Reddan out to seize opportunity

EOIN REDDAN is proof positive that rugby players can look beyond their own sport, even in a week when all concentration is on Ireland’s bid to continue their challenge for a Triple Crown victory.

Reddan is building up towards an RBS 6 Nations clash against Wales at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff this Saturday, but last week he spent time watching old friend and Limerick neighbour Conor Niland play — and unfortunately lose — a Davis Cup clash against Luxembourg’s world number 59, Gilles Muller.

Niland is ranked just inside the top 130 of world tennis and Reddan believes that is a phenomenal achievement.

Reddan said: “We played a bit of rugby and soccer together, but you could always hear the bang of a tennis ball from the other side of the wall. We (Reddan family) were probably lobbing rugby balls into his house and he was hitting tennis balls into ours.

“He has always applied himself hard to the sport. In tennis there’s no-one telling him how great he is, it’s all about personal achievement and knowing (yourself).

“It’s hard for most people to understand how good it is to be in the top 130; in rugby terms, it’s probably the equivalent of winning the Heineken Cup.

“It’s huge in an individual sport like that, a great credit to him and his family.”

Reddan is glad he made the rugby choice, however, saying he wouldn’t envy anyone’s life in the tennis world; winners, losers or those like Niland, as they battle to compete with the best.

“It’s a very hard job, I’m sure, and in rugby training (here), different people every day are buzzing and moving things on so people get on the same page pretty quickly.

“If you don’t have that around you, it’s up to yourself to get going every single day, and that can be a long time when you think over 10 years how many days like that you’ll have.”

In rugby, motivation is not an issue for Reddan, particularly in the couple of weeks after scoring a glorious try against Scotland.

“Yeah, it was great, I got a lot of texts and I think emotion got the better of me.

“I had a lot of slagging (reaction to the try), it wouldn’t be me really, but I think you grow up wanting that (to score a try for Ireland), I really enjoyed it; it was a nice part of the day.”

Arguably, this Saturday poses a bigger personal threat than before as Reddan seeks to nail down a regular starting place in Ireland’s line-up.

Part of that threat comes in the form of the physically-imposing Mike Phillips, but the Irishman won’t be intimidated by having to play against a more seasoned international with British and Irish Lions experience.

“I’ve played him a few times. He’s a good player, but they’ve lots of good players, if you pick on one of them, you miss someone else.

“You know the way with scrum-halves; it’s hard to see how that’s going to go.

“You might be all over each other within a minute or you might spend 79 minutes before you come face to face.

“It’s not traditionally a position where you’re marking each other, you stand beside each other at the scrums, but that’s about it. We’ll see how that goes, but I’ve good respect for him, he’s a player that’s achieved a lot in the game.

“There’s no (personal) history but he carries well, that’s a strong part of his game so we’ll have to be quite right around the rucks to prepare for that.”

And Reddan believes Ireland will be up for the task in every aspect of play, relating how strong the defensive structure has been through this campaign.

Just as well, he intimated: “They (Wales) have a very good system of attack and have guys who can break the gain line; momentum is a huge thing in rugby and they have some people who can flick that momentum on in a flash.”

But Reddan is convinced Ireland are well up to the task, even if there are some worrying trends in recent performances.

“There is a lot made of our style of play. At the end of the day, we’re playing international rugby, we have guys who have been quite successful at a number of levels and who back themselves in their decisions.

“If it is on to run it, we’ll run it. If it is on to kick it, we’ll kick it.

“That is the way it is, and that is the way international rugby is. Obviously, (for) keeping the score turning you might have an emphasis on certain parts like kicking or field position, depending on where you are and how long is left.”

The scrum-half might sometimes feel equally as frustrated as the supporters with Ireland’s concession of either possession or penalties these last few games but exudes calm at the same time: “People are entitled to their opinions, sometimes people focus on the positives, sometimes on the negatives and our job at the end of the day is to perform well and win the game Saturday.

“I don’t think we can be letting anything affect us in a good or bad way really.

“If you are relying on it either way, it is not always going to be there, so if you are relying on good words from the media to play well, that is not always going to happen.

“If you’re relying on bad words to help you say “we’re going to show them”, that is not going to happen either. It is about managing our own stuff and not getting too caught up in all that.”