LAST UPDATE | 21 Sep 2022

IT WAS AN historic summer for Irish rugby, but Jack Conan admits to leaving New Zealand with mixed feelings.

The Leinster backrower featured in all three Tests as Andy Farrell’s squad became the first Ireland team to win in New Zealand, before going one better and taking the series.

Yet Conan wanted more.

“I think firstly, delighted to be involved and to be down there and be part of such a great squad and make a bit of history,” he explains.

“Obviously I would have loved to have had a bit more involvement than I did, but that’s just the way it is. I probably hadn’t done myself enough justice in the months previous to that, for a few different reasons. So look, it was what it was. At the end of the day I was just happy to be there and just happy to be involved. It was a great few weeks away with a good bunch of lads.

“It’s something that even when you retire, you’ll look back on to say you were part of that first ever Irish team to go down there and win a Test and then win a series. It was something really special. Grateful, but I think I left a little bit out there as well, which is a little bit disappointing on a personal note.”

Conan, 30, still played an important role for the tourists, coming off the bench in all three Tests against the All Blacks and clocking up a total of 56 minutes. However, the previous summer he started all three Tests for the British and Irish Lions in South Africa. Between August 2021 and July 2022, something changed.  

“It’s just part of it, isn’t it? It’s constant ups and downs and the highs and lows of it all, it’s never plain sailing, it’s never just a straight path.

Conan celebrates with Caelan Doris in New Zealand. Billy Stickland / INPHO Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO

“I think without getting into it,” he continues, “for several reasons I wasn’t physically where I needed to be, kinda Christmas of last year I felt I was a little bit off the pace, off the mark a little bit. So the first thing to try and get right is physically and I have definitely done that. I’m feeling incredibly fresh the last few weeks and I’m feeling stronger and fitter than I have in a long time, which is great.”

Having had time to reflect on the season post-New Zealand, following debriefs with his partner, Ali, his teammates at Leinster and the province’s senior coach, Stuart Lancaster, Conan has honed in on some areas for improvement with a bid to having a greater influence on games.

“Probably the impact I can have on both sides of the ball going forward. I know how good I can be when I get my hands on the ball going forward in a bit of space and get to use my footwork and get to run hard lines.

“But it’s how much can I be better on the other side of the ball. How is my decision-making when it comes to going for turnovers, which is something I’ve been trying to work on a lot over the last few months. That is probably the biggest area for growth for me. I do feel like I’m getting slowly better. That’s my main focus at the moment, trying to improve my game on the other side of the ball.”

After an extended summer break, Conan is now back at work with a Leinster squad who for the first time since 2017, embark on a new campaign without a trophy to defend, the hurt of last season’s Champions Cup final and URC semi-final defeats still hanging in the air at their Dublin 4 training base.

Some new additions off the pitch should change the way Leinster look this season. Former Crusaders man Andrew Goodman has succeeded Felipe Contepomi as backs coach, while Sean O’Brien is a high-profile replacement for Denis Leamy as contact skills coach.

O’Brien is a fascinating addition to the coaching team and the early word is that he’s going big on trying to make Leinster a more aggressive outfit.

When Conan was first breaking into the Leinster backrow in the mid-2010s, O’Brien – five years his senior – was already an established Ireland international.

“He was a ruthless competitor,” Conan says.

“He had that ability to flick the switch and then go onto the pitch, and those little moments of controlled aggression he was able to bring to everything he did was something that always stood out for me when I played with him or saw him train.

I think as well something he speaks about a lot is communication. You can always hear him, even now when he’s on the sideline. His ability to have small conversations while on the move when training or in games was something that was really impressive. It might seem like such a small thing, but it allows other people to be on the same page with you, it allows lads to get off the line defensively together, it allows lads to be in the right shape for attack. 

“So that small communication piece is something that he’s trying to really instill in lads at the moment, alongside a lot of other things.

“He’s a fantastic asset to have, it’s great to have him back in the building. He’s someone that the playing group and the coaching staff have a huge amount of respect and admiration for, for everything he achieved on the pitch over his career. To get that invaluable experience and rugby know-how back in the building is brilliant and even the last few weeks, he’s really embedded a lot and been a great addition. I’m hoping over the next few weeks we can just see more and more of that in the way we play.”

That ‘controlled aggression’ and bit of edge isn’t an easy thing to add to a group, but is something Leinster are clearly keen to bring more of on the pitch.

Conan played alongside Sean O'Brien with both Leinster and Ireland. James Crombie / INPHO James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO

“I think a lot of it is probably more mindset and attitude,” Conan continues.

“Like, there’s no bad rugby players in here. Everyone knows what they’re doing at this stage, even the young lads, they’ve been around for long enough and know when to hit rucks, tackle selection, things like that. But I think the attitude and having that bit of violence when you get your opportunity in those close-quarters is something that Seanie is always teeing up and always mentioning. He has those small drills before training, just sharpening that axe the whole time.

“I think the know-how is there, but it’s about changing the attitude and changing your intent when you get to those opportunities.”

Leinster made a winning, if unconvincing start to the new BKT United Rugby Championship season last weekend, surviving a second-half Zebre rally in northern Italy. On Friday Benetton visit the RDS on the back of an eye-catching defeat of Glasgow, but with a number of Ireland internationals expected to come back into the mix, Leinster will be heavy favourites to make it two from two as they look to build some early momentum in the league. 

Given the way last year ended, they won’t be short on motivation across the early weeks of the new season.

“Winning makes you weak to some degree and now that we have gone last season without a win (trophy) for the first time since 2017, that bit of despair drives the desire massively,” Conan says.

“In 2017, when we came back in after that season we spoke about it as the ‘almost’ year. We almost made the final of Europe and the final of the league so it definitely makes lads a lot hungrier, and the coaches, not that you could ever question people in here, resting on their laurels because we have won previously.

“There is a constant desire to grow as a unit but we are definitely hungrier than we have been for a long time after going a season without any silverware. And being so close… Against La Rochelle we were 60 seconds away from winning that final. That makes it more hurtful. It stings. It’s a feeling we never want to have again and it spurs everyone on in this building.” 

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