Dan Sheehan’s smile was broad. The try-scoring hooker was an omnipresent figure across a variety of duties during Ireland’s historic Six Nations win over England. He joined two former Ireland captains, Brian O’Driscoll and Rory Best, behind a microphone to offer a few thoughts following Saturday’s stunning 42-21 victory.
“We’re such a hungry group. We believe in ourselves a lot,” he said. “We knew we had a lot of Irish support here. We tapped into it well and I think we came out of the blocks extremely well. That performance is right up there with one of the best we’ve had.”
He said the players and coaches ignored the external misgivings and instead resolved to produce a performance that was representative of the work that they had been doing.
“I think we stuck together really well and sort of ignored that.
“We have a lot of belief in this group. Everybody that we need is in the group, and when we all come together, we can make these special things happen. To get a win in Twickenham and see this Irish crowd, it’s pretty special.”
Stuart McCloskey brushes off England’s Ollie Lawrence. Photograph: David Rogers/Getty Images
Jamison Gibson-Park was a deserved man-of-the-match, but Stuart McCloskey was within touching distance of the accolade. The centre produced a stunning display – unplayable in possession, at least for the England midfield, and immovable in defence, a bulwark against which the white hordes foundered.
“I don’t really know what to feel,” McCloskey said after the win. “It’s so soon after the game with, obviously, absolute elation. It was a great performance, I think. We proved a lot of people wrong. We probably proved to ourselves more importantly what we can do when we get stuff right.
“A lot of things didn’t go right over the last two rounds. Some went well and we got it right. I thought we looked really good but just didn’t really piece it all together. But I thought today we pieced together a lot of what we wanted to do together and I thought it was pretty good all round.”
McCloskey was asked about his lung-bursting chase to haul down Marcus Smith in the 73rd-minute, a moment that exemplified Ireland’s attitude and determination. “I probably ran back (with) hope more than expectation.
“And as I got closer, it was like, ‘oh flip, I’m actually going to get him.’ But yeah, I was absolutely cooked after it. I was basically a body bag for the last five minutes, but thankful the game was won.
“That’s one of the things we said going into the day. Be all in for everybody, be in every moment. That’s the first minute, the 80th minute. As long as we fight for each other, whatever the result was, we’d be happy.”
[ Twickenham win ranks up there with the great days of Andy Farrell’s Ireland reignOpens in new window ]
So, where does the win place, personally? “It’s amazing,” said McCloskey. “Someone was telling me it’s the most we’ve ever scored against England at (Twickenham). So, it’s amazing. I didn’t expect it at the start of the day, if I’m being honest, but it was great. I think we put a lot of stuff together, as I said, and what a day.”
Recalling his Ireland debut, which came away to England in the 2016 Six Nations, he added: “I probably didn’t think I’d still be here in 10 years, no matter how well it went. There are tough times in there, but I’m glad I stuck at it to get to experience days like this now.
“It’s a strange one. My body feels really good, as it has done for a while, but when you play more, you get more experience. I’ve seen most of the things that can happen on the rugby field now. I probably have played the most professional games, or close to the most professional games, on our team.
“And I’m just confident in what I do. As long as my body stays in pretty good nick, I’m pretty confident I can do this for a while longer.”
Stuart McCloskey takes on England’s Ollie Lawrence. Photograph: Adam Davy/PA
Ireland were swept through the final quarter, serenaded by significant support from the stands. “It was nice. I didn’t realise there were so many Irish fans here. It was class, it was great noise,” said McCloskey.
“It’s tough to really enjoy it, the game’s probably won. If you’re watching at home, you think the game was won but when you’re playing, you’re like, ‘right, next moment, if we just get through this, there’s no way they can win’.”
On his recent green-streak with Ireland, he added: “I said to myself a few years ago, I’m just going to enjoy every game I get from now on. I haven’t played as much as I would have liked over the years – not to turn my nose up at how many caps I have, but I would have loved more – and I think at the start, I probably didn’t enjoy it. I was just feeling the pressure.
“Now, I take every chance I have and try to enjoy everything I do out here. It’s amazing to do it in that jersey, what it represents and do it for the team that we have in there.”
He’s honoured that commitment, and then some.