WHILE THE MOST recognisable members of Leinster’s squad rolled from November Tests to Heineken Champions Cup clashes and then quickly returned focus to Ireland during a two-day camp, Bryan Byrne has been working consistently towards Saturday’s meeting with Connacht for the past three weeks.

The hooker has yet to start a game in this campaign, but he is just two runs in the number 2 shirt away from matching his haul from the entirety of last season. And, behind closed doors of Leinster training sessions, the coaches have seen him build on a consistent start to the season to a hot streak of form.

“He’s a little unlucky with game-time.I think,” says scrum coach John Fogarty.

Leinster scrum coach John Fogarty. Source: Laszlo Geczo/INPHO

“He’s been showing up, ye haven’t seen him (in a match) in the last two weeks, but in training sessions, he’s been really good. Really, really sharp. I would say he’s in a vein of form.”

Fogarty accepts it’s an odd thing to say given there is no match as evidence and modern rugby training sessions feature less and less contact. But with no Leinster A or club fixture for Byrne to join in on, Fogarty says that Leinster moved to “adjust our training sessions to make sure these guys get proper opportunities to express themselves as rugby players in the last two weeks.

“He’s someone that stood out, so he’s going to get opportunities over the next two weeks. He’s more than ready to play now and we’ll be excited to see him play.”

Last season’s narrow home win over Connacht marked Byrne’s second appearance of the 2017/18 season. Another winter older and better, he is excited to reach out and grab the opportunity, to show the form under the RDS lights and in front of fans and TV cameras.

“When you get a run of games confidence gets higher,” says the hooker, who has scored on his last three appearances against the Kings, Ospreys and the Dragons.

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Source: Heineken Rugby Weekly on The42/SoundCloud

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