‘We can’t let Ulster dictate how the game is played’ – Leinster’s Dan Sheehan

Leo Cullen had other ideas and decided to press the Ireland hooker into action as he came off the bench to secure the bonus point in the win over Connacht.

In Sheehan’s own words, he “got a bit of frustration out” following Leinster’s Champions Cup final loss, and while most of his team-mates will have to wait until Saturday evening’s URC quarter-final against Ulster at the Aviva Stadium to do the same, the 25-year-old was glad not to have an extra week to stew over the Toulouse defeat.

“I grew up playing rugby because I enjoyed playing rugby. I enjoyed the Saturdays playing matches,” Sheehan said.

“I always remind myself that it’s not a job for me. I’d be playing rugby no matter what, just playing games. If I ever got to a point that I was giving out about playing a match I know that there would be something wrong with my mindset.

“It’s certainly been a long season. I suppose it’s the same for the Ulster lads. They’d have been playing games as well during that time [World Cup]. We are all well looked after in Ireland.

​“We do get time off and you don’t play every game. I think bodies are fresh, hungry for games. It’s an easy out and look at how long the season is and use that as an excuse for last week or maybe a possible excuse if we were to lose more games, but it is the same for everyone.

“I think everyone is of the same mind and the coaches have done a good job in keeping lads fresh.”

The irony of Leinster keeping their players fresh for the business end of the season is that they have lef themselves an uphill task in their URC run-in.

Ulster will be aiming to heap more misery on Leinster by beating them for the third time this season, but if Cullen’s troops come out on top, a trip to Loftus Versfeld is likely to beckon.

Not only has Sheehan never played at the iconic stadium, he has also never been to South Africa. Even if that doesn’t change next week, the hooker is set to be part of the Ireland squad taking on the Springboks in two Tests next month, the first of which will be held at altitude at Loftus.

While those blockbuster showdowns may be looming large on the horizon, there is too much at stake this weekend for Sheehan to be contemplating what’s coming down the line.

“I don’t want to look too far into the future because we have to win on Saturday and to think of the Bulls having to win and us going to Bulls. I don’t want to get into that but it is obviously a huge stadium in rugby,” Sheehan reflected.

“You want to experience these places. You hear how it feels different in the changing rooms and at altitude or how there’s a different buzz around some stadiums. As a player you want to experience as many different environments as you can.

“We’ve had so many games at Leinster that there hasn’t been any slots to talk about Ireland. The focus has been fully on Leinster. It is important to have that separation because it might cloud you, or lose a bit of focus to be part of two different squads.”

Leinster v Ulster: Dan Sheehan speaking ahead of URC quarter-final

The mere sight of an Ulster side with nothing to lose is enough to ensure that Leinster’s focus is not clouded this week, as they look to avoid a trophyless season for the third year running.

“We’ve talked about it as a squad,” Sheehan added. “We’re lucky enough to have the chance that there is still something to play for – hopefully with three weeks of success. We’re grateful for the group we have and it would be a shame not to enjoy the next few weeks.

“They’ve [Ulster] beaten us twice now, so they obviously have a very good game-plan that counteracts ours very well. We need to make sure our management of the game is better.

“Ulster do a great job of suffocating you in your own half. You get into kicking battles where they let you sweat in your own ‘22’ and keep putting it down there. And off the back of an aerial duel they’ll just sweep in and have some incredible individuals who can take advantage.

“We’ve looked at how this week is breakdown on the back of last week – just general territory plays and making sure we play in the right areas and impose our game-plan on them, and not let them dictate how the game is played.”