RUGBY – LEINSTER V CHEETAHS POST MATCH REACTION – WILL CONNORS
Connors continues to improve
Daire Walsh
DONADEA native Will Connors bolstered his growing reputation at the RDS on Saturday when grabbing a brace of tries in Leinster’s 36-12 bonus point triumph over Toyota Cheetahs.
This was a spectacular way to break his scoring duck for the blues and a fine day at the office for the openside flanker was capped off by a player of the match award.
While delighted to get over in both halves amidst treacherous conditions in Ballsbridge, Connors was quick to downplay his own role in these scores.
“Do you call that a drought if you’ve never scored before! It’s nice to get on the scoreboard. I suppose the tries weren’t really individual efforts,” Connors explained in a post-match press conference.
“At the end of the day, the tries were quite pack-driven. We had a good set-piece and we’re happy with the maul. Someone has to finish at the back of it and we’re delighted with how it went.”
Connors was one of five players released from the Ireland squad for this game – Ronan Kelleher, Max Deegan, Luke McGrath and Dave Kearney being the others. Having previously rocked up to Abbotstown for a mid-season stocktake just before Christmas, the former Clongowes Wood College student was added to the international set-up in advance of last Saturday week’s second round clash with Wales.
Though his time under Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has been limited thus far, Connors gained a massive insight from his exposure to a highly-pressurised environment.
“It’s great to get in around those players. They are an incredible bunch and it is great to see them all doing so well. It is trying to learn from the likes of Peter O’Mahony, CJ Stander, etc. It is always important to try and build on your own game as well. It’s been a great experience.
“It’s nice to be in and around that, but you don’t want to drift too far away from here. You want to still be playing games with Leinster. I was delighted to get the chance to play this weekend, still working hard to prove myself here at Leinster. That’s the main goal, to just keep putting my best foot forward.”
Saturday represented Connors’ 14th cap in a Leinster shirt and just his 11th first-team start. Despite having limited professional experience – he is yet to make a European appearance for the eastern province – the 23-year-old won’t be unfazed if Ireland come calling.
“I’ve been working hard at training and I’ve been drilling myself into match scenarios. I’d love to get out there and I feel like I’d be ready for it. I suppose you always have to be ready to be called on.
“There are a few of us there that have been in the background drilling ourselves, like Jack O’Donoghue. We’re working hard behind the scenes. We’re ready to go whenever,” Connors added.
Leinster’s other tries on the day were credited to Michael Bent, Kelleher and Rhys Ruddock as they extended their winning run for 2019/20 to 17 games.