Kearney determined to end season on high note

IT HASN’T been the easiest of seasons so far for Rob Kearney but the Leinster and Ireland full-back is aiming to end the campaign on a high, starting with Friday’s Heineken Cup quarter-final against Clermont Auvergne.

Much has been made of the so-called post-Lions syndrome, with which many a player has had to contend with down the years, and as one of the tourists’ top performers in South Africa last summer, Kearney seemed at risk more than most.

Michael Cheika sought to reduce that possibility by resting the 24-year-old deeper into the year than the rest of Leinster’s returning Lions and he even started key early-season games against Munster and London Irish on the bench.