got an early taste of his mindset when he went on the British and Irish Lions tour in 2013, and their behind the scenes documentary caught the moment he had to phone up then-Munster head coach Rob Penney and request the captaincy of the province, as part of a punishment in a squad court session.
His attitude wasn’t to everybody’s taste. In 2018, while scoring a Champions Cup try for Racing 92 against Ulster, his audacity to wave a finger at the covering Ulster defenders saw him receive a telling off from Nigel Owens, who failed to see the irony of someone making a moment all about themselves. Throughout his career, his usual 'Z’ celebration irritated some of the 'Rugby Values' purists who had a bit too much starch in the collars of their Number Ones.
That emphasis on having fun on the pitch is arguably the reason his international career ended at 35 caps. His move from Munster to Racing 92 ultimately saw his chances of playing for Ireland halted in late 2017 until he returned to the province in 2021, but there was always an underlying feeling that his free-wheeling style clashed with the structure and discipline of Joe Schmidt’s system.
Some rugby fans would have bought their first shares in Zebo just a few days after his 17th birthday. On 19 March 2007, the slippery winger scored what remains one of his greatest tries to light up a Munster Schools Senior Cup final, as he collected a kick just inside his own half, before two quick sidesteps sent him galloping down the sideline of Musgrave Park, inspiring his Presentation Brothers College side to a 13-3 win over their Cork rivals Christian Brothers College.
Within a few years, he was doing similar for Munster. Having come through the province’s academy with the likes of Murray and his PBC team-mate Peter O’Mahony, Zebo made his senior debut for the province in April 2010 against Connacht. The following season, he featured sporadically, starting five times and coming off the bench on four occasions. The raw talent was there, but the jury was still out.
He wasn't the first, and won’t be the last player who wasn’t fully appreciated until he left.
It wasn't long until we had a verdict. By 2012, it was obvious that Munster had a long-term star and a future international on their hands, as he scored 12 tries that season, including a hat-trick away to Northampton Saints in the Champions Cup. That summer, he earned the first of his 35 Test caps.
He scored nine tries in 35 games for Ireland, although it may feel like ten. In the hours after he announced his retirement, that magical piece of skill he produced on his Six Nations debut, away to Wales in 2013, started popping up again on social media. In the 11 years since that score, the mind can play tricks, and it turns out Zebo’s greatest try in a green shirt was actually scored a couple of phases later by Cian Healy.
Zebo was always honest about his desire to someday play in France, so when the news dropped in late 2017 that he was departing Munster to move to Paris and Racing 92, it was a surprise, but not a shock.
Playing mainly as a full-back, he scored 16 tries in 26 games in his debut season in Paris, while back in Ireland the wheels were slowly falling off their 2019 World Cup preparations. He wasn’t the first, and won’t be the last player who wasn’t fully appreciated until he left.
Zebo’s 60 tries for Munster had made him the province’s record try-scorer by the time he left for Paris in 2018, but when Keith Earls scored his 58th and 59th Munster tries against Toulouse on 3 April, 2021, it looked like it was only a matter of time before the king was dethroned. Eleven days later, Zebo’s return to Thomond Park was confirmed. Sorry, Keith.
The return of Zebo, on 25 September 2021, was one of those special days. Covid-19 restrictions had eased somewhat, and just over 10,000 people were allowed in the gates at Thomond Park. We were starting a new and exciting chapter of South African teams in the new and exciting URC, we had crowds back on stadiums, RG Snyman was fit again, but as usual, Zebo made it all about himself.
It took him five minutes and 45 seconds to pick up where he had left off three years previous, as he collected a loose ball on the wing to run in and score his 61st Munster try. Later that evening, he scored his 62nd. He was back.
Given how the IRFU had part-funded Munster’s late deal to bring Zebo home, it seemed like only a matter of time before he would add to his 35 caps, and get one final send-off in green. He was included in Andy Farrell’s squad for the 2021 Autumn Nations Series, but Hugo Keenan had by then locked up full-back and James Lowe and Andrew Conway were the established wingers. Injury prevented him from getting in for the 2022 Six Nations, and by then Mack Hansen was on the scene. Zebo’s chance had passed.
Time waits for no player, and his three seasons since returning home from France have been littered with the kind of minor, but niggling injuries that kill momentum. He’s still shown that spark though.
He’s been limited to just 29 games in the last three seasons, but 12 tries have extended his record out to a total of 72.
The beaming smile on his face as he dived over for one of his team’s tries in their win over South Africa in 2022 illustrated just how much it meant for the boy from Blackrock to score at Páirc Uí Chaoimh (below).
Thomond Park may have loved Zebo unconditionally, but that love was dwarfed by his popularity in Cork. Following a URC win over Cardiff at Musgrave Park in April 2022, he could be seen taking selfies and signing jerseys long after the rest of his teammates had left the pitch. Even if he was slightly beyond his prime, he still put bums on seats and feet on the terrace.
In recent months, there’s been a clamour for one more year, but on reflection, his decision to draw the curtain on his career feels like the right time.
Having fallen down the depth chart last season due to issues with injury, and the form of Shane Daly, Calvin Nash and Mike Haley, he was a spectator for Munster’s title run-in, as they ended a 12-year wait for silverware.
Injuries have again played their part this season, and limited him to just ten appearances, but the free-wheeling and instinctive rugby player is still in there, winning games and having fun all the way.
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