After the untypical highs of two seasons ago, when they reached the dizzying heights of the European Conference quarter-finals, Connacht find themselves back in more familiar terrain. Bottom of the interprovincial pile last season, once more they begin a campaign on Saturday as outsiders of the quartet.
Glenn Ross appears to have had a more arduous recruitment drive than most since last season, and has still to fill three of his 24 full-time contracts. At least the potential legal stand-off between Bernard Jackman and the IRFU/Connacht has been averted with the Clontarf player's inclusion as one of the full-timers.
About midway through last season's run of four successive wins - the last three by a point each - Connacht were in contention for both a European Cup qualifying slot through the interpros and a place in the knock-out stages of the Euro Shield.
However, an anti-climactic sequence of four consecutive defeats on their run-in saw both aspirations go up in smoke. Ross's response has been to bring in seven players and upgrade four others, with eight of last season's full-timers failing to make the cut thus far.
Despite that, Ross maintains that last season wasn't that disappointing for the province, and that changes were always going to happen. "I think it was a side that was inherited, and there was a lot of learning going on. Changes would have been made if they could have been, and it required a big effort to get to where we got. For me it was just a matter of assessing the situation as we went and looking to the future to improve."
Citing a lack of experience and leadership through the spine of the team, Ross identified "the middle of the front-row, the second row and the back row, and even the outside backs" as areas that needed "a bit more quality" while at the same time not sacrificing Connacht's identity and core group of players. He seems to have achieved his objective.
Hence, in came 29-year-old Kiwi hooker Shane McDonald and the prodigal Mark McConnell, while Martyn Steffert has been upgraded - the latter two being Connacht's two overseas players. Ross's former English under-21 lock from his Northampton days, Gavin Webster (Irish qualified), should further strengthen Connacht's lineout and add to their strong scrum, while winger Matt Mostyn (along with out-half Simon Allnutt, now a three-year resident) add to the squad's strong antipodean connection.
Perhaps conscious of how this might upset a few natives, Ross states: "Other countries have been awake to this for a while and whether you agree with the principle or not, it's an option that has to be considered."
Stephen McIvor, Conor Kilroy and former Richmond centre Mel Deane are other additions, with Deane highly regarded. "He's very explosive, very keen, aggressive, with good skills and very fast, and should be a good asset to Irish rugby," says Ross of his new centre.
All in all, "it's been quite a long process," admits Ross, who also concedes that "it's a side that perhaps doesn't have the names some of the other provinces have. But I think it has some experience in places and some ability in places which should make us more competitive."
Ross says he is happy with what he describes as Connacht's "pretty low-key" preparations. The squad came together on what once would have been deemed the unfeasibly premature date of June 27th.
After a week in Galway, they disembarked to the sunshine and hospitality of Clifden, where they marked the opening of the Connemara All Blacks' new pavilion, training pitch and car park with a practice game.
There followed another week in Galway, incorporating an inhouse trial, and five days amid the "state of the art" facilities in Worcester, where Ross described Connacht's performance as understandably superior to the concluding 12-try, 82-0 rout of a Midlands Selection last Saturday in Athlone.
Those trials served the additional purpose of giving Ross the opportunity to assess candidates from within. Unless the Irish management appoint some new recruits, Ross will all have to fill all of the remaining three full-time contracts from "our own backyard."
Again Connacht begin with back-to-back home games against Ulster and Munster (in reverse order to last year). Ross is unfazed by next Saturday's daunting match against the European champions, "an international calibre team with some good all-round strengths and a very strong back row in particular. But it really doesn't matter who we play and it might be better to be playing them earlier rather than later."
With another year of professionalism gone by, new recruits across the provinces and the Irish team having "developed a style of rugby" and a new tempo to their game in Australia, Ross envisages the interpros improving still further.
As for Connacht? "We want to qualify for the European Cup in 2001 and we want to top our pool (which contains Ebbw Vale, Steaua Bucharest and Toulon) in the Shield. Those are pretty simple if challenging objectives we've set for ourselves."
