'I've been dying to get back here' - Munster's Daly relishing Ireland A opportunity
BACK IN THE SWING: Shane Daly at Ireland A Squad Training at IRFU HPC this week. Pic: INPHO/Laszlo Geczo
Shane Daly waited a long time for the invitation back into a national team camp but the Munster back feels he will be a more complete player than his previous experiences when he starts for Ireland A against their English counterparts at Bristol’s Ashton Gate on Sunday afternoon (1pm).
The 28-year-old has worn green for Ireland Under-20, Emerging Ireland and Ireland A in the past and has two Test appearances to his name after being capped by Andy Farrell against Georgia in November 2020 and Japan the following summer.
This week, with Munster attack coach Mike Prendergast at the helm, has been the Corkman’s first involvement with Ireland since his November 2022 run out in Ireland A’s most recent outing, a defeat to New Zealand A at Dublin’s RDS. Daly feels he has been playing his best rugby for Munster in the seasons that have followed and alongside fellow Test-capped matchday squad members Ciaran Frawley, Tom O’Toole and team captain Max Deegan, and replacements Oli Jager and Harry Byrne, is looking to secure a path back into the senior squad.
“I've been dying to get back here for a few years,” Daly said. “I feel like since I started playing my best rugby I haven't been in this building, so I'm really excited to show what I can do to the coaches and just even to get out on the pitch (on Tuesday) I was buzzing to just show what I've learned over the last few years under coaches that I've been working with, Prendy, Leams (Denis Leamy), all the lads, Cossie (Ian Costello), there's been so many of them, but the way they want to play the game is very similar to here, whereas before when I came up I probably didn't have that experience.
“So I feel like I'm a much better player overall, and I'm really hoping they see that as well.” Daly has felt the benefit of Prendergast’s arrival at Munster as the province has broadened its attacking horizons.
“I always wanted to play the game expansively and wanted to express myself from the skills side of the game, and probably didn't really always have the opportunity to do that and didn't have the comfort and the freedom to do that.
“So when I came up here (to Ireland camp) they wanted to play that way and I hadn't been repping it. So when I was in the senior sessions I found it pretty difficult at that stage.
“I could understand it, I had the rugby brain for it, but I couldn't do it because I hadn't been repping it in my province, so to have that in the bank for the last few years has made the transition up here exciting for me and I'm looking forward to showing them I can really manage up at this level.”
J Carpenter (Sale Sharks); T Elliott (Saracens), M Ojomoh (Bath), W Butt (Bath), O Hassell-Collins (Leicester Tigers); C Atkinson (Gloucester), J van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers); P Brantingham (Saracens), C Langdon (Northampton Saints), G Kloska (Bristol Bears); H Tizard (Saracens), T Lockett (Northampton Saints); J Kenningham (Harlequins), A Balbeary (Bath).
G Oghre (Bristol Bears); T Haffar (Northampton Saints), L Green (Northampton Saints), R Capstick (Exeter Chiefs), G Fisilau (Exeter Chiefs), W Porter (Harlequins), J Shillcock (Leicester Tigers), G Hendy (Northampton Saints).
S Daly (Munster); T O’Brien (Leinster), J Postlethwaite (Ulster), H Gavin (Leinster), S Bolton (Connacht); C Frawley (Leinster), N Doak (Ulster); T O’Toole (Ulster), D Barron (Munster), J Aungier (Connacht)r; E O’Connell (Munster), D Murray (Connacht); M Deegan (Leinster), A Kendellen (Munster), S Jansen (Connacht).
S Smyth (Leinster), P McCarthy (Leinster), O Jager (Munster), C O’Tighearnaigh (Leinster), A Soroka (Leinster), F Gunne (Leinster), H Byrne (Leinster/on loan to Bristol Bears), B Gleeson (Munster).
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