Unsung hero who left game as he played it

THE latest significant Irish rugby adieu stirred up memories of a filthy November night in Musgrave Park in 2007. Forty minutes after a final whistle, which had prompted a mass supporter sprint out of the rain, there was only the groundsman and a couple of press-box stragglers present when a lone figure emerged from the dressing-room to make his way slowly around to the car park. It was not until the wind caught his hoodie that we realised it was Shane Jennings. His weary progress spoke to the extraordinary effort expended that evening and there was a palpable air of ‘job done’ contentment about the flanker after he had helped inspire an unexpected, perception-altering victory. He was right to take a moment, for Jennings (right), alongside fellow Leicester returnee Leo Cullen, was truly outstanding as the visiting pack dominated a Munster unit in conditions supposed to favour the home side. It was a time when flagbearers Munster were widely extolled for their manly virtues just as their rivals were derided for flakiness. This was the first evidence of a new-found forward grit which would underscore a provincial power-shift and trophyladen period of Leinster dominance and Jennings was at the heart of it. He may not have been wearing a hood last Friday, but Jennings’ farewell to the RDS was equally understated — a quick wave to the fans and he was back in his seat, fleeting recognition of a long and profound contribution to the Leinster cause. Jennings was not the biggest, strongest or quickest back-row around but he was one of the hardest and smartest and carried a presence which galvanised those around him, most memorably off the bench in Leinster’s remarkable European Cup final comeback win against Northampton. Musgrave Park 2007 does not feature alongside that Cardiff 2011 triumph in lists of the province’s seminal results but it was a night which captured the essence of Jennings’ worth to his province — unheralded, uncompromising and unrelenting.