Today marks the third anniversary of the tragic deaths of Ulster player Nevin Spence along with his father Noel and older brother Graham.
All three died after being overcome by slurry fumes at the family farm in Co. Down.
Spence played 42 times for his province and played in a non capped international for Ireland in 2012 against The Barbarians. He made three appearances for the Ireland Wolfhounds along with featuring for Ireland's Under 20 side at two IRB Junior World Championships.
Spence was named the IRUPA Young Player of the Year in 2011. Since his death, the association have renamed that award in his honour. Rob Henshaw was the most recent recipient of the award.
Football was Spence's second love and he played for Northern Ireland at underage level in their Under 16 team as a right back. Such was his potential he was offered a trial by Manchester City.
Ulster made their own tribute to Spence in recent weeks, when they opened The Nevin Spence Centre in Kingspan Stadium. The centre is intended to be a new education and heritage facility at the stadium.
Ulster Rugby have taken to social media this morning to remember the Hillsbourough native.
Remembering Nevin Spence today, three years on. Never forgotten, #alwayswithus pic.twitter.com/wIBw0KG6ML
— Ulster Rugby (@UlsterRugby) September 15, 2015
Remembering our friend Nevin today @UlsterRugby 3 years on but #alwayswithus pic.twitter.com/gtJDsNpjRt
— Gareth Robinson (@ggphysio) September 15, 2015
One of Spence's most iconic moments for Ulster was scoring a try against Bath in late 2010 at The Rec. He somehow rolled over his head after scoring on the frozen pitch.
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
