Birthdays are a landmark traditionally celebrated with friends and family. On Monday Craig Gilroy (22) had to make do with his Ireland team-mates. Four caps into his international career he suffered a groin injury and missed last weekend's game against France. The brief medical hiatus crystallised how much playing for Ireland means to him. The party can wait.
He was eager to return and on the basis of Tuesday's training session looks set to glide back into the team to take on Italy at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on Saturday. His injury provided an opportunity for Fergus McFadden and the unfortunate Leinster player's cracked ribs may ensure a reciprocation of sorts.
Selection’s revolving door has been spinning at quite a lick from an Irish perspective, predicated almost exclusively by a ridiculously high injury list. As one player leaves the treatment room, two more enter.
The nature of Ireland's results in the Six Nations has heaped a large dollop of misery onto misfortune. At no point has the team been overwhelmed; if anything losing narrowly has irritated more. And to paraphrase former Navy football coach Eddie Erdelatz, "a draw is like kissing your sister".
Splicing together Ireland's four post-interval performances in the tournament would carry an over-18s certificate. Yet Ireland could have beaten England, should have beaten Scotland and could/should have accounted for the French.
The phrase “small margins” has become a familiar refrain amongst the players, independently expressed but possibly born from collective conversation.
Gilroy’s thoughts are a product of his environment but what is abundantly clear is that he doesn’t dwell on the negatives. He sees the silver lining not the cloud. It’s a healthy outlook.
“It is not like it (camp) is a dark place. Everyone is still together and hopefully with a few of the guys coming back in, we can help to lift it a bit more.
“I heard Rob (Kearney) there talking about the uncontrollable; the weather, a bounce of a ball. The few games we lost we could have won, we had our chance.
"We just want to finish on a high, go over to Rome, and get a win and just enjoy the last game. Our defence has been amazing in this campaign. We are up there with the least amount of tries conceded. That wouldn't be a concern.
Our pace
"Hopefully we get good conditions and use the backs that we have, to use our pace and just play how we want to play; like we couldn't in the conditions against England and France.
“There are a few things that haven’t gone our way where we have been unlucky. I just think it is a shame really because this team could have done so much better. It was really exciting coming into this group. We can’t win now but we would still like to go over to Rome and win.
When the topic of leadership surfaces, Gilroy namechecks Brian O'Driscoll and Rob Kearney as senior players who have helped him settle while also pointing to the captaincy of Jamie Heaslip, a style he enjoys.
He smiles briefly when asked about how he felt watching the French game, knowing that someone else had his jersey. “It’s a funny one because there are conflicting emotions. You want the team to win but obviously you want to be playing. You want to do better than the person in the position.”
Gilroy acknowledges that Ireland’s injury list is unprecedented in its severity but makes the point that from the physical perspective Test rugby is much tougher than any form.
"At this level there is a higher intensity; there are bigger impacts. It's intensified so much more than Rabo Pro12 and Heineken. You could say that as a result there have been more injuries.
“Having said though, I do think there is sort of freakish thing with the amount of injuries. It has been pretty crazy. I think I benefitted myself in November (in terms of winning a first cap) from a few injuries. It gives guys opportunities to come in and get capped and get some game time.”
What’s abundantly clear throughout is that Gilroy just wants to get back on the pitch. He won’t be encumbered by mental baggage out onto the pitch in Rome, just a desire to get his hands on the ball and run. It’s what he enjoys best.
