Gordon D'Arcy's return from a horrific arm injury has inspired a more pragmatic approach to his game, reports John O'Sullivan
GORDON D’ARCY refuses to subscribe to the historical hoopla surrounding tomorrow’s Six Nations Championship match against Wales at the Millennium Stadium. He rejects the notion that the game represents the biggest occasion in his rugby life, patiently explaining that his career has been sprinkled with other matches that carried a similar resonance, albeit for different reasons.
It won’t make him any less determined or focused, won’t stifle the butterflies on the morning of the match or diminish the excitement and anticipation, but his attitude will allow him to cope with what will be an emotive occasion. He wants to control and channel that energy in a productive way.
It’s a measured approach, a state of mind that has hallmarked his rehabilitation from a serious arm injury sustained against Italy in last season’s Six Nations Championship. His extended sabbatical on the sidelines taught him a great deal about himself in terms of character and inspired a resolution to be pragmatic on his return to the sport.
A salutary lesson was provided by Wasps outhalf Danny Cipriani who came back after a horrific leg break to a fanfare of superlatives initially only to see the bouquets replaced by brickbats as his form yo-yoed from one week to the next.
D’Arcy explained: “I didn’t want to be like that; I wanted to be consistent from the word go. I remember Al Gaffney saying when I got picked for that Ulster game (D’Arcy puts on Australian accent), ‘now don’t try and win the game in the first five minutes’. Nine years earlier he had said the same thing during his first stint with Leinster when I broke into the team.
“So I tried to be consistent from the moment that I could play again, concentrating on my fitness and getting my work-rate up. I have definitely been getting better with every game. When I came back from this injury, the plan was to get back playing regularly for Leinster.
“Ireland wasn’t really on the radar. I was hoping to be in contention for the summer tour. The goalposts changed and I had to reassess my goals. I have done that but the learning curve is a lot steeper at this end.”
The Wexford man accepts that starting the first two games of the Six Nations from the bench and being introduced mid-match was an ideal acclimatisation process in reacquainting himself with the Test arena.
While his try against France would be a high point, he knows there is further improvement required. “I didn’t have the best start in the world to the Scottish game as I missed my first tackle. I just over-wedged (pushed out too far) him and was furious with myself because it is not the kind of stuff I do.
“I felt that I grew into the game and got my bearings, got a few one-on-ones with frontrow forwards and took the ball over the gain line. I started to find my feet again. I’m conscious of not being hot in one game and then stone cold because that does nothing for your confidence.”
At his best D’Arcy trades on his instinct, intuitively choosing the correct option without it being a conscious thought process. He knows that once he regains that state of mind he can broach previous levels of individual excellence.
He acknowledged: “You have done it (made the play) before you are conscious of having made a decision. I was watching a documentary on Paul Gascoigne and he was talking about his favourite goals. Someone asked him did he know what he was doing. He said: ‘No, I have no idea. If I don’t know what I am doing how can the defenders?’ That probably sums up my approach.
“Players like Keith Wood and Liam Toland have said it to me in the past; that I am an instinct player, Deccie (Kidney) too. The point they were making was that invariably my instincts had been right: things had worked out so why change?”
Reunited with his international team-mates for the Six Nations D’Arcy realised just how much he missed being away and given the severity of the injury just how tenuous a career can be. He had also forgotten how nervous he got when funnelling into a room ahead of team selection.
“I don’t know how many caps I have but it doesn’t get any easier. You’re sitting there biting your nails. When your name is called out that’s one bit of stress gone but then you have to do your video analysis and other preparatory work. There’s a lot to think about so you just move down the to-do list until there’s nothing left.
“Once I know I have done all the video (analysis), completed all the preparation, then I can relax. I try to get the work out of the way by Wednesday evening. Enda McNulty (the former Armagh footballer who is now a sports psychologist) told me: ‘You’ll find stuff coming through your head. You will be thinking about stuff more naturally, organically and you’ll be able to appreciate it every bit as much as writing it down or studying a video. You have programmed the computer, so let it run. I understand that now.”
So what would he like to reflect on come Saturday night on a personal level outside of winning a Grand Slam? “The best barometer of how you have played is yourself because only you are aware if you have done everything possible, given your all. If every player can make eye contact with his team-mates afterwards then there can be no recriminations. (The late former Clongowes coach) Vinnie Murray always said to me that if you can look in the mirror after the match and know you did everything, then you can do no more.”
