Mark Sexton determined to make the most of Connacht opportunity

The plan is to head to the panto with Johnny and his kids, but they will be sure to make time for a few beers as well.

For so long, Johnny was the one ensconced in his familiar surrounds of a professional rugby environment as Mark watched on in awe, but the roles have been reversed in recent months since his older brother hung up his boots.

The pair have always been close and regularly bounce ideas off each other, and now that Mark has taken the next step up the coaching ladder, Johnny will be the one supporting in the background.

Time will tell if Sexton returns in a coaching capacity further down the line, but either way, he will always be a vital sounding board for Mark.

“I’d hate to speak for him, but I’d say that he is missing being involved in a professional team,” Mark said. “I think the way the World Cup ended leaves a sour taste in your mouth in terms of not winning it. There would have been no other way (for it) to end happily than to win it.

“And if they did win it, he’d probably need something else with the character that he is. Ultimately, he is in really good form.”

But for a serious injury when he was 18, Mark could have followed Johnny into the professional ranks as a player. Instead, he began coaching St Mary’s school and club before his path led him to the Leinster U-19s and the Ireland U-20s, where he enjoyed huge success.

Despite everything, there has never been any envy on Mark’s part for what Johnny achieved in his glittering career.

“Not at all,” he insisted. “I’m so proud of what he has done. To be able to live as a brother to somebody who has played rugby that good was unbelievable.

“Never once did I look at him and feel envious or felt, ‘That should have been me’. I saw the work he put in, the dedication, the talent he had, so I could never be envious of that.”

Mark is now working as Connacht’s assistant attack coach and anyone who watched the Ireland U-20s’ thrilling style of rugby will not be surprised to see him make the successful transition from the Westerners’ academy into the senior set-up.

“I actually don’t see a big difference,” he insisted with regard to coaching academy and Ireland stars such as Bundee Aki and Mack Hansen.

“I see guys who want to get better. I see a group of guys who are willing to be helped and do what you’re asking of them. It’s probably easier to coach the older lads and the senior lads because they have more experience, and you’re not coaching them as hard as you would have to for the younger lads. They probably challenge you less.

“My philosophy is very much the same. I’ve got a different coaching group here. Pete Wilkins looks after most of the attack, so I’d be his assistant.

“Ultimately, we are very, very closely aligned in terms of the way we want to play the game. Pete is a brilliant coach.

“But I suppose, all the stuff that I did with the 20s, tried to bring in, it’s a very simple framework and it gives the lads a freedom to play.

“But maybe there are just less opportunities to play in a Champions Cup game as opposed to a 20s international.”

Now a few months into his new role, Mark is determined to make the most of his big opportunity at Connacht.

“Absolutely, yeah. I think that’s probably a Sexton thing,” he smiled.

“We aspire to be the best we can be and probably over-achieve or achieve whatever we put our minds to, I suppose.

“Connacht have given me an opportunity. Eric Elwood gave me an opportunity to come down and coach in the academy. Connacht have been a vital cog. I will be forever grateful to Eric for giving me the opportunity.”