by Isa Nacewa.

The Nacewas are home but I miss the place where all my medals were won.

Honestly, I miss Leo Cullen the most!

The cold side of rugby means the game continues, with or without you, so someone unprepared for this reality is in for a shock. Retirement is a huge deal for the individual but people still involved only glance up, to say goodbye, before moving on.

It has to be this way. I’m okay with that.

My playing days have passed (the calf is finally recovering) but the strategic aspect of figuring opponents out on the field is an irreplaceable feeling.

I’m okay with that too.

What I really miss is the 6.30am arrival into Leinster every morning, walking straight into Leo’s office to chew the fat. He was always there.

People are seeing Leo Cullen mature into a top coach but he was exact the same person three years ago. To me, his perspective on the game, that ability to see the big picture, was evident when he was being hammered in the media after defeats to Toulon in his first season in charge. Leo stayed the course, knowing what talent was coming through, what additional coaching elements the club required and how a unique environment like Leinster is always going to struggle post World Cup. The same Leo could be found behind his desk after those agonising semi-final defeats last year as he was a few days after returning from Bilbao with the European cup.

Same man adapting to situations and planning ahead. Before most people wake, Leo is working away on what’s best for Leinster Rugby but people don’t see that. How could they? Guess I miss that privileged position.

Imagine I was sitting there this season? I’d only be in the way. It was the right time to leave, for my body, for my family and for Leinster to move on.

Another guy always visible in UCD at the crack of dawn is Charlie Higgins. You might not know Charlie, the club’s head of athletic performance, but this odd ball Aussie has been one of the most positive influences in Leinster for the past two years. Charlie arrived in Dublin via the Waratahs, Fiji, Bath and the Western Force, making an immediate impact around the place. We talk about Rocky Elsom, Scott Fardy, James Lowe, the first and second coming of Felipe Contepomi and Stuart Lancaster as crucial outside appointments but Higgins was a game changer.

Maybe it’s because Charlie doesn’t think like anyone else. He’s up at 4am every single day, quietly preparing ways to make us sharper. Again, people don’t see this so I feel privileged to have been amongst it all, especially considering my initial retirement from rugby was in 2013.

The return in 2015 certainly paid off. For a number of reasons.

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The injection of youth into Leinster’s starting XV undoubtedly helped to deliver the European and Pro14 double. What surprised me wasn’t the work ethic or talent of these young guys, rather the amount of them that came through together. Not since I first arrived in 2008 when Fergus McFadden’s gang, which included Dominic Ryan, Eoin O’Malley and Rhys Ruddock, did we have such an influx of ready-made players from the academy. Rory O’Loughlin, James Ryan, Dan Leavy, Adam Byrne, Luke McGrath and Joey Carbery forcing their way into European match day squads made Leinster a different proposition.