FOR THOSE WHO attempt to call the position their own, the wing is a cruel position in Irish Rugby these days.
Three Lions currently dominate the back three positions, two of them missed out through injury last year and, such was the quality of the replacements, were left to sweat before earning a recall.
From the furiously paced kick-off against New Zealand in 2013, to the sweet sound of the final whistle in Paris 363 days ago, Dave Kearney played every minute of six games which still define the Joe Schmidt era (for now).
Since then, ill fortune has struck down the Louthman. A cruciate ligament injury in May opened the door for Simon Zebo in the summer and left the Leinster man with time on his hands. Time to work on his upper body strength, more time to plot his way back into Schmidt’s plans and more time to get wound up by that @BoringKearney parody account.
“It’s a bit of craic, it’s funny enough. I suppose I’d be getting angry with it if I was boring… it hasn’t touched any chords,” says the younger Kearney before joking that he’s in the process of rooting out the ‘mole’.
“I’m on the job, looking for who it is and if I find them they’re in trouble.”
As for the real world, it’s felt more real than the Guinness Storehouse ambassador would have hoped for. The knee injury is fading into the past, but so too is his string of 80-minute games in last year’s Six Nations as an AC joint injury scuppered his opportunity to impress in January.
“It’s tough at the minute now, not being involved. When I played every minute last year, to not having a minute this year is pretty tough, that’s kind of the way it goes,” the 25-year-old says philosophically.
“It’s been pretty frustrating, came back for a few games and then had a small muscle injury and missed the two ‘Quins games, came back in and started to get a bit of form back, get a bit of the rustiness out of my system.
“Castres, I started to feel a bit more confident and a bit sharper and you start to enjoy it again and the next game I came down on the shoulder and that put me back.
Pretty poor timing getting it in the Wasps game, missed the Wolfhounds game and that put me on the back foot coming in to camp. No game this weekend so I’ll hopefully get a bit of healing time.”
It’s frustrating, but not disheartening. He hasn’t made the trip to Enda McNulty’s office, saving the conversation for a psychological boost when confidence is low or if something about his game just refused to click.
The World Cup is still within Kearney’s reach and on top of his Leinster commitments, he will aim for four summer internationals where he can further his cause as a versatile back three player who is leaner and more powerful than the number 11 who helped Ireland secure a Championship in 2014.
“With injury and stuff it’s just something you just need to stay on top of yourself, you can’t let yourself get too low or too high, you want to stay at a plateau level. It’s so important during injuries that you don’t let yourself get too low or when you get setbacks you don’t get depressed about it.
Positives
“You just have to get a date in your head when you want to get back and use injury as a time when you can work and develop something else.”
Kearney is speaking in the professional sense rather than personal. Sean O’Brien used his time out to catch up on the art of shooting, Iain Henderson got his hands greasy under the bonnet of a classic Mini, the winger was under a bar, working on his upper body strength and putting on the best part of five kilos on over his lay-off.
“When you get an injury you’ve got to look at all the positives you can take out of it and use them to improve your game and improve yourself.
“93 [kilos] first game back, as the weeks go on you lose a bit, but I’m heavier than I would have been in last year’s Six Nations.
“You don’t really notice it, fitness-wise first few games back are tough but from then on it’s fine.”
Here’s hoping Kearney gets an opportunity to string games together and build that fitness to give Ireland a full array of back three options at the end of summer.
And this is the club that people on here defend. Wonder what religion the dole scroungers from Govan think their top scorer is. Can’t see Kris Boyd being as vocal on this one
@Roberts Mel: That’s a fact! You’d need to have a long hard look at yourself if your support or defend that club in any way, shape or form. Xenophobic bunch of knuckle draggers.
@Roberts Mel: you are just as bad as them you know. Condoning the coin throwing the other day. Always the victim
@Joe: please point our where I condoned the coin throwing? I never even mentioned it! So how did I condone it?
Well done Steve Clarke. Needs more players and officials who aren’t from Celtic calling out that crap for what it is.
@Cian Nolan: the only way anything will ever be done is if players and coaches keep highlighting it to the media. Good on Steve Clarke and Kris Boyd for calling out what he was subjected to last week.
@The Bloody Nine: “Good on Kris Boyd” Haha that’s a laugh.. He’s a bitter Rangers fan that forgets another football club is actually paying his wages. He’s been talking Rangers up all season even though is plays for Killie..
@David Garland: I can’t believe you think sectarian abuse and coin throwing is ok because of what team a guy supports. It’s wrong no matter who it’s aimed at.
@The Bloody Nine: Didn’t see David mention anything about coin throwing or sectarian abuse never mind David saying it was okay for these things to happen. He just made reference to Kris Boyd and how nice of a fella he is.
@Roberts Mel: why is telling me how nice Kris Boyd is? I don’t envisage any scenario where I’ll be meeting the lad so his personality is irrelevant to me, as is who he supports or pays his wages.
@The Bloody Nine: Show me where I condoned coin throwing and show us how Kris Boyd has been a victim of Sectarian abuse? Also my point is Kris Boyd is quick to talk up Rangers telling everyone Celtic are in crisis and they’re is a split in the dressing room while all the time he’s playing for Killie.. As I said he’s a bitter Rangers Fan who never comes out giving out about the sectarian chanting coming from Ibrox..
@David Garland: he was called a fat orange b*****d by the Celtic fans
@Anthony Connery: well they ain’t lying
@David Garland: my apologies David if I misunderstood your comment. However, I can’t see how it’s relevant to my point that the more people experience sectarianism in football the more it needs to be spoken about and highlighted. And that’s regardless of who you play for or support. I’m at a loss as to why you’re arguing with me about this!
Normally at this stage of the comments we’d have someone on blaming the Celtic fans for the huns sectarianism.. With Neil Lennon gone I suppose they have to get someone else to racially abuse.. But clearly Sevco don’t know the meaning of the word “Fenian”
Rte have a lot to answer for the showing of “British” games when the english teams were banned from Europe. I know quite a few lads who are rangers fans from that influence. All rangers games were shown live as a substitute for the uk games.
@Trevor Beacom: any Irish person supporting The Rangers clearly has some sort of mental health problem.
@Ciaran Rice: You get an awful lot of Irish people who will support them out of spite because they can’t get their head around Irish people supporting Celtic, that’s how idiotic some football fans are in this Country.. The same people think nothing of supporting Clubs like Chelsea who we all know love Rangers and the UVF
@Ciaran Rice: Knew a guy at work who used to wear sevco shirt and England one during internationals. Was done purely for attention and the wind-up. Would not go out in public dressed like that, though.
@Ciaran Rice: Yea I know a few Irish Rangers supporters and they ain’t mental.
Ive been a long time Celtic supporter neigh on 55 years and ive witnessed plenty sectarian stuff in the Old “Jungle” which is probably well before your time.
That said Rangers have an ultra toxic lot that are very vocal.
Is Steve Clarke not a Rangers fan.. Can’t understand why they called him that
@ColmD: Clarke and his entire family are Celtic fans.
@Ciaran Rice: I didn’t know that.. Like him even more now..
@Ciaran Rice: Yes he was touted as a Celtic Manager at one point.
@Nick Condon Sen: he’ll be the next Celtic manager when Brendan leaves I’d say.
@Ciaran Rice:
The newest club in Scotland , reminds us all of a previous old one , same sectarian dribble , coming from bitter begrudgers .
Huns
I wonder do Rangers fans watch Braveheart and think” thank god we got William Wallace. Long life longshanks”
Seriously Rangers fans have to be the most confused idiotic bunch.. they havnt the slightest clue of their own national identity or heritage