Joy of being fit drives Jennings on

Shane Jennings had already played 200 times for Leinster before last Friday’s PRO12 meeting with Connacht, but the flanker flew around the RDS like a teenager.

Head coach Matt O’Connor said as much afterwards and Jennings himself admitted the run-out was appreciated more than most in his long career given he had spent the previous three months on the sidelines.

It was against Connacht back in mid-September when he hyper extended his knee backwards, a misfortune that caused his hamstring to go pop. A grade two, the medical profession call it. Eight to 10 weeks was the phrase that stuck in Jennings’ mind.