Ireland's winger Jacob Stockdale and Italy's Irish fly-half, Ian McKinley, have an interesting fact in common.
Both their dads are Protestant ministers.
McKinley, a former Leinster player, lost the sight in his left eye in an on-pitch incident seven years ago but recovered to return to the game and qualifies for Italy through residency after joining Italian side Benetton.
Ulster flyer, Stockdale, set a Six Nations record by scoring seven tries as Ireland sealed the Grand Slam in 2018.
Their dads, it turns out, have a lot in common.
Faith, family, and rugby.
Canon Horace McKinley is the Church of Ireland Rector of Whitechurch, at the foot of the Dublin Mountains and the Rev Graham Stockdale is a hospice and prison chaplain in Newry as well as Director of Evangelisation for the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.
They'd never met before but came together in this episode of The Leap of Faith.
Among the many diverse topics discussed, Ian's father discusses the rugby accident wherein his son lost an eye in 2010.
Listen to the episode above.
The Leap of Faith is on RTÉ Radio 1 at 10pm every Friday.
