\u201cIt still hurts talking about it, to be honest,\u201d he told a small group of reporters on a moody Sydney day, where heavy, dark clouds circled the Harbour City.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was probably the biggest game in my career in the final and it [did] not go too well. [It] was definitely frustrating.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019s not even looking for silver linings from the 41-19 demolition under the hot Spanish sun.<\/p>\n
\u201cPotentially, yeah, if you’re shaping it in the most positive way,\u201d he responded, when asked if the defeat could ultimately prove to harden his resolve.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s still an unbelievably tough result to take and I suppose in the manner it came as well. It was really frustrating for everyone, but, yeah, potentially.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
But it was the response over the past month that revealed the character of Byrne 2.0, even though he played second fiddle to Sam Prendergast at out-half as a result, as Leinster responded emphatically.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suppose it just shows the resolve of the group that we were able to bounce back and all our attention went on the URC, and I was delighted how we finished up with that.\u201d Whether Byrne runs out against the Wallabies or not remains to be seen.<\/p>\n
![\"Sam](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/5135667_1_articleinline_3493754.jpg\" "\\"Sam")
Sam Prendergast, left, and Harry Byrne during an Ireland rugby squad training session in Sydney. Pic: Brendan Moran\/Sportsfile<\/p>\n
Prendergast, unsurprisingly, is favoured to start in the No.10 jersey after his strong finish to the season.<\/p>\n
While Ciar\u00e1n Frawley\u2019s ability to cover multiple positions, as well as the fact that the Connacht-bound playmaker featured prominently off the bench during the Six Nations, could see him pip Byrne.<\/p>\n
But for a man who left Ireland in mid-2024 thinking he might have kissed away his hopes of adding to his four caps, Byrne has learned just to get on with it.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, it was definitely a thought that maybe I wouldn’t come back, but luckily I got the opportunity to come back to Leinster, and then once I got back there, it was just head down, work, see where you go from there,\u201d said Byrne says his newfound maturity came from the stint abroad.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was brilliant for me for a number of reasons. I suppose even just growing up outside of rugby, moving to a new city for the first time. Living on my own for the first time, out of home. So even all that stuff was brilliant.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut even just coming into a new environment altogether and kind of being given the reins, you just have to go for it. It’s either sink or swim.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The lessons learned under Pat Lam at Bristol helped foster his attitude, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suppose it just gives you a fresh outlook on the game a little bit,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou’re playing in a different competition and also seeing the game slightly differently as Pat does. He’s obviously a very good attacking coach, and would see the game slightly differently to I suppose what I was used to in my seven years or whatever it was in Leinster.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere’s little intricacies about the game. So, not that you take one and leave the other but you can kind of marry them up when you come back. And I suppose that’s been a big difference for me.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlso, just the fact of going into a new team and taking hold of the team as quickly as you can. That served me well coming back into Leinster, definitely.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
So it probably comes as no surprise that Byrne didn\u2019t kick cans when injuries held him back during this year\u2019s Six Nations, nor the Bilbao result.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, when you go away to Bristol, it’s a bit of an unknown coming back in. Even though you’ve tasted it before,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then when you get back into Leinster, I suppose the goal is to get back in and get amongst it as quickly as you can. So it was a nice opportunity to get back in the mix in the Six Nations.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously frustrating [that] I was ruled out through injury and didn’t get a chance to really play at all. So, on the back of that, you just go back to Leinster and try to do what you can to get back into the next squad. And yeah, delighted to be here.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Adding to Byrne\u2019s coming of age this year has been the fact that he\u2019s not been living in the shadow of his older brother and fellow out-half, Ross, who left Leinster after a decade at the club.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has been weird,\u201d he said. \u201cI’ve said it many times in the media, but he’s my best mate, someone I talk to every day, still pretty much. I talk to him every day, so from that point of view, not going to work with him every day is definitely different.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s been good in a sense as well, because I suppose you get to stand on your own two feet as well. I can still lean on him from afar, but we’re not in the same meetings, we’re not in the same training sessions, so we’re seeing things slightly differently, which has changed our relationship a little bit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suppose when you’re not competing with each other directly, the conversations are probably a lot more free-flowing. They always have been, to be honest.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s probably the best trait that we have together is how honest we are with each other and he\u2019s someone you always know is going to give you a straight answer, and I’d say he’d say the same about me on the way back. It’s definitely been strange.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
While Byrne is riding the wave of being back in the Irish squad, the playmaker said he was keen to ensure he wasn\u2019t simply a tourist on the three-week tour that includes Tests against the Wallabies, Japan and All Blacks.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is my first experience of Australia. Both coming here for the first time ever, and I’ve never played against an Australian team either. In terms of seeing the city, it’s been great here in Sydney, so that’s been exciting and enjoyable,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn terms of Australia themselves, [I’m] very excited to play against them. Obviously, the lads have had a good few games against them of late, so it would be nice to get the chance to be involved in that. But yeah, we’re all excited for the challenge.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Northampton](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/5135670_1_articleinline_95046_2983272.jpg\" "\\"Northampton")
Northampton Saints’ Henry Pollock is tackled by Tom Hooper of Exeter Chiefs during the PREM final. Pic:\u00a0\u00a9INPHO\/Dan Sheridan<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, overseas-based Wallabies star Tom Hooper did his best sales pitch to line up against Ireland for the sold out July 4 Test at Allianz Stadium.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat hand will be up until you drag me off a rugby field, I think,\u201d said Hooper, who rejoined his Australian teammates this week after a season with Exeter. \u201cThat hand will always be up for Wallaby gold.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n