We so often expect players to come out with their game-face on so close to a big match. Isa Nacewa can do it better than most. Johnny Sexton is a different matter.
One of the treats of Leinster’s run to the Champions Cup final has been the increased press conference appearances of Johnny Sexton. The outhalf has either appeared as captain or senior player at the briefings and he has been great value.
Sexton joined Leinster head coach Leo Cullen and captain Isa Nacewa at the final press conference before Saturday’s Champions Cup final, in Bilbao, and he was in top form.
He got a couple of soft ones to start off with, praising opposite number Pat Lambie while talking up New Zealand legend Dan Carter, who starts the final in reserve for Racing. “Obviously,” Sexton began, “when you have a guy like Carter in your squad it is a real strength and they can bring him on when they see fit… he’s still a world-class player and he’ll be looking forward to making an impact when he comes on.”
For Sexton, the opposition are a side he spent two years with in France and a team that only saw him at his best in flashes.
“Is it an advantage for me or an advantage for them? They’re going to know me pretty well. I know a few of their players but they have a very different squad to when I was there. A few different coaches as well; and they play different. I’ll know a lot of individuals who have been at the club a long time but they have lots of new players that I’ve only seen on tape, or that I’ve admired watching for years.
“It will be a special game for me, playing against a lot of friends and even coming across backroom and administration staff that were there for the two years I was there.”
If Sexton finishes on the right side of the final scoreline, he will be a four-time European Cup winner. Victory for the Blues will tie them with Toulouse for Europe’s most successful club side.
Has Sexton paused much to think about that? You bet.
“That’s where your mind wanders during the week,” he admits.
“It takes you different places, about why you want to win the game – Is it because it’s Isa’s last European game? Is it for the injured guys? – but, at the end of the day, none of that really matters. It’s about performing.
“If you think about the last time you won the trophy or how long it has been, it’s a distraction. You just go out and play as best we can. We’ve got to top our quarter and semi-final performances because we know we’ve got to go to another level on Saturday to win this game.”
Sexton insists Leinster can get even better and push themselves even further than their impressive dismantling of Saracens and Scarlets in the knock-out stages. Racing are a heady mix of dashing attacking talents and a brawny pack that set Clermont and Munster back on their heels.
“That’s the big challenge,” he acknowledges. “Can you beat a team like Scarlets then go out and beast a team like Racing? That’s what champion teams do and we’ll find out if we can do that.”
The conversation returned, again, to Leinster and their world-class No.10 being on the brink of more great deeds. Following up a Grand Slam with a Champions Cup and, potentially, a PRO14 title would make for an incredible end to an already historic season.
“They are the things that drag you off during the week and get you thinking about things you shouldn’t be thinking about,” Sexton concedes.
“You’ve got to use that as motivation a bit, then park them as you know everything comes down to performance. Ultimately, if you want to be fulfilled at the end of the game you’ve got to play well as an individual and the team has got to play well to win. You’ve got to do your own job for the team, focus on that and hopefully everything else will follow.”
Asked how he settles himself on the day of a final, Sexton jokes, “The week of a final?!”
“Yeah,” he continues, ”
“I’ve been pretty nervous all week. You know when you wake up on the week of a big game. It just feels different. Sleep can be a struggle and the nerves can be a struggle but you’ve just got to focus your attention on what’s important and getting all your stuff and your preparation right. You put all of your energies into that and try to park all the distractions and hype. You focus on putting in a good performance. That’s what we have done for the semis, quarters and group stages. We’ve trained really well all week and we’ve prepared well. We now just have to go out and do it on the biggest stage.
“Training and going kicking. They help take your mind off stuff. They distract you and prepare you at the same time, which sounds at bit strange. I find that is when I’m at my calmest but it’s only when you get home and you’ve got time to yourself that you worry about that. The older you get, the nerves get worse but probably how you deal with them gets better.”
Asked about sharing another big day with the likes of young stars James Ryan, Jordan Larmour, Garry Ringrose, Dan Leavy and more, Sexton looks ahead and declares ‘they won’t go into their shell’.
If those lads ever needed a man to follow, look no further than Sexton. He was born for the big occasion.
