Leinster have some serial winners and retain a strong core of the team which beat Racing 92 in Bilbao five seasons ago, but they also have a voracious batch of players who want to make their own history.
For example, Hugo Keenan, Jimmy O’Brien, Ross Byrne, Caelan Doris and Dan Sheehan may have been part of the Grand Slam but they have never been a part of Leinster’s four previous triumphs in the Champions Cup, and all played in last May’s final against La Rochelle.
As Sheehan put it this week before Saturday’s mouthwatering semi-final against Toulouse at the Aviva Stadium: “It’s strange because everyone talks about the successes of Leinster, and Champions Cup-wise it was my first year playing last year. I got capped by Ireland before I played Champions Cup.
“That experience of La Rochelle last year and then losing to the Bulls in the semi-finals of the URC means I haven’t lifted a trophy in the jersey and that’s something that’s always been at the back of my mind, making sure that I get that opportunity because that’s the end goal. As a kid you always want to be lifting trophies.”
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“A lot of people talk about the four stars we have but it’s a new group and there are a lot of lads who haven’t experienced a Champions Cup win so there are a lot of young lads who are really excited about the potential to win on the weekend and then go on and have a proper crack at a trophy.”
But with last season’s semi-final win over Toulouse in mind, Sheehan admits: “They’ll probably be a little bit hurt by that and we need to expect a reaction, and they’ll be coming up with some plan to affect our game.
“That was probably one of our best performances all year, a lovely day at the Aviva where we got things right and were able to apply our game on top of them, kept them moving and were able to sort of attack them in multiple different ways through unstructured attack.
“This year they’re a bit more aggressive in their D [defence]. They come up hard and they’ll just try to disrupt. They’ve got a lot of attacking threats at our breakdown, [Julien] Marchand and these fellahs.
[ Grand Slam Offload: Where have we seen Dan Sheehan’s try before?Opens in new window ]
“We have a small bit of an insight into what we think they might come with but at the same time we need to get our stuff right. We’ve talked about just focusing on our own stuff, making sure our accuracy and discipline doesn’t give them access because it just takes one little dropped ball and they’re lethal with the ability they have out wide and their ability to attack in transition.”
He describes Toulouse as “probably a bit looser, a bit more unpredictable” than France, adding: “You can’t take your eye off them because they will go from anywhere.”
Sheehan talks about “some serious world class talent out on the pitch.”
And a prime example is in his own position. No less than Leinster and Ireland, France’s two leading hookers come from Toulouse, with Julien Marchand backed up by Peato Mauvaka.
“Marchand is unbelievable at contact, breakdown and then Mauvaka, his attacking game, his offload game, he’s quite elusive and strong in his carry.
“We’ve talked about their two hookers quite a bit. A lot of their attack off set-piece goes through them. Even unstructured wise they’re both well capable of throwing passes. They’ve the whole skill set, basically.”
Due to Rónan Kelleher’s ill-luck with injuries, Sheehan has actually racked up more minutes this season (1,202) than either Marchand (1,153) or Mauvaka (1,088).
Not that he’s complaining.
“I’m feeling brilliant. I can’t complain about playing too many minutes. I want to get as many minutes as I can. I don’t see a problem playing too many minutes.”
Besides, like Leinster’s other frontliners, he was given a week’s break after the quarter-final win over Leicester and spent a few days in London. “I did absolutely nothing ... [except] eating!”
Coming into this season he had only started one Champions Cup game. It’s been a whirlwind 18 months or so, but it’s not like he used his London break as a pause for reflection. It’s just not in his nature.
“I don’t really reflect on it too much. I just enjoy playing rugby. If I wasn’t here, I would be playing for Lansdowne down the road and I would have the same sort of mindset, looking to the next game, because I just enjoy playing rugby.
“My parents would probably say that not much fazes me or that I look disinterested in a lot of things, but I just don’t get too riled up about big events. It’s an important thing to have in a position like hooker. You get a lot of big moments where you have to execute and can’t let the moment get to your head.”
He attributes the sharp recent upturn in his career to the confidence that has “slowly” come with experience.
“As a kid, I was a bit more reserved and let other people do things, let things happen in front of me and go with the wind. But in the last few years when you realise your potential and stuff you’re the first person in the door and putting your best foot forward and I think my confidence has grown massively in the last few years.”
Much of this, he says, can be attributed to the coaches, the whole way through Leinster from sub-academy up, but it goes deeper too.
“I think the AIL has had a big impact as well, in terms of players developing. It’s a good standard and you can get a good insight into how a player could go pro. I think the AIL has been huge.”
To his surprise, he reckons only four of his ex-Clongowes team-mates are still playing rugby.
“I think that’s something about rugby that might need to be looked at – how do we get more people playing? Because the bubble is quite small. I’m fully aware that I’m in the centre of the bubble and everyone I talk to revolves around rugby, but it is still quite a small bubble and something we need to do is to grow the sport.”
But that’s the bigger picture. Within the bubble, Sheehan, and Leinster, are where they want to be. Well, almost.
