Warren Gatland has selected a British and Irish Lions team — certainly in respect of the backs — to finish stronger than it starts

"I'm more connected to this group than I have been at any stage since coming home from New Zealand. That’s important to state because there were times over the past 24 months when I really thought I might have backed the wrong horse"

Usually when you lose a European Cup final, there’s no outlet to vent your frustration on or right the wrongs. The Top 14 semi-final has rekindled everyone’s appetite and determination at La Rochelle

You wake up convincing yourself to be the first and only person to have lost a cup final and truly know the ache involved. Once the thaw sets in, you get a grip and remember you’ve been around this dark place a few times before

We’d fallen in love with La Rochelle. You either make it exclusively career-based — which means you are essentially dragging your family, sometimes against their will, with you — or you treat it as an epic family adventure

Whether it’s the lockdown or the club keeping a lid on the pre-final hype, or a combination of both, but it’s been very much business as usual around La Rochelle this week

I’ve been reminding myself of a sage piece of Kerry advice I received not so long ago. Walk easy when the jug is full.

We have become a tight knit group and that’s the biggest compliment I can give the players, and the thing I am most proud of. I can’t say we are a team of brothers yet, but that’s the ultimate goal

I wanted to commit the next three years to La Rochelle, because we are just getting started with this project.

How you use your players, how and when you want them to peak is the most important thing you can do as a coach