2026 Six Nations – Ireland 20-13 Italy: Izuchukwu postpones surgery ahead of Six Nations debut

Cormac Isochukwu said his Six Nations debut in the 20-13 win over Italy was “unbelievable” amid an injury-plagued season for the Ulster lock.

The 25-year-old suffered a pause in the season due to injury and illness, starting just four matches for Ulster and missing Ireland’s matches in November.

He played 59 minutes in the win over Italy in his first match since January 2, a relief for Izuchukwu after he feared he would need surgery earlier in the season which could rule him out for the rest of the campaign.

“Obviously I was injured all season, played four or five games, and haven’t played since early January, I think,” he said.

“I met a surgeon recently and I was supposed to have surgery and stuff like that, and I told him I’d give it another chance and then all of a sudden she’s playing again, so that’s the semester.

“It’s unbelievable. I was happy.”

Isochukwu, who has five caps for Ireland, admitted he was surprised by the scale of the Six Nations tournament in the lead-up to the Italy match.

He added: “It’s mental because for me in the France match, it was a big stage and I tasted that by sitting on the bench as player No. 24, but after that I treat every match with Ireland like the Ireland match.”

“They are all so special to me, whether it’s Portugal, Fiji, Georgia or whatever, they mean the world to me, but I’ve been blown away by the response from social media, the internet and my family, it’s so big for them.

“I probably didn’t understand it as much as I should have in the Six Nations, so that was a bit of a shock, but I’ve kind of settled in over the last couple of days, thought about it and then stuck with it.”