DAVE KILCOYNE IS hoping to end his long wait for a Six Nations start in front of a full house this weekend, but is wary of getting ahead himself.
The players put forward for media duty midweek are often in with a decent shout of featuring at the weekend, but Kilcoyne was offered a word of warning before meeting the press today.
“Andrew Conway said the opposite,” Kilcoyne explains. “He said he’s been doing media before and then he wasn’t involved, so I won’t be taking that for granted.”
A long-serving member of the Ireland squad, Kilcoyne made his 200th appearance for Munster last weekend and has 45 Test caps to his name.
His most recent Ireland cap came last summer, the Munster loosehead starting twice against the USA and Japan, before being reduced to a watching brief during the November international window.
Sunday’s meeting with Italy should offer Kilcoyne a chance to impress. He started against the Azzurri in Rome last year and was back in the first XV for the final round fixture against England, only for injury to end his day after just 20 minutes.
Over the course of a long career, the 33-year-old has enough experience to know another opportunity is never too far away, and has learned the value of being patient within an international squad.
“One hundred per cent, it’s all mindset, especially when you are not involved,” Kilcoyne says.
I’ve loved looking on and seeing how the team has progressed, even from the summer and through November, the progression has been incredible and then the Six Nations again has gone from strength to strength and you are desperate to be part of it and add to it.
“That’s the competitive nature of it, you want to play every week. Obviously, you are disappointed when you are not involved. I think the younger me… You blame other things instead of looking at yourself and now it’s about getting better every day and when you do get your opportunity, (that) you take it and you contribute as best you can to the environment and push the lads as hard as you can to get them ready for the weekend.
“Ultimately that’s actually what Faz has created in here, it actually doesn’t matter who is playing at the weekend, and I know that sounds a bit flawed, but it’s about have the 23 involved as best prepared as they can be to give a great Ireland performance.”
Kilcoyne repeatedly references the atmosphere head coach Andy Farrell has created in the Ireland camp – it’s easier to bide your time when you enjoy being there.
“If you have that negative attitude and it’s ‘why me?’ you don’t survive in this environment. It’s a very honest environment in here, Faz gives it to us straight which is all you can ask for as a player and then it’s up to you.
There is no room for hanging your head and ‘poor me’. It’s about making yourself better and making the team better. You’ve got to be coming in here bouncing, it’s a high-energy environment, high octane, everyone bounces off each other. If you have a negative mindset in here, you are not going to survive and that’s the way it should be. There is no room for people moping around.”
While France brought an end to Ireland’s nine-game winning run last time out, Kilcoyne is hugely optimistic about the direction in which this team is heading, outlining that he can see real growth in a variety of areas right throughout the squad.
“You look at the breakdown, the contribution that Paulie (O’Connell) has made since he’s come in around our maul, Si (Simon Easterby) at D, Fogs (John Fogarty) at scrum, (Mike) Catty in our attack, I think every area has progressed but there is more scope for progression which is the exciting thing.
“You look at the quality of players that are in the 23 and then you look at the quality that aren’t in the 23 that are pushing every week, players who are unfortunate not to make camp.
“Irish rugby is in a healthy state but it’s up to the lads who get chosen at the weekend to keep pushing the boundaries that the coaches are asking them to push and give a performance that everyone knows in here we are capable of giving.”
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