Aiming to grasp every opportunity

INTERVIEW PAUL O'DONOHUE:PAUL O'DONOHUE appreciated the pilgrimage Leinster coach Joe Schmidt and his assistant Jono Gibbes undertook to Wales the day after the province beat Saracens in a Heineken Cup match at Wembley. Instead of returning to Dublin the pair headed for Rodney Parade to observe first hand Leinster A's British and Irish Cup victory over Newport.

The performance of the 23-year-old O’Donohue caught Schmidt’s eye, with the latter remarking: “I had a really good look at him there and he enjoyed a fine game.”

The scrumhalf is hoping his display might earn a start in the Magners League match against Edinburgh at the RDS this weekend – Eoin Reddan and Isaac Boss are with the national squad but one might be released to line out on Saturday – or at least a place on the bench.

O’Donohue, a pivotal figure in the Ireland Under-20 team’s Grand Slam success in 2007, has had to be patient following Boss’s arrival during the summer.

He smiled: “I’m not going to lie. Obviously I wasn’t doing somersaults about it. It’s been a frustrating enough start to the season in the sense that you feel you have taken a step backwards.

“To be honest, it’s positive enough with Joe (Schmidt). He’s coming in with a lot of fresh ideas. I feel like I am getting better the whole time; still learning. I did chat to Joe about it, the situation, a few times. Obviously I was concerned about what the plan was for me. I was happy with how he felt, how he summed up my situation. That kept me satisfied.

“It was great (to play well in Newport) because I haven’t been getting much game time recently. It’s very important for me to impress when I do. After the Saracens game, a great win and great occasion, it would have been easy for them (Schmidt and Gibbes) to celebrate and head home. Instead they braved the bus down to Newport. We were all pretty impressed with that and so we had to put on a show.”

He’s well aware of the importance of backing up his performance if handed the opportunity at the weekend. For the talented young scrumhalf opportunities of this ilk can be reasonably scarce so there’s an inherent pressure to deliver.

“It’s massive. You try and target these games especially when you’re not getting in (to the team) as often; make sure that you’re ready, feeling fit and feeling sharp. You really have to impress in the time you get on the pitch.”

Although Leinster will be missing several established internationals there is a chance O’Donohue may partner Jonathan Sexton at halfback: other senior figures like Leo Cullen, Nathan Hines Isa Nacewa and Shane Jennings will be on hand to provide a little direction and support but there’s no need to mollycoddle a player of O’Donohue’s pedigree.