A FRIDAY TO Sunday turnaround between games offers an opportunity to squeeze a few different ideas into the training week, so on Monday Leinster took advantage of their longer lead-in by arranging a group trip to Kilmainham Gaol.
It’s not the first time the players and staff have left the boots behind for a different type of team exercise, with a walking tour of Dublin a previous popular excursion, but 110 years on from the Easter Rising a visit to the place where 14 of the Rising’s leaders were executed by firing squad proved a powerful experience.
“I love my history, so it was very cool. I actually felt bad that I had never done the tour there,” says flanker Josh van der Flier.
“I’d seen it from the outside loads of times but never actually been in. It’s cool to learn a bit of Irish history and they were very impressive in there, so it was a cool thing to do as a group.
“I loved it, I really enjoy history so I was just delighted to be there in terms of get to see all the sites and hear some pretty amazing stories. An emotional place, to be honest. I’m not a very emotional person, but it was very emotional.”
The exercise was more than a day out, as the squad also had a follow-up meeting about the tour on Wednesday.
“They normally would tie in the values of the club into these kind of things,” adds Van der Flier, who turns out to be big into his history podcasts, referencing Dan Snow’s History Hit, The Rest is History and Short History Of… as some of his favourites.
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Van der Flier was back in Leinster blue against Scarlets last Friday. Dan Clohessy / INPHO
Dan Clohessy / INPHO / INPHO
“I enjoy my history. I did history in school and did it for Leaving Cert, and I absolutely loved it, but I couldn’t write essays, I was such a slow writer, so I’d always really struggle with it but I was really interested in it. My brother actually studied history in college, so it’s always something I’ve been interested in.
“It also switches me off. Like, I love my golf and sometimes I listen to performance podcasts about golf, but it actually helps my rugby, but it doesn’t feel like I’m in rugby, if you know what I mean? Whereas the history thing I’m just completely switched off. I enjoy that for that reason.”
Leinster hope their players are fully switched on this weekend’s task, with the province hosting Edinburgh [KO 5.30pm] in tomorrow’s round of 16 Champions Cup clash. As part of their preparations, last season’s painful semi-final loss to Northampton Saints has been referenced as a reminder that nothing is guaranteed in this tournament.
Still, Leinster are heavy favourites to get the job done against a struggling Edinburgh side, but there is an acceptance the province need to up their game if they are to do something special in Europe this year.
Cullen’s team are, by his own admission, “a work in progress”, but with the Six Nations over his internationals will be expected to find greater cohesion in their Leinster jerseys. That can be a tricky process, Van der Flier explains, and seemed evident in last weekend’s mixed showing against Scarlets.
“One thing is subtleties I suppose in the way you do things in different camps,” Van der Flier says.
“I suppose the defence is an example, but that probably wouldn’t be a big thing.
“Even small things, things you emphasise each week, what you call each play or move you do, it’s called different things (with Ireland and with Leinster), it can be a bit slower to come into your brain.
“Even last week when I came in for the first time, you obviously haven’t (used) any of the calls, names for things, the terminology, the language that you use, it’s a little clunky at the start.
“That’s probably an example and it’s probably similar in terms of actually physically doing stuff as well, where like you’d be running along in training at the start of last week and I’m like ‘What’s the name for that’ instead of it just flowing. And I think that’s probably the case then for actually in practice as well, it probably can be a bit stuttery at times, but I think we’re well used to it at this stage so after a training session or two, we’re fairly back into it.”
The 32-year-old gives a little more detail on the demands of moving from Ireland’s defensive system to Jacques Nienaber’s rush defence.
“It’s definitely a small difference, but it’s probably more very specific situations where it might be different, but the principles are the same.
Van der Flier was injured when Leinster won the 2018 Champions Cup final. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
“It’s not like you have completely different principles from one to the other. The principles are exactly the same. It’s probably just a bit more, this kind of, uncompromising, I suppose. It’s a lot more lines through pressure I would have said here, but other than that it’s not hugely different.
“The principles kind of stay the same. Like most mistakes, if we see mistakes happening, the vast majority are mistakes that would have also been called mistakes in both camps.
“A lot of it is the same when it comes to contacts, when it comes to the breakdown, that kind of thing. It’s all pretty similar, but a couple of subtle differences, but overall similar principles.”
Leinster should have enough to get past Edinburgh, but tougher tests will await if they are to end the eight-year wait for Champions Cup success. The end goal is clear, but after last season’s semi-final slip, it’s also increasingly evident Leinster are conscious of not looking too far down the line.
“It’s definitely a big motivator. I also find though, sometimes we obviously get so obsessed with things and it can be a huge motivation, but you also have to get to a stage where you can just give it your all, and we haven’t earned anything, you don’t throw anything away, you have to go and get it, so I suppose whatever happens happens and we’ll give it our best.”
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'It was very emotional' - Leinster take inspiration from trip to Kilmainham Gaol
A FRIDAY TO Sunday turnaround between games offers an opportunity to squeeze a few different ideas into the training week, so on Monday Leinster took advantage of their longer lead-in by arranging a group trip to Kilmainham Gaol.
It’s not the first time the players and staff have left the boots behind for a different type of team exercise, with a walking tour of Dublin a previous popular excursion, but 110 years on from the Easter Rising a visit to the place where 14 of the Rising’s leaders were executed by firing squad proved a powerful experience.
“I love my history, so it was very cool. I actually felt bad that I had never done the tour there,” says flanker Josh van der Flier.
“I’d seen it from the outside loads of times but never actually been in. It’s cool to learn a bit of Irish history and they were very impressive in there, so it was a cool thing to do as a group.
“I loved it, I really enjoy history so I was just delighted to be there in terms of get to see all the sites and hear some pretty amazing stories. An emotional place, to be honest. I’m not a very emotional person, but it was very emotional.”
The exercise was more than a day out, as the squad also had a follow-up meeting about the tour on Wednesday.
“They normally would tie in the values of the club into these kind of things,” adds Van der Flier, who turns out to be big into his history podcasts, referencing Dan Snow’s History Hit, The Rest is History and Short History Of… as some of his favourites.
“I enjoy my history. I did history in school and did it for Leaving Cert, and I absolutely loved it, but I couldn’t write essays, I was such a slow writer, so I’d always really struggle with it but I was really interested in it. My brother actually studied history in college, so it’s always something I’ve been interested in.
“It also switches me off. Like, I love my golf and sometimes I listen to performance podcasts about golf, but it actually helps my rugby, but it doesn’t feel like I’m in rugby, if you know what I mean? Whereas the history thing I’m just completely switched off. I enjoy that for that reason.”
Leinster hope their players are fully switched on this weekend’s task, with the province hosting Edinburgh [KO 5.30pm] in tomorrow’s round of 16 Champions Cup clash. As part of their preparations, last season’s painful semi-final loss to Northampton Saints has been referenced as a reminder that nothing is guaranteed in this tournament.
Still, Leinster are heavy favourites to get the job done against a struggling Edinburgh side, but there is an acceptance the province need to up their game if they are to do something special in Europe this year.
Cullen’s team are, by his own admission, “a work in progress”, but with the Six Nations over his internationals will be expected to find greater cohesion in their Leinster jerseys. That can be a tricky process, Van der Flier explains, and seemed evident in last weekend’s mixed showing against Scarlets.
“One thing is subtleties I suppose in the way you do things in different camps,” Van der Flier says.
“I suppose the defence is an example, but that probably wouldn’t be a big thing.
“Even small things, things you emphasise each week, what you call each play or move you do, it’s called different things (with Ireland and with Leinster), it can be a bit slower to come into your brain.
“Even last week when I came in for the first time, you obviously haven’t (used) any of the calls, names for things, the terminology, the language that you use, it’s a little clunky at the start.
“That’s probably an example and it’s probably similar in terms of actually physically doing stuff as well, where like you’d be running along in training at the start of last week and I’m like ‘What’s the name for that’ instead of it just flowing. And I think that’s probably the case then for actually in practice as well, it probably can be a bit stuttery at times, but I think we’re well used to it at this stage so after a training session or two, we’re fairly back into it.”
The 32-year-old gives a little more detail on the demands of moving from Ireland’s defensive system to Jacques Nienaber’s rush defence.
“It’s definitely a small difference, but it’s probably more very specific situations where it might be different, but the principles are the same.
“It’s not like you have completely different principles from one to the other. The principles are exactly the same. It’s probably just a bit more, this kind of, uncompromising, I suppose. It’s a lot more lines through pressure I would have said here, but other than that it’s not hugely different.
“The principles kind of stay the same. Like most mistakes, if we see mistakes happening, the vast majority are mistakes that would have also been called mistakes in both camps.
“A lot of it is the same when it comes to contacts, when it comes to the breakdown, that kind of thing. It’s all pretty similar, but a couple of subtle differences, but overall similar principles.”
Leinster should have enough to get past Edinburgh, but tougher tests will await if they are to end the eight-year wait for Champions Cup success. The end goal is clear, but after last season’s semi-final slip, it’s also increasingly evident Leinster are conscious of not looking too far down the line.
“It’s definitely a big motivator. I also find though, sometimes we obviously get so obsessed with things and it can be a huge motivation, but you also have to get to a stage where you can just give it your all, and we haven’t earned anything, you don’t throw anything away, you have to go and get it, so I suppose whatever happens happens and we’ll give it our best.”
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European Rugby Champions Cup history lesson Josh Van der Flier Leinster Rugby