D’Arcy ready for Bath plunge
The highs and lows of D’Arcy’s career have been minutely documented, especially the period between winning his first international cap in the 1999 World Cup against Romania and the next time he pulled on an Irish senior jersey three years later.
Undoubtedly the Clongowes graduate has known some hard times but even by his standards the last year and a half has been hard to swallow.
Coming on the back of his captivating performances in the 2004 Six Nations made his frustration all the more difficult to bear.
“Up until the end of the Lions tour, that was an 18-month period of pure injury,” he reflected. “I played only ten games in 18 months. That’s a horrific start for anybody. I just need to get on the field and start enjoying rugby again. I’m not even going to start judging myself on an international scale just yet.
“You set yourself out at the Celtic League and then Europe and see how you go. You need to play yourself back into the national team. It’s just about picking up the pieces really.”
D’Arcy could be forgiven for feeling a sense of déjà vu as he limbers up for tomorrow’s game at the RDS.
It was against the same team this time last year when he finally seemed to have left his injury nightmare behind, scoring a sublime try in the 30-11 win at Lansdowne Road, before succumbing to another knock before the game’s end.
Despite that margin of victory, John Connolly’s side matched Leinster step for step for most of that game before the home side pulled away with 20 minutes to play. It was even closer at The Rec in January, where Leinster pilfered the points with two tries inside the last four minutes.
Described by Leinster coach Cheika as a side with a “big, rumbling pack”, Bath will have taken note of the damage Munster inflicted on Leinster’s suspect pack in Musgrave Park recently but D’Arcy says Leinster are prepared for a fearsomely physical challenge.
“It’s a team that’s epitomised by its two second rows, Danny Grewcock and Steve Borthwick. Those boys are tough, tough fellas.
“They pull no punches. It’s not a simple game plan but it’s very direct. The forwards give it and go forward. They’ve recruited well in the backs with David Bory and (Frikkie) Welsh on the wings so they look to hurt you up front and then throw the ball wide.”
For all their power, Bath haven’t exactly stormed out of the traps in the Guinness Premiership this season and Leinster will hope that sort of form as well as the boon of home advantage, will prove to be sufficient for a win.
“I actually don’t think you can put a value on (playing at home). The talk is the same every year, win your home game and try to sneak a few away.
“We have the opportunity to start positively and we’ll be building on the fact that we had our first run-out at the RDS last week against Cardiff and did fairly well. If we can get the result we need against Bath, that can set us up nicely for the rest of the European campaign.
“With the changeover in squad and coaches we haven’t actually been sitting down and saying: ‘right, we want to win the Heineken Cup this year’.
"We’ve gone ‘right, we’re going to improve on every match we play’. The Heineken Cup is split into the group stage and our aims really don’t go beyond the few games in the immediate future.
“When we’re done against Bath and Glasgow, we go back to the Celtic League and then some lads will have the autumn internationals.
“After that the Heineken Cup will swing around again and it’s only then that we’ll concentrate on those games. That’s the way we have to go about things. The aim, obviously, is to win them all.”
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