McCarthy and Leinster looking to make a statement against Tigers

Two years without a trophy is an itch that needs scratching and the Leinster boys are not shy in admitting it.

NEW BREED: Ryan Baird with Joe McCarthy. Pic: Ben Brady, Inpho

Joe McCarthy was no stranger to the spotlight already but nothing could have prepared him for the intensity of the focus after his breathtaking performance against France in Marseille’s Orange Velodrome in early February.

The young lock was immense that night, his sheer physicality and athleticism repeatedly catching the eye. Still only 22 at the time, this was the birth of ‘Big Joe’ and the ripples from that night were still being seen after Leinster tamed the Bulls at the RDS last Friday.

“There was a few kids in 'Autograph Alley' had a mullet. A few better mullets than my hair anyway. I’m sure they’ve been growing it for a bit longer than mine. You definitely notice it. Leinster is big when you’re in it, but the Ireland Six Nations is way bigger.

“It’s kind of crazy. You do get noticed a bit more, so it is a bit strange. Even when you’re with your mates and someone asks you for a photo, your mates are like, ‘Jesus, look at that, who do you think you are now?!’ It’s all pretty positive and it’s grand.” 

It’s not just kids who have taken notice.

Josh van der Flier saw how opponents paid him more attention around about the time his form peaked with the World Player of the Year award. 

McCarthy has experienced an increase in double tackles and defensive line speed when he carries, and extra attention at the lineout.

“I like the quote: ‘what got you here won’t get you there’. You definitely have to keep evolving your game to stay ahead of the opposition.” 

That game in Marseille was just his sixth cap. He had played just 28 times for Leinster by then. This is a young player at the foothills of a career so it was probably no surprise that he didn't manage to replicate that display in the Championship’s opening round.

The hardest day of them all was Twickenham in round four when George Martin and England completely outplayed him and the visitors at large, but McCarthy came away from the tournament happy with his overall contribution.

The fact that he started all five games and kept none other than James Ryan out of the starting lineup when both of them were fit represented an enormous leap forward, and he isn’t blind to the investment that the tournament represents for his career.

“It’s exactly what you want. I’ve had a few campaigns within the Ireland camp and it’s still class, because you get all the coaching. You get all the bits when you’re in the squad, but you don’t get actually to be there on the match days much.

“To get backed by the coaches was unbelievable for the five games, it was class. I felt like I got a lot better and probably got a lot more confidence after playing those five games against all the European nations. It was class, I felt good after it.” 

If Test rugby is the pinnacle then it is also something of a springboard right now for those Leinster players segueing from national to club duties. Two years without a trophy is an itch that needs scratching and they are not shy in admitting it.

McCarthy’s hunger for the months ahead is only greater for the fact that an ankle injury suffered in January of 2023 sidelined him for all but a couple of cameo roles off the bench against the Sharks and Munster four months later.

He didn’t make the squad for the Champions Cup final loss to La Rochelle. Add in the early loss of Ryan to injury that day in Dublin and it’s hard not to wonder what could have been different in a game that went right down to the wire.

That way madness lies, of course.

The same could probably be said of any attempt to draw a line between this weekend’s round of 16 clash with Leicester Tigers and that Six Nations loss to England and the crossover of personnel between the two.

McCarthy was one of 15 Leinster players to feature in that one-point loss. More to the point is the fact that Martin, Ollie Chessum and Dan Cole were members of an English pack that laid the platform for a surprise but full-earned victory.

“They’re different teams,” said McCarthy, “but there’s obviously a lot of players who played in that game. We both take a bit of confidence from that. It’s a very separate game, but we’ll be looking to go out and put a bit of a statement in this game.”