McCarthy was not alone at Leinster either. 'It's not common for a male athlete to come out in sport, never mind professional rugby, and it's probably something that I didn't want to believe or accept myself either,' he said, describing the experience since coming out as 'entirely positive'. 'I struggled with coming out for a while and it was starting to impact on me and my happiness so it was the right decision,' he said, adding that he considered quitting the game completely as he was not sure it was possible to come out as a professional sportsman. 'I'm really happy that I did it,' McCarthy said in an interview on his club's website.
He describes the whole experience as a weight off his shoulders. This week, scrum-half Nick McCarthy, who plays professionally for Leinster in Ireland, came out as gay having told his teammates and coaches earlier in the year. There are encouraging signs in the world of rugby union as well that coming out does not mean the end of a career, or being shunned by fans and teammates. Leinster scrum half Nick McCarthy - David Fitzgerald / SPORTSFILE/SPORTSFILE Changing attitudes in professional rugby