Dave O’Callaghan turns full circle after ‘long slog’
Two days short of his 25th birthday, O’Callaghan will come face to face with Guinness Pro12 strugglers Zebre for the first time since badly injuring the patellar tendon in his right knee early on in a league encounter in Cork.
The injury would require surgery three days later and it would be a further nine months before he returned to Munster colours, with a late appearance off the bench at Newport Gwent Dragons.
There have been three further appearances off the bench as O’Callaghan’s return to match fitness is managed by the Munster medics but it has been long enough for the versatile forward who can play at lock or in the back row to score a decisive try off the bench in the derby victory over Leinster on December 26.
His body of work for this season may still only amount to 87 minutes but after an arduous rehabilitation process for much of 2014, O’Callaghan has been grateful for every one of them.
“It’s been a long slog for me. It was actually against Zebre in Musgrave Park that I did the injury so it’s good to get a couple of games, just be able to get off the bench and back into it,” the Dolphin club man from Youghal said. “Everything’s feeling good, thankfully.”
When the injury struck, it in many ways brought a difficult period to an end for O’Callaghan, who the previous summer had played on the Emerging Ireland tour in Georgia but had struggled for form and fitness in the opening months of last season. Further representative honours can wait for the time being but now suitably rebooted, the Munster forward is looking forward to the next phase of his career with renewed optimism.
“It was a bit of a tough period for me. I was in and out of the team and I think that made it even worse, struggling with a knee injury. The medical team were very good with me, and the strength and conditioning and everyone, so it’s just a case of driving on now and getting as much time as I can.
“For me, it’s just about trying to get as much time as possible at Munster. I’m trying to build up that game time and get up to match fitness and that’s coming, so that’s my real focus really.”
Making an impression this weekend at Stadio XXV Aprile in Parma would certainly propel O’Callaghan into the mix for head coach Anthony Foley’s selection debate ahead of the crunch Champions Cup tie at Saracens in eight days and he is eager for the challenge.
“Yeah, definitely, if I get an opportunity this weekend, that’s what you’re looking for. You want to play in those big games and that starts with Zebre this weekend. For us it’s a big game, after our performance against Connacht last weekend we obviously want to get back to winning ways and get consistent again. I think it’s been a mixed period for us over Christmas and before then as well, so we’re looking to get back on the front foot again.
“We had a tough Christmas period and massive games. Every game in Pro12 is big and Zebre will be a massive challenge as well this weekend. They’ve beaten Ulster at home, they’ll have their home crowd and it’s hard to go to Italy so there’ll be nothing taken for granted there.
“It’s a big block for us the next couple of weeks and it’s season-defining for us. Our immediate focus is Zebre, we have to get back winning again... hopefully we can bring that into the next couple of weeks.
“It’s all about momentum, that’s the big word, coming in to these big weeks, so we’d be conscious that we’ll have to get a win this weekend.”
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