Dan Sheehan says Ireland embrace underdog status

Ireland hooker Dan Sheehan believes the national side still has a deep pool of talent despite recent results leaving them outside the favourites for the upcoming Six Nations campaign.

Ireland face a demanding start to the tournament, with away trips to France and England among their opening fixtures. Results over the past 15 months, including defeats to New Zealand, South Africa, France and England, have hit the expectations after the team’s dominant run in 2022.

Speaking this week, Sheehan acknowledged that standards must improve but insisted there is no shortage of quality within the squad. He said the group understands where progress is needed and remains confident in its ability to respond, even as external expectations shift.

“Yeah, I'd say you're bang on,” said Sheenan on launch of the "Optimum Advantage" campaign as Optimum Nutrition ambassador.

“We do need to improve, for sure, and we have the right people in the room to do it. The talent is endless that we have in the squad.

“We need to prep well and get the energy going because we're no longer the favorites for anything now. We're almost that sort of underdog mentality, we need to show up and make sure we're counted.”

“We need to prep well and get the energy going because we're no longer the favorites for anything now. We're almost that sort of underdog mentality, we need to show up and make sure we're counted.”