MULLINGAR RFC PROVIDED a fitting backdrop yesterday as Robbie Henshaw sat down to explain his decision to leave Connacht for Leinster next season.
Joe Schmidt’s Ireland had a short camp in the Westmeath town this week as their preparation for a trip to Twickenham continued, with an open training session allowing fans a glimpse of their idols yesterday.
Henshaw at yesterday's session in Mullingar. Cathal Noonan / INPHO
Cathal Noonan / INPHO / INPHO
The rain fell, but the locals turned up in their thousands to greet Schmidt’s men and Henshaw was naturally at the centre of the attention. All the more so after confirmation of his long-expected switch to Leinster this summer.
Henshaw is, of course, a native of Athlone, around 40 minutes down the road in the direction of his current home in Galway.
Adding to the fascination around this move is the debate about whether Henshaw’s hometown makes him a Leinster man or a Connacht man. Upon which side of the Shannon does his heart lie?
The 22-year-old arrives into the hearteningly old-school and authentic surrounds of Mullingar’s clubhouse after a high-tempo session. He’s a lump of a lad these days and has to swap the short stool on offer for a more stable chair before he settles in.
“It’s a tricky one,” he says of the debate about Athlone being on the border between the two provinces.
“The history behind our GAA club in Athlone is that it was originally founded in Connacht, but then it moved to the Westmeath side and it’s currently on the Leinster side of the river. I played a lot of Gaelic football in the Leinster championship, but I was in underage camps in Connacht since I was 14 or 15, so I’ve been there a long time.”
The waters are only muddied in that case, so what of Henshaw’s reasoning behind leaving Connacht this summer to join Leinster on a new three-year IRFU deal?
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“A number of things,” says Henshaw. “I’ve been in Connacht since I was a kid. I just felt I wanted a change personally for myself, and for my career I wanted a different challenge.
Henshaw is hoping for more brilliant days with Connacht this season. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
“Obviously I’m completely committed to Connacht for the rest of the season and we have a massive opportunity to achieve silverware and to achieve a top-six finish and get into the main European stage next year.
“For myself, it was just a couple of personal things. My girlfriend is in Dublin and I have family in Dublin, so there’s that. I just feel it’s a new stage for me, a complete change for my career. There’s nothing negative at all, it’s just what’s best for Robbie Henshaw, that’s the reason.”
Even now, when the deal is done, you sense that this decision has weighed heavily on Henshaw and still does.
There was a relief in the official announcement earlier this week, but Henshaw remains hard on himself.
“An extremely tough decision for me,” says Henshaw. “A lot of lost sleep over it and it wasn’t an easy decision at all. It was very close in the end.
Obviously I’ve been saying to myself that I’ve let a few people down in Connacht.
“But it’s a new challenge for me and I really want to thank everybody in Connacht because they’ve invested a lot in me for the last four years. The fans, Pat Lam, Eric Elwood, Nigel Carolan. It’s just been unbelievable for me and they got me to the next level.
“I tried to give as much to them as I could in the last four years and I will continue to do so until the end of the year for Connacht, that’s my goal. As I said, it wasn’t an easy decision and to have it come out in the middle of the Six Nations was tough.
“But to have it done and dusted is great and my sole focus now is on England.”
Henshaw was keen to underline on the record that this decision was entirely his own and that the IRFU had nothing whatsoever to do with his call. He admits he would have preferred it to have been finalised before the Six Nations, but understands that these processes can take time.
Henshaw says the presence of the likes of Sexton and O'Brien were a lure at Leinster. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
While Henshaw is slightly reluctant to delve into exactly what it is that excites him about joining Leinster, he does confirm that their vast array of highly-experienced Ireland internationals, including Johnny Sexton, was a draw.
“To be able to learn from guys like him Sean o’Brien, guys with 60 plus caps for Ireland, will benefit me in the long term,” says Henshaw. “Playing with those guys week-in, week-out helped me make my decision.
“I think Johnny alone is an unbelievable player and I learn a lot from him just from being in Ireland camp. To be with him every day will be good.”
Henshaw is far more willing to discuss Connacht and the impact they have made on his career. The reaction from the western province’s fans has understandably ranged from disappointment to dismay, with some even suggesting that this transfer is an indication that Connacht remain an afterthought in Irish rugby.
Henshaw, however, stresses his belief that the improvements made under Pat Lam in recent seasons mean his departure will not be as keenly felt as might have been the case in the past.
You’ve seen what Connacht have done without me this year,” says Henshaw. “They are not a one-man team. I don’t think they’re going to go downhill when I leave.
“The work that Pat Lam has done, the things that he’s cemented in there are unbelievable. His game plan has everyone on the same page. It has clicked for us this year. It took us a couple of years to get it right, but what he has done for us is unbelievable.
“To see the young guys coming through the academy and getting that taste for professional rugby is unbelievable. That is how I came up, the ranks I came through. The work he’s doing and the chances he’s giving to young guys in the academy is unbelievable.”
Henshaw: 'I’ve been saying to myself that I’ve let people down in Connacht'
MULLINGAR RFC PROVIDED a fitting backdrop yesterday as Robbie Henshaw sat down to explain his decision to leave Connacht for Leinster next season.
Joe Schmidt’s Ireland had a short camp in the Westmeath town this week as their preparation for a trip to Twickenham continued, with an open training session allowing fans a glimpse of their idols yesterday.
The rain fell, but the locals turned up in their thousands to greet Schmidt’s men and Henshaw was naturally at the centre of the attention. All the more so after confirmation of his long-expected switch to Leinster this summer.
Henshaw is, of course, a native of Athlone, around 40 minutes down the road in the direction of his current home in Galway.
Adding to the fascination around this move is the debate about whether Henshaw’s hometown makes him a Leinster man or a Connacht man. Upon which side of the Shannon does his heart lie?
The 22-year-old arrives into the hearteningly old-school and authentic surrounds of Mullingar’s clubhouse after a high-tempo session. He’s a lump of a lad these days and has to swap the short stool on offer for a more stable chair before he settles in.
“It’s a tricky one,” he says of the debate about Athlone being on the border between the two provinces.
“The history behind our GAA club in Athlone is that it was originally founded in Connacht, but then it moved to the Westmeath side and it’s currently on the Leinster side of the river. I played a lot of Gaelic football in the Leinster championship, but I was in underage camps in Connacht since I was 14 or 15, so I’ve been there a long time.”
The waters are only muddied in that case, so what of Henshaw’s reasoning behind leaving Connacht this summer to join Leinster on a new three-year IRFU deal?
“A number of things,” says Henshaw. “I’ve been in Connacht since I was a kid. I just felt I wanted a change personally for myself, and for my career I wanted a different challenge.
“Obviously I’m completely committed to Connacht for the rest of the season and we have a massive opportunity to achieve silverware and to achieve a top-six finish and get into the main European stage next year.
“For myself, it was just a couple of personal things. My girlfriend is in Dublin and I have family in Dublin, so there’s that. I just feel it’s a new stage for me, a complete change for my career. There’s nothing negative at all, it’s just what’s best for Robbie Henshaw, that’s the reason.”
Even now, when the deal is done, you sense that this decision has weighed heavily on Henshaw and still does.
There was a relief in the official announcement earlier this week, but Henshaw remains hard on himself.
“An extremely tough decision for me,” says Henshaw. “A lot of lost sleep over it and it wasn’t an easy decision at all. It was very close in the end.
“But it’s a new challenge for me and I really want to thank everybody in Connacht because they’ve invested a lot in me for the last four years. The fans, Pat Lam, Eric Elwood, Nigel Carolan. It’s just been unbelievable for me and they got me to the next level.
“I tried to give as much to them as I could in the last four years and I will continue to do so until the end of the year for Connacht, that’s my goal. As I said, it wasn’t an easy decision and to have it come out in the middle of the Six Nations was tough.
“But to have it done and dusted is great and my sole focus now is on England.”
Henshaw was keen to underline on the record that this decision was entirely his own and that the IRFU had nothing whatsoever to do with his call. He admits he would have preferred it to have been finalised before the Six Nations, but understands that these processes can take time.
While Henshaw is slightly reluctant to delve into exactly what it is that excites him about joining Leinster, he does confirm that their vast array of highly-experienced Ireland internationals, including Johnny Sexton, was a draw.
“To be able to learn from guys like him Sean o’Brien, guys with 60 plus caps for Ireland, will benefit me in the long term,” says Henshaw. “Playing with those guys week-in, week-out helped me make my decision.
“I think Johnny alone is an unbelievable player and I learn a lot from him just from being in Ireland camp. To be with him every day will be good.”
Henshaw is far more willing to discuss Connacht and the impact they have made on his career. The reaction from the western province’s fans has understandably ranged from disappointment to dismay, with some even suggesting that this transfer is an indication that Connacht remain an afterthought in Irish rugby.
Henshaw, however, stresses his belief that the improvements made under Pat Lam in recent seasons mean his departure will not be as keenly felt as might have been the case in the past.
“The work that Pat Lam has done, the things that he’s cemented in there are unbelievable. His game plan has everyone on the same page. It has clicked for us this year. It took us a couple of years to get it right, but what he has done for us is unbelievable.
“To see the young guys coming through the academy and getting that taste for professional rugby is unbelievable. That is how I came up, the ranks I came through. The work he’s doing and the chances he’s giving to young guys in the academy is unbelievable.”
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Connacht inter provincial Leinster Sleepless Nights Transfer