31 year old Wallace will be best remembered for his heroic contribution to the 1996 British and Irish Lions Tour to South Africa where he joined Keith Wood, Jeremy Davidson and Eric Miller in making an indelible impact on the world media.

He won 45 Ireland caps after making his debut in 1995 against Japan, and would have had an even more significant career were it not for suffering a horrific injury - he broke his tibia, fibula and ankle joint - for Saracens against Ulster in the Heineken Cup in 2000.