Flanker David Corkery, 49 years and 27 selections, prop Declan Fitzpatrick, 39 years and 7 selections, as well as Ben Marshall, 32, but had to end his career in 2017 due to concussion. Three plaintiffs.

Their law firm, Maguire McClafferty, announced last year that it would be contacting several players about a complaint, and the process was officially launched on Tuesday.

Unable to comment on the case, the Irish Rugby Federation (IRFU) said in a press release that “the welfare of the players is paramount”. “We are constantly reviewing our safety protocols for all players. Our approach is science-based (and inclusive) proactive management of elite players with the goal of injury prevention and monitoring,” she said.

“I’ve lost count”

Last February, Corkery gave an interview to the site Rubgypass.com, where he said he had suffered “so many concussions” that he had “lost count”. He had explained that he was suffering from depression and had trouble sleeping for years and had started a medical examination.

“Some of the results I got were not good. It really bothers me, my head. I didn’t respect my body when I was playing. I was getting out. I woke up and after a few seconds I was playing again,” he added.