Ireland's Ringrose motivated after 'tough' period

Ringrose says he feels "lucky" to be in the Ireland squad after missing much of 2024 with a shoulder injury

Garry Ringrose says a "tough" period of injury woe and disappointment with Leinster has motivated him to make an impact for Ireland in the upcoming Test series against world champions South Africa.

Having shaken off a shoulder problem that restricted him to just one Six Nations substitute appearance since January, Ringrose suffered heartache on his return as Leinster lost their United Rugby Championship semi-final to the Bulls, two weeks after his team-mates fell to Toulouse in the Champions Cup final.

Despite lacking match sharpness, Ringrose was selected by Ireland head coach for next month's two-Test series in South Africa.

"There's so much good throughout the year to get us to the places we did and then falling at the last hurdle in Europe and second last in the URC is always a bitter pill to swallow.

"But I guess it motivates you to keep going in some respects and appreciate any opportunity you get to try and win. Even thinking in Ireland and Six Nations and in Europe, you have more losing seasons than winning.

"It's the challenge to keep going and stay motivated and appreciate the wins a little bit more."

Blocking out the noise

An already-intense rivalry between Ireland and South Africa has been spiced up by comments made by the Springboks in recent weeks, with Eben Etzebeth and Damian de Allende among those to have stoked the flames.

De Allende spoke of how the Springboks felt "disrespected" by heavy media criticism after a crushing defeat by Ireland in Dublin in 2017, while Etzebeth said the Irish had been "arrogant" by telling South Africa's players "see you guys in the final" at last year's World Cup after Andy Farrell's side won their Pool B encounter.

Ringrose, however, insists he has no appetite to engage in any pre-series commentary.

"When you're playing back-to-back World Cup champs, you don't really pay attention to anything other than watching their games, trying to understand what they're to do," said Ringrose, who has two wins with Ireland over South Africa on his CV.

"If you get sidetracked by any of that, you end up falling victim to getting distracted or putting your energy elsewhere. It'll be all hands on deck for preparation."

When asked specifically about De Allende's comment that South Africa are "desperate" to beat Ireland this summer, Ringrose said: "No matter who you play, there's always going to be something.

"If he did say they were desperate, that desperation is certainly something I admire in how they play. The support is so passionate and you can see how they play, they're unbelievably passionate."

On De Allende, Ringrose added: "He's a two-time World Cup winner so he can say what he likes from that perspective. I think he's earned it, but it's up to us to try and prepare to win."