New signing Piers O'Conor happy to play anywhere for Connacht

BACKLINE: Connacht new signing Piers O'Conor is happy to play any role for across the backline. Picture: ©INPHO/James Crombie

Connacht have assembled the strongest backline this season since the start of the professional era, not just with depth in each position but also a host of players who can perform across a variety of roles behind the scrum.

None sum that up better than their latest signing from Bristol Piers O’Conor who already has played in three positions across the three preseason matches and last weekend’s URC opener against Munster.

“I want to play 13. That's the position I feel most comfortable, and I feel like I can impact the game most on, and that's the one I'm gonna be pushing for to play most minutes at,” said the former English U-20 who is Irish-qualified through his grandfather with links to Roscommon and Dublin.

“But if the team need me to play somewhere else, I'll play somewhere else. I'm happy to play wherever. But, yeah, I feel most comfortable and most effective at 13. I think the only position I didn't play at Bristol was nine. I mean, like I said, I've played wherever the team needs me. As long as I play, I don't really care.” He impressed at outside centre against Munster and said he has settled in well to live in Galway and has hit the ground running.

“Yeah. Really enjoyed it so far. It's been a real welcome challenge sort of, obviously, moving over from Bristol. But, no, I've loved every minute of being here. I mean, lots of other clubs are pretty much the same, so it's relatively easy to settle in, but the players here, the coaches here have all welcomed me. And, yeah, I've I've loved every minute so far and sort of I've managed to to play a bit of rugby in the preseason and then had the inter-pros for the weekend. I'm looking forward to what's to come.” He sought advice from the likes of Jake Heenan, Kieran Marmion, Niya Adeolokum, Joe Joyce and John Muldoon, who have been in both clubs, and the only thing any of them warned him about was the weather!

“I think that was the only warning I ever got! The rest of it was just I mean, like, everyone talks so well about the city and how much fun it is, and just sort of the nature of the club. I think it's a very welcoming club. A club that has some serious aspirations in what they want to achieve. And, like, I spoke to Heens or Jake Heehan, and he loved his time here. Same with Marmo. Same with John Muldoon. I don't think I had a single bad word about Connacht apart from the weather.

“And I think that seems to be the common theme. So, hopefully, the weather we've had over the last week stays. I'm not holding my breath on that one, but, yeah, there's been no negativity about my move or the joining or, anything to sort of kinda look out for. It's all been positive. It's all been exciting.” He had played against Connacht four times for Bristol but Saturday’s 35-33 loss to Munster was the first occasion he played against any of the other Irish provinces.

And if he’s aware that Connacht have traditionally been the underdog to the other three Irish provinces, it’s not something which has concerned him.

“I can't say that we dwell on it too much. Like, for example, going into the weekend, we really felt confident. I felt like we were actually in a really good place and I don't think there was a single person in the squad that kind of believed that we might win this, we might not win this. I do we generally went in there with a firm belief that we were gonna win the game.

“And now that's the belief, I think, we're trying to sort of change. And I think we are really confident again going to this weekend showing what we did at the weekend just being, I think, again, this is a really good opportunity. And if we sort of put in the same performance with a few of those changes, a few of those tweaks, I think we have another really good opportunity this weekend. And that mindset yeah. I think we wanna try and put that to bed, and that's not something we speak about.” O’Conor said it was an easy decision for him to come to Galway as he needed a new challenge.

“It's just a great opportunity. I spoke to Pete about what they want, and sort of the squad that they have. And I felt like this is a real good opportunity for me to sort of further my rugby. I needed a new challenge “I think sort of my time in the Premiership was probably I think I needed, like, to step away from that, to step out of my comfort zone. And I think sort of Ireland and sort of Connacht, as an island, as a country, and moving away from from England, and coming to Galway was an exciting prospect. And, yeah, it's something that allowed me to sort of further my career and sort of give me a new challenge,” he added.