Gordon D'Arcy: Climbing that injury recovery mountain builds resilience and makes you stronger
Leinster, Ireland and soon to be Lions prop Andrew Porter spoke brilliantly about the challenges he faced in trying to process losing his mum, Wendy, at a young age. He was one of several elite rugby players who have highlighted how they cope with the emotional highs and lows of being involved in high-profile sport.
The goal is trying to maintain an equilibrium which can be very difficult at times, and to be honest I rarely achieved that across my career. I discovered, poignantly at times, that joy and particularly failure, need to be processed. No one gets a free pass in that respect. If you care, if it matters, it can hurt.
It showed an openness and understanding that allowed him to push through the acute disappointment and move forward
A TYF social media post caught my attention, a quote from
Caelan Doris
who remarked: 'It's not nice to welcome those feelings and emotions, to sit with them and process them properly, but that's probably the best way to do it.'
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He was reflecting on Leinster's defeat to La Rochelle in 2022. It showed an openness and understanding that allowed him to push through the acute disappointment and move forward, potentially channelling it as a fuel source to drive him to the elite standards he reaches regularly.
It has been a brutal couple of weeks for the entire Leinster squad, having gone from hot favourites to win the Champions Cup to losing a home semi-final to the Northampton Saints. The shoulder injury that Doris suffered in the match required surgery. His dream of captaining and playing for the
British & Irish Lions
in Australia this summer has been kicked down the road for another four years.
It's easy to empathise. I enjoyed plenty of success, but by the same token, there were aspects of being a professional rugby player that I found incredibly challenging on and off the pitch.
Gordon D'Arcy is chased by Catalin Draguceanu of Romania at the 1999 Rugby World Cup. Photograph: Patrick Bolger/Inpho
At the start of my career there was no room to show emotion, weakness or vulnerability, and the thought of opening yourself up and acknowledging those feelings that accompanied mistakes, setbacks or failures was alien. That's putting it politely.
The learned behaviour was to numb the pain, bottle it up and then try to ignore it. I did this as a young player when I joined the professional ranks, the only respite in and around the 1999 Rugby World Cup when I spent a couple of weeks under the protective influence of Conor O'Shea. The standards he set were way in advance of the time.
He enjoyed everyone's company, drank modestly and worked incredibly hard. He was a really positive role model. I struggled to settle in Leinster at that point because I felt I had nobody to talk to and lacked the self-awareness to understand that I needed to address these feelings.
That was probably the first time I opened myself up what was going on inside
By not tackling my emotions, I reacted in the worst possible way, inevitably, I suppose, based on my immaturity. A negative downward spiral ensued. Matt Williams shook me to my senses by giving me an ultimatum: change or leave.
That was probably the first time I opened myself up what was going on inside. Those memories still make me feel vulnerable and uneasy to this day but thankfully I realised then that I needed to ask for help to turn my career around, rather than allow my feelings to drown in a sea of negativity.
I learned very quickly that people will always help, but as my former Ireland coach Declan Kidney said to me around this time, when you are on the ground there will be hands offered, but you must reach out to take the hand.
The hardest part of this process as a 20-year-old was acknowledging that I was the problem and the solution. When you take control of the situation, it is cathartic. It becomes a source of personal pride that you were able to turn things around and you make a deposit in the bank of resilience that will stand to you the next time you feel overwhelmed.
Caelan Doris will be down over this injury but his willingness to address those feelings will carry him through. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho
There is always another test or challenge around the corner. I struggled at times in the alpha environment off the field in Irish camp. I broke my arm in 2008, spent a year on the sidelines and on my return had to reinvent myself as a player. I had to confront my physical mortality as a player in 2015.
Each time a different part of me was tested, and I found out a little bit about myself. It is too easy to rattle off the saying, 'if it doesn't kill you, it makes you stronger', but I believe that while we find out a lot about ourselves in the tough times, nobody ever enjoys them.
I didn't. I cried in private. I leaned on people I trusted. More often than not, I came out the other side and took quiet satisfaction from being able to last through the parts that I found tough. For me fear was always a driver, not wanting to let those negative emotions and thoughts win. It is different for everyone, deeply personal, but when we get through hard times, there is always a moment that draws a smile.
Andy Farrell has spoken about empathy and vulnerability in his approach to coaching and engaging with players
That moment will seem a lifetime away now for Doris. What will stand to him is his ability and willingness to address those feelings, the mental resilience that he has shown. In doing that, he becomes such an important role model for anyone within his sphere of influence.
Andy Farrell has spoken about empathy and vulnerability in his approach to coaching and engaging with players; Doris was a natural fit as a leader within this type of set-up. This is unquestionably the toughest part of this young man's career.
Time helps in these situations, and I know that he will get to a point when he accepts the injury and what comes with it. Climbing the recovery mountain builds resilience and makes you stronger. The struggle doesn't define you; how you choose to respond does. I'm looking forward to seeing how he uses the setback as a springboard for future success.
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Irish Examiner
42 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
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The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Cathal Murray's ‘unfinished business' mission complete as Galway land third All-Ireland crown under his reign
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Murray revealed that he effectively called time on his tenure after losing last year's final to Cork, only to cite 'unfinished business' for his decision to remain at the helm. And forward Niamh Mallon reckons the gaffer deserves enormous credit for conducting the women in maroon to achieve another pitch-perfect performance at Croke Park. She said: 'I'm just delighted for the group and delighted for Cathal. They put a massive effort in. It's easy for people to have pops at management teams and the way they set teams up. 'But the time and effort that group has put into us has been massive since the turn of January. And they got their just rewards. I'm just delighted to be part of the group and very grateful." It took a controversial Katrina Mackey goal to decide the contest in Cork's favour when the teams clashed in the 2024 final. Nevertheless, Galway were depicted as rank outsiders to flip the script. Their determination to upset the odds was evident from the outset as Murray's side brought a level of energy and aggression that Cork failed to match throughout the first half. Mallon reflected: "It was fierce intense, to be honest. And we kind of knew that coming into the game. "If we were going to turn Cork over, it was going to be intensity that was going to take us there. We brought a massive intensity this time last year, we just didn't have the composure to see it out. Inside Sharlene Mawdsley's birthday celebrations as GAA star boyfriend treats her to athletics-themed cake 'I think the experience of last year really stood to us, particularly coming down the stretch. We managed the game a whole lot better than this time last year. We're just delighted to get over the line." Galway were full value for their five-point lead at the interval. Indeed, it resembled an unassailable deficit for Cork when coupled with the dismissal of Hannah Looney in first-half stoppage time. 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Cork manager Ger Manley fumed at referee Justin Heffernan after the game, accusing the Wexford whistler of a 'shocking' performance. But Mallon felt Heffernan played his part in facilitating a refreshing level of physicality that significantly boosted the entertainment value of the showpiece. PLAYER'S PERSPECTIVE Asked if the game was as taxing as it looked, she said: "I think so. And I think the referee really played into that. He let the game go and it really contributed to a really good game. 'There were a few questionable decisions last year coming down the stretch on both sides. I think he did a great job to let the game flow. You got a spectacle out of it." After just two seasons with Galway, Mallon has already experienced both the agony and ecstasy of the biggest day in the camogie calendar. The former Down forward has been based in Galway since 2018 through her job as a sports scientist at Orreco. She finally made the decision to switch inter-county allegiances last year. 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Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Cathal Murray's Galway rebuild will go down as his greatest achievement
Heading into the 2018 championship, Galway were holding a loose membership of camogie's big three. It had been five years since they'd bettered either Cork or Kilkenny in a knockout championship fixture. The latter pair had lifted themselves and their levels of preparation, Galway had been caught standing still. In the days after Galway's 2018 League semi-final defeat to Kilkenny, the panel passed a motion of no confidence in a management team headed up by Tony O'Donovan. It was the opening sentence in Galway players rewriting the county's camogie story of heartbreak and hard luck. The new man in was to be Galway's fourth manager in less than two and a half years. The new man in was Cathal Murray, player-manager for Sarsfields' Galway SHC final win three years earlier. The new man in brought an end to western stagnation, he raised standards, and he grew belief. The foundation stones were laid during the rest of a 2018 season where Galway again fell at the semi-final hurdle and during the subsequent winter months. The physical approach that so spectacularly unnerved Cork on Sunday was a card first played by Cathal Murray six years ago in the 2019 semi-final. Galway set the terms by unflinchingly getting in Cork's face. That Cork class were also going for three-in-a-row. They too were outworked and outmuscled. The tactical acumen and match-up mastery that so disrupted Cork on Sunday was a card first played by Murray six years ago in the 2019 final. Caitriona Cormican, who struck two points in the semi-final, was redeployed at centre-back and performed a superb shadow job on Anne Dalton. Kilkenny's leading scorer from play coming into the final hardly touched the ball in the opening half. 'Just with the culture there and environment, I had a gut feeling we were going to win something under him,' Cormican said in an interview last year. 'I wouldn't have two All-Ireland medals only for him. [The set-up] was really enjoyable, really professional. It was definitely the most professional that I have ever played at.' He took a team with an inferiority complex of the red jersey and oversaw eight consecutive victories over them between the '19 semi-final and '23 championship opener. Sarah Dervan was Galway captain for the '19 and '21 final wins. Her verdict on the first half of Murray's tenure continues to ring true. 'He has brought Galway camogie way further than it ever was,' she said after 2021 glory at Cork's expense. 'We were always knocking around semi-final stages, struggling to get to the final. He came in and the people that he brought in around him, the likes of Robbie Lane (S&C) who has done a massive amount of work with us, have brought us so far. 'They have brought Galway camogie to elite level. Cathal always demands the best for us. We always get treated exactly the way any county hurling team would, and that's huge.' After two O'Duffy Cups in three years, equaling the county's haul of the previous 86 years, Murray's second chapter was one of renewal and reinvigoration. A period of transition threw in ahead of the 2023 season. From the 2022 campaign where their attempted title defence was comprehensively halted by Kilkenny at the semi-final stage, Heather Cooney, Cormican, and Niamh Kilkenny stepped away, Annmarie Starr was again absent, while goalkeeper Sarah Healy and half-forward Catherine Finnerty had gone travelling. Ciara Hickey was still a minor when a member of Cathal's All-Ireland intermediate winning side in 2022. Hickey was second only to Aoife Donohue on Sunday. Ally Hesnan and Jennifer Hughes were also members of that intermediate side. The pair were rolled off the bench against Cork. Sarah Healy, upon returning home, was enticed back into the set-up last year. Could you put a price on her penalty save from Katrina Mackey? Niamh Kilkenny was similarly enticed back last year after giving birth. Ditto Annmarie Starr. Shauna Healy returned this year after missing 2024 to start a family. He made sure they all returned. Would they have returned for anyone else? The latter Healy and Starr performed superb suffocating jobs on Orlaith Cahalane and Amy O'Connor. Seven of the 2021 All-Ireland winning team were absent on Sunday, including the McGrath sisters Orlaith and Siobhan. An eighth member of the 2021 starting team, Emma Helebert, didn't start. His success in rebuilding Galway and returning them to the summit when not everyone who could have been on board was on board will go down as his greatest achievement. He once again outsmarted Cork. He once again nullified key performers with spot-on match-up calls. Siobhan Gardiner didn't start the semi-final and yet she was entrusted to shadow Cork's semi-final player of the match Saoirse McCarthy. The Ardrahan woman relished the gig. The manager himself grew and learned. Too slow to make changes in last year's final, he did not repeat that mistake on Sunday. 'We were probably guilty ourselves last year of not using our bench enough. I thought the bench made a massive impact today,' he said. Three All-Irelands in seven seasons. Three Leagues in the same period. Six wins out of 11 final appearances. Add in the 2022 intermediate and the inaugural U23 All-Ireland of recent weeks. Murray almost walked 12 months ago. Should he go now, his latest act of service to Galway camogie has further cemented his legacy.
