Time out has made Ryan ravenous for international glory
DONNACHA RYAN has been around long enough to know when to play the diplomat. Take the 33-year-old’s curious opening weekend exclusion against Scotland, left out it was said because he was injured yet he still travelled as 24th man.
‘Look, it’s all in the past now. There are incidents there in the last 2000s I could be dragging up,’ he deflects, pleading the fifth. ‘I don’t think dwelling on that stuff is beneficial to the team or the personal environment. If that’s the case (that you’re dropped), you just get on with it and be ready for the next phase.’
That next phase featured Ryan getting Ireland’s only yellow card in their past nine matches, the penalty try concession in Italy. Mistaken identity? You bet. Devin Toner seemingly should have walked, but his fellow second row instead took the bullet for his mauled pack.
‘When I was coming off, I hadn’t a clue what the reason was… it wasn’t much craic sitting in the chair of shame.’
Ryan was gone from the Test scene for 29 months, a lengthy spell when retirement was considered.
However, rather than sign off with a final appearance in Rome at the age of 29 in 2013, he eventually got foot and knee problems corrected and his caps tally has impressively moved from 28 to 45 with optimism for more if he extends his IRFU central contract beyond June.
It was Cardiff, next Friday’s latest stop in Ireland’s championship, where he made that August 2015 Test return. ‘I was pretty sore, but it was a great day and I was very lucky to get on that World Cup trip considering I didn’t have enough games under my belt. ‘I’d just come back at the latter end of the previous season (for Munster), but you really need about 10 games before you get your lines of running and the physical side of things right. You really need to be beaten up a good bit before you’re really conditioned.’ Ryan heads back to Cardiff knowing he must produce. His injury nightmare was ongoing when Ireland put back-to-back titles together under Joe Schmidt while the 2009 Grand Slam was before he came of international age, so the next fortnight offers championship riches he has never been closer to. ‘I’ve a lot of caps to show that I thought I’d never have, but there’s no point looking back and feeling you have a field full of regrets. I’ve had fantastic experiences and when I look back on my career, I can say I gave it my best if I have got medals or not. ‘When you’re in your 30s you do realise over all those years you were given you did put yourself in position to give it your best shot. That is all you can really do, otherwise there would be a load of sleepless nights regretting. ‘You do get greedy and want to be winning medals. ‘But you always focus on putting in good performances. If it happens it happens and if it doesn’t, I’ve still had a good journey… I’m riding the wave,’ adds Ryan