Ahead of Leinster's ECC doubleheader against Northampton, the Leinster rugby coaching staff met with a collection of season ticket holders for a fan Q & A.
After being introduced by Leo Cullen to talk about the challenges he faced in making the English team more likable (beautifully said, Leo), Stuart Lancaster told the audience of his first impressions having met with almost every Leinster player from the academy up to the first team.
He was taken aback. Lancaster couldn't believe how every player, from the kids to the experienced pros, wanted to play for Leinster, and only Leinster, and he claimed that such a proximity and connection with the community was like nothing he had ever seen back in England.
So when I arrived I did the one-to-one with every player. And I'd ask them the question, where you from?
-Dublin.
Where did you go to school? And they'd go to lots of different schools, so, where did you go to the academy?
-Here.
What's your ambition?
-To play here.
What do you want to do further down the line?
-Stay here and play here.
Where do your family live?
-Here.
Honestly, there is definitely no English team that has that proximity, that connection with their community. And even the senior players, the Rob Kearneys, I remember saying to Rob; 'So, have you had opportunities to go overseas? Play in France or wherever? And he says 'Yeah yeah' so I said 'Do you fanct it?', and he said; 'No, why would I want to do that? I just want to stay and play for Leinster.'
It's absolutely incredible. I've never met a club like it, and actually, I don't think the players understand what a strength that is. I would go as far as to say they are the best group of players I've come across.
They are humble, respectful, hard-working, they want to improve, they care about the team, and there isn't one player I've met, from academy through to the senior team, who I've come away thinking 'he doesn't quite fit'. A very, very good group.
Safe to say that Lancaster has been blown away by the Leinster players since joining the coaching staff, those comments are likely to make every fan smile.
Of course, Munster, Connacht, and Ulster can say the same of their players, and their academies, and that is largely why we've become such a strong rugby nation. Our players are raised in a system where they know their biggest goals can be achieved within an hour of where they grew up for the most part. That's special.
You can see the highlights from the Leinster coaching Q & A below, Stuart Lancaster speaks from around 2:30.
