Match day nerves can be horrible. <\/p>\n
Retiring from your chosen profession at 36 is challenging, yet it does provide some benefits. I walked Royal Portrush last Tuesday, even managed to birdie the 1st and par the 18th. <\/p>\n
I do miss the precious moments after a big win, especially inside the changing-room, but the nausea before games and numbness after a loss? Good riddance. <\/p>\n
It is two years since Sam Whitelock<\/a> won the penalty that ended our World Cup quarter-final in Paris. Even writing about it now is agonising but I know the Ireland team have harnessed the pain, and they will continue to do so until the next step is taken. <\/p>\n In 2023, I played 19 minutes off the bench at Stade de France. Only caught my breath once during an insane finish when I was harshly penalised by Wayne Barnes for a hand on Jordie Barrett\u2019s shoulder. Jordie collapsed like a sack of spuds before nailing the penalty to make it 28-24.<\/p>\n Nine minutes on the clock and we needed a try to beat the All Blacks\u2026<\/p>\n [\u00a0Andy Farrell makes some telling tweaks on Ireland return as McCloskey and Baird get their chanceOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n I recall the battle that raged in my head between positive and negative thoughts. Nobody was immune from the suffocating pressure. <\/p>\n At least we kept playing. Other Ireland teams would have capitulated when New Zealand took a 13-0 lead after 20 minutes. Previously, my brain would have caved to the negative voice: \u2018They are going to put up 60. Like they did in 2012.\u2019<\/p>\n My mental preparation sharpened around 2015. This required plenty of personal attention, and a few trips to Lahinch (not for golf). <\/p>\n I will always hold regrets about Paris. We lost by four points, collapsing to the grass seven metres from the opposition try line. <\/p>\n It\u2019s gone. But not forgotten. <\/p>\n When we returned to camp in advance of the 2024 Six Nations, Andy Farrell wasted no time gathering us for a video session. Somehow the coaches found positives buried in those last few minutes: \u201cLook how much space there was to attack wider,\u201d they told us. \u201cNext time, and there will be a next time, we will trust our skill set rather than betting on the lineout maul.\u201d<\/p>\n We moved on, retaining the Championship after pulverising France in Marseilles before drawing a series in South Africa.<\/p>\n To keep winning after Johnny Sexton and others retired is down to men like Tadhg Beirne and Tadhg Furlong taking up the mantle. And the quality of coaches. But none of that matters if your ability to perform is routinely blocked by anxiety. Every single elite athlete can tell you how they learned to control the nausea, the internal voices, and the fear.<\/p>\n The real sport psychologists, or whatever you want to call them, provide tools to unlock talent you already possess but lack a clear mind to use when it really matters. <\/p>\n![\"Gary](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/P5XIJMZHB7ZFXZAGC3PNC6TU5M.jpg\")
Gary Keegan with the British & Irish Lions in Australia. Photograph: Billy Stickland\/INPHO <\/p>\n
![\"Paul](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/5CWYIDBAJVADDK46LO6Z53CBZA.jpg\")
Paul O’Connell, left, and performance psychologist Caroline Currid during an Ireland rugby squad training. Photograph: Brendan Moran\/Sportsfile <\/p>\n