RUGBY: GAVIN CUMMISKEYhears from the Ireland scrumhalf on how he is looking forward to turning out in the blue of Leinster at Thomond Park
EOIN REDDAN’S reaction to the question is entirely understandable.
“It’s an interesting time to ask me this, with the day that’s in it.”
It is the last Leinster top-table briefing of the season. Reddan is seated alongside Leo Cullen, who spoke to the media on Wednesday, while coach Joe Schmidt has been candid when previewing games all season long.
So, Reddan must provide the colour. That’s the way it works. It helps that the incumbent Ireland number nine is a Limerick man. That angle was explored by the good folk from radio and television so we know the Reddan clan will be out in full force tomorrow.
“It definitely adds to it being from Limerick . . . I suppose the occasion will overtake that a little bit so it will be a bit special, yeah.”
Next comes the colour section of questioning. It is not quite a biblical reference, to, say, the gospel of Luke 4:24 (“No prophet is accepted in his own country”), but the “Why did you leave Munster?” query does open the pathway to Reddan’s entire career.
“Basically, I left Munster because that was it – there was no contract there for me at that time. It was in January (2005), they said there wasn’t anything there for me and I’d have to wait until June for them to make a call.
“I was pretty devastated. I went home and literally the phone rang and Shaun Edwards was on saying, ‘Do you want to come to Wasps?’
“It was the biggest coincidence of my life. I just said, ‘Yes.’ I didn’t even ask about years, money or anything. And it was literally done in five minutes.
“At that age (Reddan was 22) you don’t want to be waiting around three or four months and end up with nothing. That was how it happened. I spoke to Munster then and left on a very good note. I said, ‘Look, obviously I can’t wait around, I have this opportunity’.
“Alan Gaffney was the coach at the time and he was very happy that I got that opportunity. They wished me all the best.”
So, Edwards didn’t have an inside track about your imminent release?
“He didn’t know. They were just asking me how I would feel about joining the next year and I think the fact that I said yes on the phone probably helped me when I got there because Wasps were the type of club that wanted people to be there. That was one of their biggest things.
“So, the fact that I was ready to say yes so quickly, purely because of what had happened earlier that day, it was a massive coincidence but that happens sometimes.
“I did speak to Wasps when I left Connacht to go to Munster, but at the time I wanted to follow the dream. You grow up 15, 16 wanting to pull on the red jersey and I wanted to do that and gave it a go. It didn’t work out and that was it.”
Funny how things go. Just over two years later Reddan was cleverly combining with Raphael Ibanez for a try in the Heineken Cup final victory over the Leicester Tigers at Twickenham.
He is a blue now and has a second European medal to prove it. In fact, Reddan’s consistency in his current colour is the only reason he was wearing green last spring and probably will be come the autumn in New Zealand.
Continually under pressure to keep both jerseys, Isaac Boss is unlikely to make the bench tomorrow, due to a hamstring injury, so the Connacht-bound Paul O’Donohoe will deputise at Thomond Park.
Munster’s scrumhalf at present is Conor Murray despite the presence of Reddan’s main rivals for Ireland, so he can’t actually prepare for Murray, Peter Stringer or Tomás O’Leary until later this afternoon.
Either way, his home town team must be desperate to salvage a campaign that hasn’t exactly gone to plan. London Irish, the Ospreys, Toulon and then, shockingly, Harlequins have seen to that.
“Knowing them, I do know they want to win the league, obviously. That’s in their nature. And us winning last week will add to that. There is no doubt about that. Like it would for us if it was the other way around.
“That’s the situation we find ourselves in so it should be a big one.”
