D’Arcy taking positives from injury hell
The incident occurred 26 minutes into Ireland’s Six Nations game at Croke Park when he attempted to tackle out-half Andrea Masi and the initial verdict suggested he would miss the rest of the tournament.
As it turned out, he had to undergo three operations and wait until December 27th to return to action against Ulster in Belfast. His impressive form since lends credence to his claim that the absence may be a well disguised blessing.
“Well, you don’t take any contact so my shoulders feel great,” he said. “I’ve had a few operations on my shoulders and my back so it is nice not to be getting any treatment on them for a summer. I spent six months doing power and speedwork and getting my body weight down so the positives are endless.”
With a degree in psychology and a masters in sports science, Armagh footballer Enda McNulty has helped a number of Irish sportspeople maximise their performances and he was on the phone to D’Arcy soon after the injury planting the first seeds of positivity in his head.
His success in hitting the ground running has surprised many — but not the player.
“I’ve been working on that quite hard. I wanted to be mentally sharper. Physically I was always going to be ready because we have brilliant fitness coaches in Jason (Cowman) and Chris (Dennis) at Leinster.
“I targeted the game in my own head. It worked quite well with Enda. I have done a lot of work with him over the past ten months. We put a lot of goals on the table and I probably played that Ulster game 20 times in my head beforehand. There was nothing that happened that could surprise me after that. I had one mess-up in defence but you will give me that after ten or 11 months! I’ve come back now, played three games, but now it is time to move on.”
He is noticeably more reticent talking about the past than the present but there is no escaping 2008 just yet. He jokes about the arm getting stiff in the cold weather and he has to wear padding on the limb during games to bubble wrap the steel plate still inside. The protection is more for him than any opponent but it is a reminder of the protracted route he had to navigate back to full fitness. With the first two operations failing, and return dates put back again and again, rumours of enforced retirement began to emerge.
“I can’t control what people say. The rumour mill is great but I’m here now aren’t I? You pick up the paper and read about soccer players coming back two weeks after knee surgery but there is a 40% chance of something going wrong and I just happened to be unlucky twice.”
He finds it easy to put it all into perspective. A consistent supporter of charitable organisations, D’Arcy was promoting the Pedigree Adoption Drive yesterday and talked passionately about statistics which reveal that 43 dogs a day are put to sleep in Ireland. After eight hours of media work, it was back to the day job with Leinster where a video analysis session on Saturday’s Heineken Cup opponents awaited and his attention for the rest of the week will be squared entirely on Wasps.
For now, it seems he won’t be entertaining any talk about what role he may or may not have in Ireland’s forthcoming Six Nations campaign, not to mention the yet more distant British and Irish Lions’ tour to South Africa.
“I won’t get too specific, you would probably laugh if I told you my goals. My main one, in a nutshell for 2009, is that I am back playing rugby and back enjoying it. That encapsulates a lot of things.
“If I am back playing for Leinster and getting a run – whether that is as a starter or as a sub – as long as I am happy and enjoying it, that is a pretty good box to tick.
“I’ve always come back from injuries stronger and fitter than I have been. Injuries actually have kickstarted points in my career before. I don’t think this one is going to be any different. Hopefully you will see me hitting new levels again in two or more games.”
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
