‘Jamie was always available to train and play and he loved it’

Of all the medals claimed, the caps won and the other accolades that came his way, none say as much about Jamie Heaslip the player so much as the pair of nominations he received for World Player of the Year.

That they came seven years apart, in 2009 and 2016, is maybe the most obvious testament to the man’s enduring excellence on the field and yet there are those who will never be convinced as to the worth of the Leinster and Ireland No.8.

Undervalued? Girvan Dempsey thinks so.

“He was, at times,” said the Leinster attack coach. “People potentially took him for granted and didn’t see the work and it wasn’t until a couple of occasions where he wasn’t in the team or wasn’t selected that people really appreciated what he delivered on.”

Of all those who delivered comment on news of Heaslip’s retirement from the game at the age of 34 yesterday, few could match Dempsey for well-rounded insight given he played with him for four years before working with him as a coach.

Like so many at Leinster, Dempsey first got wind of the man from Naas when he was a kid tearing up trees with Newbridge College and he remembers now an exuberant, bouncy forward who turned up to play and train with a smile on his face.

“He was just always so robust. He was always available to train and play and he loved it. The thing about him was he had this freshness when he came into train. He was excited because that was what he loved doing.

“What helped him was he has other things in his life. A lot of players get very focused on rugby and their mindset ends up becoming purely about rugby. But he had this ability to switch from his friends and family in his life to his other interests into this.

“And that’s what gave him energy when it came to play and train.”

Heaslip’s detractors have always questioned what exactly it was that he did on the field. Line-busting breaks were a regular sight when he broke into the Leinster side but his game shifted towards a less spectacular brief as time went on.

“He was just such a good player. He was different to the No. 8s and back-row forwards that we had in the past. He was very dynamic,” said Dempsey who would also add his lineout work and offloading abilities to the list of abilities.

“He carried extremely hard but he also had excellent footwork and he always retained the ball. We designed plays around him getting involved because we felt that he was comfortable on the ball and that he would give us that extra dimension.”

A No.8 in the New Zealand mould, he said. High praise.

Heaslip could be confrontational one day, chummy another and even childish the next when dealing with the media but those who served alongside him in blue or green have all been unanimous as to his character in the dressing-room.

Dempsey painted the picture of a man who knew exactly when to drop the cheeky chappie act and get serious. He captained club and country, after all, even if he struck an awkward tone in public when wearing the Irish armband.

He wasn’t a shouter or a screamer but evidence of anything less than 100% effort wasn’t tolerated either. A team player, his input at meetings was never diluted, even while he was struggling to recover from the injury that called time on him.

Teammates down the years have described a man whose work ethic was legendary. First in to training every morning, he went the extra mile and more by embracing ideas like high-altitude sleeping tents and he was open with his advice and encouragement.

Bryan Byrne has been knocking around Leinster’s HQ for nigh on five years now, the last three as a member of the senior squad, and the chunk before that as an academy wannabee. Heaslip was a feature of life in the setup from dy one.

“Jamie would be big on team. On your first day in the academy he would be sure to introduce himself to you. He would always be chatting, no matter what age you are, he would always try and include everyone.

“He always talked about the brothers, how we are one big family in here. He epitomises that. He pushed people to make them better and he leads by example because we see how he works. It’s a testament to everything Leinster is about.”

There was no clarification on the exact nature of the injury that brought it all to an end, no big party or hoopla when he left. Just a discreet meeting with management and a few of the senior players before word was delivered further afield.

Heaslip always did do his talking on the field.