Leinster assistant coach Robin McBryde: ‘It will be great to see Dan Sheehan back’
In a week when the province are having to contend with a plethora of international absentees, Leinster assistant coach Robin McBryde admitted it is a timely boost to have Dan Sheehan back and available for selection.
Despite being out of action since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury during the first test of their summer tour in South Africa on July 6 of last year, Sheehan was one of 23 Leinster players named by interim head coach Simon Easterby in Ireland’s squad for the forthcoming Six Nations Championship – 24 if you include development player Hugh Cooney.
Yet while the majority of this contingent were due to assemble at the IRFU High Performance Centre on Monday in advance of travelling to a pre-tournament training camp in Portugal, it was always intended that Sheehan and James Lowe (subject to their successful returns from injury) wouldn’t link up with the Ireland squad until this Sunday.
Lowe has been troubled by a calf issue in recent weeks, but both he and Sheehan have now resumed full training and are in line for a competitive comeback when Leinster take on the Stormers in the United Rugby Championship at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.
“It will be great to see Dan back. It’s never a good time to have an injury and the seriousness of Dan’s injury as well. I know he’s been fighting to get back as quickly as possible and when the team is going well, it spurs you on a little bit more I suppose,” McBryde remarked at a Leinster media briefing in UCD on Monday.
“There is a lot to play for so it will be great to get him back up and running and we’ll see how long it takes. Some players will slot back in the group, other players take a little bit more time, but at least he’s having an opportunity to stay with us and get some more time under his belt.”
Although he is currently in his native land after being recalled to the French squad for the first time since 2019, it was also confirmed yesterday that Rabah Slimani is due back in Dublin later this week and will be available for Saturday’s clash with the Stormers.
When you consider Sheehan will be joining seven other Leinster front-rows when he does eventually link up with the Ireland squad in Portugal, the versatile Slimani could prove to be a valuable asset in the Aviva this weekend.
“He can cover the whole front-row, but to have someone of Rabah’s quality, I really do think it’s one of the best places to nurture front-row talent. He wants players to improve.
“He’s struck up a good relationship with Jack Boyle for instance and that’s just from training against each other. Rabah has been fantastic and I’m so chuffed he’s been given an opportunity to get back in the French camp.”
Meanwhile, away from the field of play, the past few days saw Leinster Rugby taking the decision to turn off comments for some of their posts on X (formerly known as Twitter). This was due to the nature of some of the remarks that have been directed at both coaches and players within their set-up.
At the end of his media session, McBryde was asked what advice he might have for players when it comes to dealing with the downsides of social media in the modern age.
“Don’t go in it. If you want to look for s**t, you’ll find it. So why go looking for it? It’s easy for me because I wasn’t brought up in that environment. You know it’s there, but why go looking for it?” McBryde said.