ROB KEARNEY FOUND himself nodding along with empathy as Michael Owen spoke about how injuries had changed his game during the final years of his career on BT Sport last weekend.
The former Liverpool striker admitted that hamstring and groin issues had wreaked havoc with his confidence in his body, forcing him to adapt his natural game and leaving nagging doubts in his head even as he played.
“I was petrified of running into a channel,” said Owen. “I just knew I was going to tear a muscle. The worst thing about it is your instinct is to do what you have done all your life but you start thinking: ‘Oh no, don’t.’”
Kearney knows exactly where Owen was coming from, although the Leinster fullback counts himself fortunate to have come out on the other side of that mental turmoil, having had one of the most enjoyable years of his career in 2017/18.
Three seasons ago, though, Kearney strained his hamstring five times over the course of the 2015/16 campaign. Two seasons ago, he underwent three surgeries and suffered some joint injuries too.
It was that period of injury after injury, niggle after niggle, that led to Kearney being able to appreciate exactly how Owen had felt in the final years of his football career.
“It was brilliant and it was unbelievably insightful,” said Kearney of Owen’s revelation. “There was a huge amount in it that I could relate to.
“A striker is probably a little bit the equivalent of the back three [in rugby].
“There’s sometimes you get the ball in space and you have to go full blast for it and, like him, there were times I didn’t want the ball or if I got an intercept, instead of running the length you’d be looking for someone else.”
Kearney said there was no way he could have admitted to his coaches that he was doubting his ability to sprint flat out at that time.
“You can’t come clean because you won’t get picked then. If you say, ‘I’m not overly confident in my body at the moment,’ you’re out the door.
“It happened to me a couple of times last year. You have to just go and, if you pull up, you pull up. It is a difficult place to be in when you’re running and the only thing you’re thinking about is your hamstrings.”
Kearney said that fear, that sense of waiting for the pain, is now completely absent in his game, having helped Leinster to the Champions Cup and Pro14 double last season, as well as being part of an Ireland team that won a Grand Slam, enjoyed a November clean sweep and beat Australia in the June Test series.
“Thankfully, I’ve come out the other end of it,” said the Leinster man. “Even last year, there were times at the start of last season where you wouldn’t be overly comfortable opening up and doing that, so it was a big area for me in my pre-season this year.
“I’ve done a huge amount of speed work and sprinting away from a rugby field on a track, on an astro, just getting used to and comfortable opening up at 100% again.
“The most pleasing thing for me is that we have data for speed times over the last six years and I think it was two, three weeks ago, I hit my best time in six years.
“It’s very pleasing and encouraging to know that at the young age of 32 you still have that in you.”
Kearney has enjoyed a good pre-season with Leinster, although he remains a couple of weeks away from playing due to his later return to training this summer after Ireland’s tour of Australia.
When he does pull on Leinster’s blue shirt again, Kearney will do it with genuine excitement.
“I still absolutely love the game,” he said. “Two years ago, not so much, but now, absolutely.
“The last six months, I’ve been as happy as I’ve ever been in the environment, on the rugby field, really enjoying the last two or three years or my career, whatever it might be.”
And as Leinster and Ireland look to back up last season, Kearney understands that the more experienced players in both squads have an important role to play in underlining to their younger team-mates that doubles and Grand Slams don’t just happen by accident.
“I won a Grand Slam in my second Six Nations, it was my third Heineken Cup season when we won that,” said Kearney.
“I was on a Lions tour at the end of that year, so you’re 22 years of age and you think, ‘This is easy, what’s everyone going on about?’
“Then I do remember having some chats with some of the older lads; I remember one in particular with Brian [O'Driscoll] and he said, ‘Listen, this is not how it flies. These opportunities don’t come around too often, you have to work hard for them.
“It’s up to me and some of the older lads to make sure that the younger boys… not lose the run of themselves because I’d like to think we’re a pretty humble, down-to-earth group, but that they make sure they know these opportunities don’t come around too often. It doesn’t happen every year.”
Management and technology consultancy BearingPoint yesterday signed a five-year deal to become Leinster Rugby’s Official Innovation Partner.
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Shows serious squad depth when you can bring on a player of the caliber of La Touche Cosgrave
@Hugh: bench is fierce strong…boylan some man to catch a ball
Limerick and Kilkenny look to be very strong it’s a brilliant championship.
@Gerry W: Glad to hear your enjoying the championship Gerry. And it’s great to hear your back playing sport again after a long term injury.
@Flembomb: still in retirement yourself flembomb? Never fully recovered from that hamstring injury…
@Gerry W: c
@Gerry W: cork could have something to say about that. But that Limerick side are very good. Kilkenny are growing with every game. 3 really good teams. Did I hear it’s Kilkenny vs Antrim in the Semi and Munster winners vs Galway?
@Jason Pierce: ya thats it alright…no disrespect to antrim but thats Kilkenny in the final anyway…Limerick still have to beat cork/waterford and galway, its not a given yet
Limerick have six senior forwards Peter casey, Barry Nash, Cian Lynch, Kyle Hayse, Tom Morrissey, and Aron Gillane throw in Ronan Lynch and Sean Finn and you would expect them to land the All Ireland again.
I couldnt say we played well, despite the 13 point winning margin. We certainly did had some very good patches of hurling. That we left Clare get back to within five points despite being totally dominant in first half, is somewhat annoying/concerning. The game as a contest should have been finished at half time, we wont get away with missing all those goal chances against Cork/Waterford.
Limerick played in third gear throughout. It was like a challenge match for large parts, Clare were just not at the races, particularly around the middle of the park and on the 40.
Limerick have much improving to do if they are to stand up to the challenge of either Cork or Waterford in the final. Either of those sides will represent a step-up in quality from Tipp and Clare.
Limerick prob fav’s to repeat the feat of U21 Munster and All-Ireland again,but that Cork/Waterford and potentially Galway team have a seriously talented panel too, way too close to call tbh, some great games to be decided over the coming weeks
@Now or Never: a senior all Ireland win for Limerick in the next few years given the strength of the u21s …oh wait
@John Ryan: seen it all before John. Hard to be hopeful.