One of the players, from the St Mary's rugby club in Templeogue, was almost killed when a blade narrowly missed vital internal organs.

The club, which plays in the top division of the AIB AllIreland league, is now reviewing its policy of insisting that players wear their club insignia on match days.

The five players were stabbed by the same person outside the Tramco nightclub in Rathmines last weekend.

Two were stabbed in the back . . . one of them while standing at an ATM machine sometime after the initial incident occurred. All five had to be hospitalised.

The most seriously injured was a highly-regarded 19-yearold player, who was told that if the blade had been a few centimetres deeper he almost certainly would have been killed.

He suffered a punctured lung and will not be able to return to his rugby career for months.

The violent assaults all occurred within the space of a few minutes as players from the rugby club were socialising in the popular nightclub last Saturday evening. It is understood that the man who carried out the stabbings targeted the players on the basis that they were wearing distinctive formal club wear, including insignia and jackets.

Eoin Quinn, honorary secretary of St Mary's RFC, confirmed that five of its players had been the subject of an assault. He told the Sunday Tribune that the club was "extremely concerned" at the indications that its players were singled out for attack.

He said that officials were now examining whether the requirement that they wear distinctive formal club uniforms when out socially on match days should be amended.

"We're obviously taking this very seriously. The welfare of our lads comes before everything. Thankfully nobody was killed and they're all recovering now. We're anxious to move on and allow them to get over this, " he said.

Quinn said that the players attacked were senior squad members. A spokesman for Tramco said the club is cooperating with gardai and could not comment on the details of the incident.