IT’S EARLY JANUARY, midway through the season, but Dan Sheehan admits that it’s only recently he’s started to find his feet again.

The Leinster and Ireland hooker looked sharp as he captained the province to a dominant 52-17 defeat of Connacht on Saturday, scoring the game’s opening try, with the result pushing the province up to fifth in the URC table.

It was Sheehan’s fifth Leinster game of the season, with four of those coming after he had started three games for Ireland in November. Having also started all three Lions Tests over the summer, the start of the 2025/26 campaign arrived hot off the end of the 2024/25 one.

“It was obviously a weird start to the season where people were in all sorts of situations and personally I feel like now I’m clicking, I’m back match fit and I can focus on my job,” Sheehan said.

Sheehan scored Leinster's opening try against Connacht. Henry Simpson / INPHO Henry Simpson / INPHO / INPHO

“It’s probably similar with a lot of the lads. People are looking forward to playing. We have to make sure we keep making the right decisions and that we play whatever game is in front of us. There’s good excitement to play good Leinster rugby of old and that we bring a physical edge as well. That’s probably the number one thing.”

Sheehan was asked when he first felt that match fitness was returning to him this season.

“Probably coming back into Leinster the last couple of weeks.

“It can be tricky at the start of the season where you are only getting a certain amount of games and just trying to get match fit again because you can’t replicate time on the pitch.

You can train as much as you like. It’s nice, you feel you’re right into the season now. That has been a nice block of games to get under the belt going into two big weeks.”

While Leinster delivered a mixed first half performance against Connacht, they turned in a much more commanding second half display, where they outscored their visitors five tries to zero. They anticipate a different challenge when La Rochelle come to Dublin this weekend as the Champions Cup returns, with Leo Cullen’s men then away to Bayonne in round four.

“It’s massive for the club. Lads will be bouncing in on Monday now for a European week, especially where we can play La Rochelle at home. Obviously a good rivalry there in the past. They’ve all been close games and come down to one- or two-score games.

“There will be a great buzz, there was in the changing room after that win there [against Connacht] so we just have to keep building on that momentum. We can’t afford an off-week now.”

Last night in the Top 14 La Rochelle fielded a strong team against a young Toulon side and stormed to a 66-0 home win.

Ronan O’Gara’s men have now moved up to eighth in the Top 14 table, having won seven from 14. The Toulon win was just their second across their previous seven league games. Before the Toulon game, La Rochelle lost 60-14 on the road at Toulouse.

“They’ve had some challenges as well with availability maybe a big thing, watching that (Toulouse) game on TV last weekend and their injury list comes up,” said Leo Cullen.

“We know the pedigree they have. They were 10th in the league going into this weekend but with a home game this weekend. A very dangerous team and we know that Rog will have them well motivated for this one.

“They’re a team we know well and they know us well. It will be a great battle again because it has been a great rivalry in recent seasons and these are the games you look forward to. It’s not a knockout game but it will certainly have that feel.”