Tadhg Furlong, Jack Conan and others who’ve been on these expeditions before warned Dan Sheehan. The experience of touring with the Lions, they said, will be beyond anything he might imagine.
Despite the vastness of the playing numbers and backroom staff – 90-plus at any given moment – these 2025 Lions seem to have shared a single-minded focus on winning the series, yet they’ve also enjoyed themselves thoroughly. None more so than the talismanic and world-class Sheehan.
While swiftly stressing that it’s not over yet as they seek the 3-0 series clean sweep they targeted from the outset, Sheehan enthuses: “What a country to tour! Australia has been unbelievable to us. And you’re sitting around here looking at this [view], all these cities have been unbelievable, and the support along the road has been crazy.”
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It helps that the view he refers to sweeps across the entirety of the Sydney city centre, the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.
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Confirming what Furlong, Conan and the others had told him, Sheehan says: “It’s been absolutely mental. And I’ve enjoyed absolutely every second of it. It’s flown by. You think back to Perth and you’re like: ‘Jeez, that was [five] weeks ago.”
Now he has the bug too.
“Yeah, put the head down now for another four years. I’m going to try to get back on the plane.”
Winning helps of course, especially sealing the series last Saturday in front of a record crowd for a rugby union match in Australia thanks to the biggest comeback in Lions’ Test history.
“Those few hours with the lads after the game, they’re always my favourite moments. We probably stuck around the MCG for far too long, but they were definitely memories that will last a lifetime and I think everyone’s sort of celebrated enough now. So, looking forward to what’s to come, but that was something special.”
The celebrations continued into Sunday before a harsh review on Monday before focus turned to Saturday’s third Test in Sydney’s Stadium Australia kick-off (8pm local time/11am Irish).
While that will not be interpreted as anything like a free shot, this series win has added further testimony to Farrell’s ability to mould a squad into a cohesive, tightly knit unit, no matter the scale or timespan.
“I think he puts the right people in the right places,” Sheehan explains. “He’s a big people person and he believes in people. You see that in the way the whole backroom staff is set up. We’ve had an unbelievable set-up and everything is perfectly done for us. He’s a massive believer in environments and the people creating that winning culture in a team.
“That’s definitely one thing that always pops to mind when I think of Faz and his teams over the years.”
Embracing the players’ families has also been a signature of Farrell’s squads since becoming Ireland’s head coach. As a player and assistant coach, he could never understand how this was not the done thing and vowed he would make families an extended part of the adventure.
“He understands that a lot of lads’ motivations is their families and it’s definitely mine,” adds Sheehan, noting how Farrell had dad Barry, whose diaries in The Irish Times have been such an entertaining insight into the lives of “the shadows“, present Sheehan with his jersey for the first Test.
“My parents didn’t think I knew it was happening, so they were like,” says Sheehan, miming the wide-eyed surprised look his parents had before he informed them he knew they were coming.
“It was something special, and I know it means a lot to my dad, being able to do that. He’s obviously massively proud of all the milestones over the years. And it’s the same for UCD rugby as it is for the Lions. It means the same to him for both.”
In all of this, Sheehan adds, Farrell “knows how to push people’s buttons, and how to get the best out of people and families are always a big part.”
Last Saturday, Sheehan took his tally to three tries in five games on tour, and 17 in 19 games this season. Hookers are usually at the sharp end of catch-and-drives, but with Sheehan there have been all manner of finishes, whether outside or close in.
But his finish from his own tap penalty, when diving over David Porecki and Harry Potter, was a new twist. It looked as if it had been a clever, planned ploy but it was actually off the cuff.
“I got absolutely melted trying to go low,” he recalled of a previous tap penalty. “Then the second one I just thought: ‘If I have a dive here ...’. It was just a throw and hope and I slipped through. I can see all the controversy about it, but I did know that you can dive in the air if you score.”
As for his extraordinary strike rate, Sheehan says: “It’s obviously a massive part of why I enjoyed rugby growing up. I’ll take all the tries that can come my way. I enjoy the attacking side of rugby and trying to figure out defences and set-piece moves. It’s definitely something I focus on during a game.”
