Earls locks gongs away to focus on Munster’s expansive future

Keith Earls will save dwelling on past glories for when the boots have been hung up for good. In the meantime, the medals will stay locked away as the Munster and Ireland wing targets further joy and more silverware for province and country.

After being held back under the IRFU player welfare programme from the opening weeks of the season, the 30-year-old is finally set to be let loose this Friday in Cardiff for his first game since winning his 70th Ireland cap in the series-deciding Test against Australia in Sydney.

The personal milestone and team success Down Under capped a memorable season for Earls that saw him star in Ireland’s Grand Slam glory and recognised by his peers in the Irish Rugby Players as their Players’ Player of the Year for 2018. The Limerick flyer was on such a roll he even helped his county’s hurlers reach their goal of the Liam MacCarthy Cup, though he quickly downplays his influence.

As for his own achievements, there was pride quickly followed by a commitment to keep travelling on an upward curve.

“Yeah, it was enjoyable,” Earls said yesterday of last season, before adding: “Try and repeat it hopefully and go a step further. The main thing for me is to keep enjoying it.”

No point in reflection just yet, he continued.

My wife actually killed me. The trophies and the medals are locked away. I don’t even keep them out to look at them. I put them away and maybe look at them when I retire, keep my focus now on getting better.

“I enjoyed last year, but once I got to the beach, it was about being a father and about relaxing and living a normal life.

“I have set my goals out for this year, but I won’t be pondering about that season.”

Physically removing the medals and awards from eyesight helps maintain Earls’s focus on improvement and to reset for the new campaign.

“Some fellas do it differently, some fellas like looking at them, but it does not really bother me although the Grand Slam medal, I will take that out and look at it. The individual ones, no.

I always moved on. My thing is team medals and that is what I enjoy the most. Put away all the individual ones til I’m done.

Earls is certainly hungry for Munster to start winning trophies for the first time since 2011, a hunger accentuated by Leinster’s double last season. After three semi-

finals and a final in the last two years for Munster, it is time his side bridged the gap.

“You see the depth Leinster have in their squad and looking at the national side as well, the depth we have in fellas who are coming in. You could lose two or three players in Leinster and another fella will come in who’s just as good.

“I think we have that now this year and the competition is there, which is driving fellas. A few of us probably got a bit relaxed in our position and weren’t hungry enough to be out there but fellas are edgy now, between back three and centres, 10s, back row, second, it’s all over the park now, thank God.”

The new signings, too, are a key ingredient in that mix. Earls welcomed the addition of Ireland fly-half Joey Carbery to a Munster squad playing more expansive rugby under Johann van Graan though he feels last season’s squad let their playmakers down.

“All the talk is about Joey being a great signing but I think the other four lads as well will have something to say, especially the way we’re going now, shape-wise and running a lot more.

We probably lacked that bit of detail last year, which made our 10s look a bit out of sync and a few of them got a bit of unfair criticism. I think it was the players around them that didn’t make them look good, which is important. But now the team shape is coming and the 10 should only have to catch a ball and pass it. We’re playing more expansively and we’ve a lot more rounded game now than just kicking.

That means more try-scoring opportunities out wide for Earls as and when the situation allows.

“We’re going to play but if we analyse a team and it means kicking against them, we’re kicking against them. I think what let us down was that we were a good kicking team but when an opportunity arose we weren’t good at taking those chances and scoring tries. We’ve got a lot better now at running the ball from our own half.”