Ireland and Leinster star Dan Sheehan has quashed the notion that the Ireland team was running on empty towards the end of the Six Nations.
The Irish team won the Six Nations, but games in the past that were free-flowing and entertaining looked tougher from the outset in 2024.
A narrow loss to England and a dogged performance against Scotland were uncommon for the Irish team under Andy Farrell, and many wondered if the Irish team, comprised mostly of Leinster players, was fatigued from their long domestic and European campaign.
Sheehan isn't aware of any such idea and claims that a dip in energy levels is natural, and that is part and parcel of the sport.
"That's the first I've heard of it," said Sheehan.
"Completely wrong read. You know, it's natural that at this part of the season, bodies aren't 100%.
"You've got to front up a little bit, play with niggles or whatever, but I think as a professional player in the Leinster and Irish squads, this is the most exciting part of the season.
"You have to bring everything more, energy-wise—it's in your weeks and in your performances."
Leinster have won the competition four times but haven't won the tournament since 2018. The last two times they have played finals, they have lost to La Rochelle on both occasions.
After overcoming their French rival in this year's quarterfinals, Sheehan admits that Leinster are in a very good place going into the tie against the Northampton Saints this weekend.
Pretty honest stuff from Dan Sheehan:
“…We have been in the past where we have come up short, probably looking too far ahead maybe or getting a bit too complacent in either URC or Champions Cup.”https://t.co/Txi56T2rMQ
— Cian Tracey (@CianTracey1) May 3, 2024
"We've come up short so many times in the last couple of years, and we know what it means to this club and this competition," he added.
"So I think we're in a really good place; the energy levels are good.
"That was a big part of us not travelling to South Africa—to make sure the energy levels were there.
"I think everyone's excited to get going now for the last few weeks of the season."
Saturday's test against Northampton will also be the first time Leinster have played in Croke Park since 2009. Because the Europa League final will be held at Aviva Stadium, the Leinster game will be held at Croker.
The venue has been a hot topic all week, with some suggesting that Leinster will buckle under the weight of history and pressure his weekend
Nevertheless, Sheehan is excited to play on the iconic stage but isn't getting carried away with the occasion. However, he feels the Leinster players can feed off fans in the stadium if things go their way this weekend.
"It is hugely exciting for us to go to such a special place like that, where rugby hasn't been played for a while, and to have it sold out with 82,000 people, it is going to be immense," Sheehan noted.
"We can't really get carried away. We talked about the fact that a crowd will only come alive on the back of a performance, and we can't rely on a performance just coming on the back of 82,000 people showing up.
"So we are focused on how we start the game, on how we can get the crowd on our side, the majority being Leinster, and feeding off the energy Croke Park can give you.
"We talked a little bit about how you can't get consumed by the idea of this big stadium with all this history and stuff.
"But definitely, we might be able to feed off it and get some of the energy back if our performance starts well on Saturday."
Leinster Rugby takes on the Northampton Saints in the semi-finals of the Champions Cup at Croke Park on Saturday, May 4th, at 17:30.
