DAN SHEEHAN’S RISE to being named Ireland captain has been all the more impressive because this wasn’t mapped out for him.
Some lads have hype around them from early on, their path to the top of the game clearly defined from their teenage years.
Sheehan was a good player in school with Clongowes Wood College but few people were predicting that he’d become a senior international, never mind Ireland skipper.
Sheehan didn’t star for Leinster’s underage side nor was capped by the Ireland U18s or U19s while he was in school. Trinity director of rugby Tony Smeeth – who has a great eye for talent – felt there was something in Sheehan’s potential aside from his big frame.
Sheehan played in the AIL for Trinity’s seniors and sometimes togged out for their U20s the following day, helping them towards an All-Ireland U20 title, as well as playing a few J1 games along the way. He trained with Leinster’s sub-academy but was well down the province’s depth chart.
Sheehan missed out on Ireland U20s selection for the 2018 Six Nations, with Munster’s Diarmuid Barron and Leinster hookers Rónan Kelleher and Eoghan Clarke picked ahead of him.
A few months later, injuries for Kelleher and Clarke meant Sheehan was drafted in as back-up to Barron for the U20s World Championship but he injured his ankle at the tournament in France.
At this stage, Sheehan was worried he would fall adrift of Leinster altogether. Kelleher and Clarke were lined up for the Leinster academy and Sheehan was essentially kept around to rehab the injury he had suffered with the U20s.
But having clung on and continued to fight despite the lack of contract or cash, things began to change for Sheehan at the start of the 2018/19 season. Clarke opted to sign for Munster and Sheehan was called into senior Leinster training after a few injuries.
He continued to impress for Trinity in the AIL, working hard on his scrummaging with forwards coach Hugh McGuire, and Leinster realised they had something exciting on their hands, giving Sheehan an academy contract in 2019.
His uncle, Derry Shaw, was appointed Lansdowne president ahead of the 2019/20 season and they lured him across from Trinity, with experienced head coach Mike Ruddock delighted to get to work with Sheehan.
Sheehan also had a stunning Celtic Cup campaign for Leinster A early on in that campaign, scoring eight tries in eight games as they lifted the trophy.
By then, it was clear that Sheehan was going to make it and he was handed his senior Leinster debut a year later, with his first Ireland cap following another year later in November 2021 against Japan.
An injury to Kelleher opened the door for Sheehan to make his Ireland debut and it’s worth remembering that Kelleher had already established himself as Leinster and Ireland’s starting hooker by that stage.
Indeed, Munster attempted to sign Sheehan from Leinster ahead of the 2022/23 season, offering him a chance to be the first-choice hooker down south rather than having to compete with Kelleher in his native Leinster.
But Sheehan backed himself and the results have been spectacular.
The blend of speed, searing footwork, pure power, and handling skill has made him one of the best hookers in the world. Sheehan can run over defenders, burn them on the outside, or rinse them with a sidestep. Defensively, he hits with power and precision.
Despite his 6ft 3ins height, Sheehan has worked hard to become a strong scrummager, while his lineout throwing is generally sharp.
He has previously put the throwing partly down to the three years he and his family spent in Bucharest when his father, Barry, moved there for work. Dan was 10 and didn’t play rugby in Romania but used to spend long hours practicing throwing and passing with his younger brother, Bobby.
His ACL injury in South Africa last summer was a setback but Sheehan has shown his resilience again by returning in outstanding fashion recently, scoring two tries on his Leinster comeback before impacting off the bench in Ireland’s wins over England and Scotland.
The fact that he captained Leinster against the Stormers on his return last month proved to be a precursor of what has followed with Ireland. Saturday in Cardiff will be the first time Sheehan has skippered the national team and he has only done it twice for Leinster, but the decision is not difficult to understand.
He is hugely respected within the Irish squad, has a calm presence on the pitch, and leads by example with his excellent, relentless play. He’s smart when it comes to rugby but there is more to him, as his degree in Social Policy and Sociology shows.
It should help Sheehan on Saturday that he has other leaders like Peter O’Mahony, Garry Ringrose, and Tadhg Beirne in the team around him.
Sheehan’s pathway shows that determination is crucial in making it to the top, even when others are initially rated more highly.
Of course, it helps that he’s a hugely talented athlete and maybe this was always his destiny. An old photograph of a four-year-old Sheehan at Bective Rangers with the great Jonah Lomu recently did the rounds.
His late grandfather, Denis Shaw, was a prop for Clontarf and Leinster in the 1950s and Sheehan’s father, Barry, was a lock for Old Belvedere and UCD. His brother, Bobby, is a 6ft 5ins hooker for UCD and the Ireland Clubs XV.
As was the case last year, Bobby is in line to play for the Ireland Clubs side against Portugal A in Lisbon on Friday 14 March, the night before Dan should be involved in Ireland’s final Six Nations clash with Italy in Rome.
Sheehan is a remarkable specimen. He’s a big man at 6ft 3ins and well over 110kg but has the explosive pace and agility of an outside back. His countermovement jump isn’t far off freakish jumpers like O’Mahony and Ryan Baird. Sheehan is also extremely fit, a sign of how hard he has worked to get where he is.
But most of his coaches would point to Sheehan’s resilience as the real key to making him the player he is.
Whether it’s missing out on selection or dealing with injuries, he has proven that the ability to bounce back is essential.
Could prove to be a shrewd bit of business by united, he wants the club to do well and has a bit of quality about him.
I hope he does stay on.
Liverpool fans assembleeeeeeee
Will be interesting to see can utd sign anyone of note this summer. probably not
@Paddy Kavanagh: Good man Paddy