CIAN HEALY spoke this week of the schooling he underwent under the tutelage of Adam Jones. The lessons were painful and difficult but it seems they were absorbed.

Healy’s report card will contain a glowing reference from the Lions, Wales and Ospreys tighthead prop, who the young Irishman will oppose once again in Sunday’s RaboDirect Pro12 final at the RDS.

Jones spoke warmly when the topic of Healy was raised. “To be fair, when he came on the scene a few years ago there was a lot said about his rugby but that his scrimmaging wasn’t the best. He has worked hard on that [aspect of his game]. He is up there now and he is probably one of the best looseheads in Britain [and Ireland], if not Europe.

“He’s some player; I’ll give him that, a fantastic athlete. We are going to have to tire him out and it is up to us to do it. The less he is running about with the ball, the better.”

The Ospreys have prepared well and enjoyed an extra week off but Jones suggested the confidence fillip Leinster will have gleaned from winning the Heineken Cup.

“We have had an extra week but I’d say the advantage is they are European champions and the confidence that comes from that and they’re playing at home.

“We are under no illusions; we are massive underdogs. We are playing well ourselves, so don’t count us out just yet.

“They’re excellent, a very good side. Any team that has won three [European Cups] in the last four years is special. I watch these American football documentaries about teams who go on to become dynasties and there is a similarity in that they [Leinster] have done that with the same group of players. It is a fantastic achievement.”

He’s looking forward to the traditional arm wrestle up front and would be delighted if the Ospreys’ pack could replicate the calibre of performance they demonstrated against Munster in the semi-final. He offered with typical understatement: “We are a decent enough pack. We have a lot of players who are very physically strong and experienced.

“We know that it is going to be a physical challenge. We took it to Munster a bit and you know what they’re like up front.

“There is the old saying that it will be won and lost there but we’re confident we have the pack to go out and gain parity.

“We base a lot of our game on set-piece but the way our backs are playing; their sleight of hand, the passing, the handling is not something I have seen for quite a few years.

“There are a lot of the boys in the backline who are confident at the moment and going out and playing against players like [Brian] O’Driscoll, [Gordon] D’Arcy and [Jonathan] Sexton won’t hold much fear for them; they’ll respect them but they won’t fear them.

“The big thing for me is to not wonder afterwards how we might have won it. We have to go out there and play to our potential and not get hung up about the fact that it is a final.”