Ireland under-20s boss Richie Murphy spoke of his pride in his players after they decided to go ahead with their final World Rugby Championships pool game against Fiji in South Africa.
Victory for Ireland saw them top the pool and qualify for the semi-finals.
But they achieved the feat against the tragic backdrop of the deaths of former St Michael's schoolboys Andrew O'Donnell and Max Wall in Greece at the weekend, and then the passing of Greig Oliver - father of reserve scrum-half Jack - in an accident in Cape Town on Tuesday.
Jack was due to be on the bench for the final pool game this afternoon before the paragliding accident that took the life of his father, who was a former Scottish international and was coaching for Munster.
There was uncertainty over whether the players would go ahead with the fixture. Six of the squad were from St Michael's themselves, while a lot of the players knew O'Donnell and Wall.
The decision was taken to wear black armbands and to press ahead with the fixture, and Fiji presented Ireland skipper Diarmuid Mangan with a jersey before kick-off as a mark of respect.
"I am extremely proud of the group," said Murphy, after the 47-27 victory in Stellenbosch.
"Last night we weren't quite sure what was going to happen and whether we were going to play the game or not.
"I thought the guys came together really well today and really fronted up in what was the most incredible circumstance that I have ever experienced in 20 years of coaching.
"I have never experienced anything like this. So I am really proud of the boys and we are in a semi-final so we have got a lot to look forward to."
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