New Zealand born scrum-half Conor McManus played in Major League Rugby between 2021-2023. He represented the Rugby New York Ironworkers for his entire MLR career.

McManus moved from New Zealand to the USA when he was 15, and became a High School All-American selected to play with the USA U20s, but could not compete due to injury. He returned to New Zealand following his graduation and played in the Crusaders system, as well as the Canterbury U19s. He represented the Canterbury Mitre 10 side (now the NPC) in the 2020 season.

He joined Rugby United New York ahead of their 2021 season, earning 4 starts in 14 appearances and scoring a try. This would be a similar story across his 3 seasons with the Ironworkers. McManus earned a total of 36 MLR Caps, starting 14 and scoring 4 tries. He was part of the New York team that advanced to the MLR Championship Final in 2022, defeating the Seattle Seawolves 30-15 to lift the Shield. In early December 2023, the Rugby New York Ironworkers announced that they would not be competing in the 2024 season due to financial difficulties. Following this news, the then 24yo McManus announced his retirement from playing professional rugby on 19th December, 2023.

The retirement was short lived, however. McManus was brought into the Anthem RC development side for the 2024 season, offering valuable support and experience in the 9 jersey.

achievements:

• MLR Champion: 2022 (Rugby New York)