How Andrew Conway's 'scribblings' are helping him on his way to the top

Andrew Conway’s regular note-taking should be a more than pleasurable task these days.

The Munster star is one of the hottest wingers in Europe right now with a try in each of his last six appearances for Ireland and his province.

That, you would think, would make his “scribblings”, as he describes his method of performance review, a positive experience rather than the chore it sometimes felt in the past.

The 28-year-old will bid to extend his scoring streak at Thomond Park Saturday evening when Munster face Heineken Champions Cup defending champions Saracens in Pool 4, round three, and you can be sure he will have logged every step of his preparations for the big game.

Conway’s tries in his first three starts for Munster since returning from World Cup duty with Ireland have all had a significant impact on those matches, breaking open the PRO14 clash against Ulster and European opener at Ospreys, while his score in the dying minutes against Racing 92 last time out helped rescue a home draw.

He explained the process he feels keeps him sharp and focused on how best he can contribute to his team’s cause, in a recent Irish Examiner interview.

“They are just notes to myself,” Conway said. “Reviewing, reflecting on what’s gone well, what you can work on, throwing in a few affirmations, stuff like that, that I like from the mental side of things. I think that pays if you add that to all the physical training.

We’ll come in here on Mondays and Tuesdays and we’ll preview and stuff but from my point of view it’s about taking personal ownership and not just leaving training but taking it home. Without being crazy about it, reflecting on the day and writing down what you could have done better and a few affirmations that then almost make yourself accountable to where I want to be in two or three years’ time, but also on a daily basis to keep ticking over.

Conway, who joined from Leinster in 2013, said he has refined the frequency of his note-taking in recent seasons.

“It’s pretty much every workday. If we train Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, I’ll do it Monday, Tuesday, Thursday. I used to do it every day but then I found it was like training, you can’t train every day or then it becomes a chore. It just got to the point where I’d go into my area where I do it and it’s just like ‘aargh’.”

Nor is it something he has done throughout his career.

“I was chatting to JJ (Hanrahan) about this and he’s kind of on a similar enough buzz at the moment. He had a little eureka moment but I can’t remember... It was about four years ago that I started doing a bit of extra reading and reflecting on where I was at.

“My career had gone all right I suppose up until I was maybe 24, playing European rugby and scoring a few tries in Europe but not really getting into Irish squads. An average enough provincial career and then I just really thought, how do I get to the next level? I started building a foundation and then building blocks on top of that.

“It’s changed from year to year, like last year I was writing things down seven times a week and that ended up being quite fatiguing and I had to leave it for two or three months. Now I’ve gotten a good balance of doing it on workdays, then writing down a few focus points the day before or the day of the game, take the Sunday off and then back at it on Monday.

“It’s experience, of doing things the wrong way, doing things the right way, finding what works for you.

“It’s about chatting to people. People that have been before you, that are currently with you and then also the young lads.

“I’m going to sit down with one of the lads over the next few weeks. He wants to get into that side of the mental thing and I’m sure I’ll learn a good bit from his perspective at the moment.”