Knighted in 2001 for his services to Northern Ireland in the business field, Sir Tony went on to win 29 caps for Ireland in an international career lasting until 1970 but some of his finest performances came for the Lions.
He first toured with the Lions to South Africa in 1955 but it was on the 1959 tour to Australia, New Zealand and Canada that he really made his name. O'Reilly scored a record 22 tries on the tour, 17 in New Zealand, and with six tries in 10 Tests.
He also shares, with Mike Gibson, the record for Ireland's longest international rugby career - 16 years, from 1955 to 1970, though he did not play international rugby for six of those years. His last Irish cap came after that long absence of six years, in the Test match against England at Twickenham in 1970.
After retiring from international rugby, O'Reilly became highly successful in big business and the media, and recently retired as chairman of American food giant HJ Heinz and chairman of Waterford Wedgwood.
O'Reilly is now the Executive Chairman of Independent News and Media in Ireland and was inducted late in 2000 in the Irish Rugby Football Union Hall of Fame. |
