Advertisement League of Ireland Horse Racing TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Sport meets news, current affairs, society & pop culture Rugby Weekly Extra Dive into all the news and analysis 3 times a week The Football Family Weekly insights from the week’s big talking points Advertisement More Stories Hugo Keean with his brother, Andrew. back on track 'I was sick for about 12 days. I lost five or six kilos' Hugo Keenan had to isolate at one stage while he was ill on the Lions tour. 10.01pm, 13 Jul 2025 Share options Murray Kinsella Reports from Brisbane WE KNEW HUGO Keenan had been sick, but not the extent of it. You could see and sense the happiness from the Ireland fullback at having finally put it all behind him on Saturday night in Adelaide. Keenan looked much more like his usual self as he delivered a strong performance in the Lions’ number 15 shirt as they beat the AUNZ XV. That display means he is expected to be at fullback in this weekend’s first Test against the Wallabies in Brisbane. There were times in the last few weeks when Keenan worried he might not even be available for selection. First, he arrived into Lions camp with a calf injury. And then, after they landed in Australia, he was hit by a virus. The illness spead in Lions camp while they were in Perth during their first week Down Under but while others got over it quickly, Keenan suffered badly. “It wasn’t exactly what you planned on when getting on tour,” said Keenan. “I was sick for about 12 days. I couldn’t stop, yeah… getting off the jacks was an issue. “I lost about five or six kilos. It was a rough few weeks.” Keenan’s dose of the bug was so bad that he had to isolate from the rest of the squad for a few days, waiting in frustration for his illness to pass as he had to withdraw from the Reds warm-up game two weeks ago. “I’ve never had something like that,” said Keenan. “God, it was pretty horrible. “Just frustrating. Every day, you think you’re going to be waking up the next day better. You think it’s going to be sort of a 24-hour, 48-hour thing. “So, it was just frustrating the length of time that it kept on going but we got a few tests done and I only found out what bug I had only a day or two ago. It’s been going on that long. Advertisement Keenan was still sick during the Waratahs game.Dan Sheridan / INPHO Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO “But look, that’s hopefully in the past now. Even over the last 48 hours, I’ve made big, big improvements. The tour will hopefully kick on for me here and I can start enjoying it a bit more.” It’s worth remembering that Keenan did manage to play a game for the Lions during his bout of illness. He started the win over the Waratahs in Sydney, playing 51 minutes despite feeling miserable. “That was a challenge but I suppose that’s part of touring life, isn’t it? All these little bit,s sort of manning up as much as you can. I think the first game, which I was named to play in that Reds one, was just too much to be possible. “Yeah, I felt terrible in that Waratahs game. But look, sometimes you just have to front up and do what’s needed. It was a challenge but sometimes these things happen and you just have to get on with it.” Thankfully, Keenan is starting to put all of that lost weight back on. “I’m getting there now, I’m still a few kilos off, still probably not filling out that jersey like I was, but it’ll be fine, I’ll get there,” he said. “I’m working with Closey [Professor Graeme Close], our nutritionist here, he’s been unbelievable. Making me high-cal shakes and trying to get as much fluids into me and getting the weight back on. Fair play to him.” Taking all of this into account, it wasn’t difficult to understand why Keenan was beaming on Saturday night. With Blair Kinghorn injured, Keenan’s strong performance reminded everyone of his class and the Irishman looks set to start the first Test. “It’s always a target you have when you’re named in that squad to be a Test player,” said Keenan. “It’s the pinnacle of a British and Irish player. We’ll see what happens, fingers crossed, but whoever’s selected to play number 15, we’ll be getting behind and we’ll see what happens. Four big games to come.” Keenan impressed on Saturday in Adelaide.Billy Stickland / INPHO Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO Keenan’s girlfriend, Emma, and his parents, Avril and Paul, arrived in Australia on Friday and he was thrilled to see them in Adelaide. He also got the chance to see his brother, Andrew, who lives in Sydney and who Hugo hadn’t seen for a year until after the Waratahs game. “I literally hadn’t seen him until the side of the pitch and I think the cameras caught it at the time, so there’s a little clip on TV of me giving him a hug as well, which was cool, which was sent around the family WhatsApp groups. “I’d be really close to him, so it was pretty special to see that. “It’s brilliant, yeah, he’s got a great crew of mates and his girlfriend over here and he’s 27, living the life, enjoying himself, that sort of Sydney lifestyle of getting up early, enjoying the sun, getting down to the beaches.” Keenan hopes his family will have plenty more to cheer in the coming weeks. His alert performance for the Lions against the AUNZ XV was typified by his quickly-taken lineout for Duhan van der Merwe’s try. “We hadn’t sort of planned for it. I think myself and Ben White were just on the same page,” said Keenan. “We both saw it at the same time. He was screaming for it. I was nearly trying to tell him to not make it too obvious. “So, yeah, fair play to him and then he took a nice one on the ribs, setting Duhan up. So it was a nice little start.” As he makes up for lost time, Keenan is only just getting the show on the road. Murray Kinsella Viewcomments Send Tip or Correction Embed this post To embed this post, copy the code below on your site Email “'I was sick for about 12 days. I lost five or six kilos'”. Recipient's Email Feedback on “'I was sick for about 12 days. I lost five or six kilos'”. Your Feedback Your Email (optional) Report a Comment Please select the reason for reporting this comment. Please give full details of the problem with the comment... This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy before taking part. 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