James Ryan hitting old heights as Leinster and Ireland brace for the big games

Ryan’s form is a major plus for stand-in Ireland head coach Simon Easterby who is due to name his Six Nations squad on Wednesday afternoon. So too will be the boost earned by his Leinster and Munster players after gritty wins over the weekend.

Tue, 14 Jan, 2025 - 06:52

Brendan O'Brien

It’s only natural to focus on the talent spilling off the bench when it is RG Snyman, Jack Conan and Rabah Slimani taking to the field. One is a World Cup winner, another started the last three Tests for the British and Irish Lions and the third is a multi-capped Frenchmen.

This is the trio Leinster called on 47 minutes into their Investec Champions Cup win away to La Rochelle on Sunday. This being Leinster, though, the identity of those coming off was just as interesting.

Tadhg Furlong had banked a solid chunk of time in a first outing in three months. Ryan Baird was going well but it was either him or captain Caelan Doris going off and the latter was untouchable. Joe McCarthy was the third to make way.

McCarthy’s star has been on the rise for some time now. That he was the one to vacate the second row, and not James Ryan, says volumes for the latter’s return to the sort of imperious form that marked him out on his own arrival to the top level.

McCarthy was no slouch, claiming Leinster’s only try and providing an uber-physical presence. Ryan’s numbers don’t jump off the page but he passed the eye test like no-one else. He was huge in this pool three win at Stade Marcel Deflandre.

“I’m happy, I’m feeling good and loving my rugby at the moment,” said the 28-year old second row. "I’m really enjoying it this season, so hopefully I can stay injury free and keep pushing on.”

Ryan was one of 20 Ireland internationals who faced La Rochelle. Replacement scrum-half Luke McGrath hasn’t been capped since the World Cup quarter-final loss to New Zealand and Ross Byrne has fallen out of favour but the rest are likely to feature this spring.

It’s an imprint that has become very familiar in the last 15 years or so and it has served the national men’s team well, not just in terms of personnel but in the synergies between blue and green styles and strategies.

That alignment isn’t so acute now, however, with Leinster’s turn towards a more defensive-dominated approach under Jacques Nienaber’s aggressive blitz coming as something of a departure and it’s worth wondering how this will affect Ireland as time goes on.

As for Leinster, it is worth pointing out that they had seven points to spare when winning in La Rochelle 13 months ago with Nienaber just in the door and that the margin of victory this time was only two. This one could easily have been lost.

Still, they are squared to their task now and the players are publicly declaring their love for all this work without the ball. Winning ugly was the phrase on everyone’s lips at the weekend and Ryan was among those pushing it.

“I thought we defended well and with some big sort of defensive sets, one in the first half, and even at the end there, so we're loving it. The main thing is just discipline.

“I didn't think they'd get in for a try. I just didn't want to give them three, but we got there in the end. The lads love the system. They love defending for Leinster.”

These are the little victories that they crave now. Ryan focused on how they pushed La Rochelle 5-50 metres back from the gainline as the hosts pushed for a late score to claim the win two days ago. There’s no denying it was a big win.

The difference, he believes now, is one of mentality. Nienaber is an immensely clever tactician but he is a brilliant motivator with it. Add in what Ryan believes is an added maturity to the group and they believe it’s a recipe for success.

“I suppose it's very good clarity around the defensive system, so, yeah, when you're nice and clear going to a game in terms of what's expected of you and you can focus on bringing the sort of intent piece, so the big part of this is clarity.”