Young Guns – Max Clein

Young Guns

Max Clein is enjoying learning from his childhood hero Sean Cronin at Munster and hopes to emulate the Ireland legend’s career.

Cronin won 72 Ireland caps, scoring six tries between 2009-19 and made over 250 appearances across spells at Munster, Connacht and Leinster.

The former hooker is now Munster’s provincial talent coach, working alongside the likes of 21-year-old Clein, who cherishes his wisdom.

Hooker Clein told The Rugby Paper: “My rugby role model is definitely Sean Cronin. I loved the way he ran off the ball and his ball knowledge.

“He’s really helped me with my throwing and scrummaging. It’s great being able to watch him when I was younger and now learn off him in a one-on-one basis.

“You’re able to ask him any question which is really beneficial for my learning. As a player he had everything.

“He can tell me exactly how he feels about my game and I’ll take note of everything he says because he’s been through it all.

“The Munster setup is class. I only came in last season, but I missed most of the season through injury, so this is my first real crack at it.

Learning from the Pros

“I’m looking forward to showing what I can bring to the table. It’s really cool being in a professional environment, being able to come in and learn from all the lads above me.

“Hopefully I can bring lots of my learnings into my game.

“I want to make my competitive debut for Munster. You never know how far away that is because of injuries, so I have to be ready for the call up.

“It would be unreal running out at Thomond Park or even an away day. It would be a great honour and would be a proud moment for my family.”

An abrasive forward, who previously played back row, Clein loves to utilise his beefy frame which is 6ft and over 17 stone.

He added: “I like carrying the ball as my physicality is my strongest attribute, that’s where I feel I have a bit of an edge. I want to get more live reps in the scrum and focus on my throwing as well.”

World Championship Experience

Clein got into rugby as early as he remembers through his obsessed father and says his proudest achievement in the sport is appearing in the 2023 U20s World Championship final against France.

“That was a surreal experience,” said Clein.

“Getting through to the final and getting my name called to be on the bench and come on was just unreal. It was unfortunate to lose but I was just happy to have made an appearance and get second place.

“It was a cool experience being involved with Ireland U20s. I came into the setup during the Six Nations and the group had just won the Triple Crown.

“So coming in was tough enough, but they were really welcoming and I definitely learnt a lot from a professional standpoint before being brought into Munster.

“My dad worked down the road from my local club and I got drafted in to train there and it snowballed from there. I went to school at Crescent College and that’s where my rugby really kickstarted.”