NOW THAT HIS recent injury problems are behind him, Dan Sheehan is fully focused on reclaiming his starting berth in the Irish team for this weekend’s round three clash against Italy in the Six Nations Championship.
After playing 74 minutes of Ireland’s comprehensive bonus point triumph over Wales on the opening weekend of the tournament, Leinster hooker Sheehan was subsequently ruled out of France’s trip to the Aviva Stadium on 11 February with a hamstring issue. Ulster’s Rob Herring took his spot in the front-row, before being forced out of the action on 25 minutes following his much-discussed collision with French prop Uini Atonio.
This opened the door for Sheehan’s fit-again provincial colleague Rónan Kelleher to feature in an international test for the first time in almost 12 months. It was a shoulder injury picked up by Kelleher against Les Bleus in Paris during last year’s Six Nations that propelled Sheehan into the number two jersey on a more regular basis, though his own time on the sideline has proven to be minimal in comparison to his Leinster compatriot.
“Trained fully last week, then also yesterday and this morning. The body is back to 100 per cent, so good to go this weekend I think. Exciting challenge ahead. Just towards the end of the week [of the French game], things didn’t go right. Probably the first time I had to face an injury since I made my Leinster debut. I think it is the first game I’ve missed or not been available,” Sheehan explained at a press conference held at the IRFU’s High Performance Centre earlier today.
“That was a bit of a challenge to get over, but it showed we have a lot of squad depth and we have a lot of competition for places. One person misses out and two lads are well capable of filling it. I think a few years ago there wasn’t as much depth at hooker and now there’s a good few lads. Young lads coming through, of world class standard. It’s probably the best.
“People might get comfortable if they don’t have someone pushing behind and there’s certainly people pushing in behind. It drives standards and makes sure we keep it competitive. I think it’s part of the game, especially the modern game. Injuries will come around to everyone and it’s how we deal with them.”
Since making his first-team debut in October 2020, Sheehan has registered an excellent strike rate of 25 tries in just 41 appearances for Leinster. This includes a four-try haul against Italian outfit Benetton in this season’s United Rugby Championship.
He has also contributed two tries for Ireland across 14 senior caps to date – including a five-pointer in a 26-5 win at the expense of Scotland in the closing round of last year’s Six Nations. Yet Sheehan insists his eye for the opposition whitewash isn’t what defines him as a rugby player.
“I don’t see myself as a try-scoring hooker. I don’t think it’s something you can focus on, as being a try-scoring hooker. I think I’m comfortable in the wider channels. I enjoy running with the ball. I feel my skill set is good, but I don’t think you can focus on being a try-scorer
“Those opportunities will come when you play the shape and you stick to your processes. If you go outside trying to look for tries, you just get in the way. It sort of goes against the team.”
When Italy paid a visit to the Aviva at the same stage of last year’s Championship, Ireland came away with a comfortable 57-6 victory. It didn’t help their cause that they were forced to play over an hour of that contest with just 13 players, but the Azzurri were low on confidence coming into the game, having failed to record a Six Nations win in close to seven years.
That all changed in the final round of the 2022 championship, however, as Kieran Crowley’s men ended a 36-match losing streak with a dramatic success over Wales. They were very close to pulling off another shock triumph when France visited the Stadio Olimpico at the beginning of this year’s tournament and the improvements within their ranks haven’t gone unnoticed in the eyes of their Irish counterparts.
“I think if you watch their two last games, they’ve played some seriously good attacking rugby. Some dangerous individuals, but they’re also playing some nice shape. I think our focus is on making sure we stick to our systems,” Sheehan added.
“I think sometimes maybe you can be tempted into trying to solve problems yourself, but they’re definitely a threat in the wider channels as well. We’ll be focused on making sure we stick to our processes and don’t take the foot off the gas from the first two performances.”