Leinster players dominated the starting pack selection for all three November internationals against Japan, New Zealand and Argentina and offered a wide variety of qualities throughout each game.

Seven Leinster forwards started the first two matches against Japan and New Zealand while the front row of Andrew Porter, Ronan Kelleher and Tadhg Furlong was a constant on the team sheet across all three games.

The Irish forward unit combined to score nine out of the nineteen tries the national side scored across the international break – all six forwards that got over the line in green will be back in blue in the coming weeks.

“They’ve kept up the trend really – the forwards are outdoing the backs by 3:1 [16-6] at Leinster here as well,” McBryde said.

“So whether it’s a sign of the times, a big shift in rugby or if the backs need to up their game – I don’t know what it is.

“It’s great to see that cohesion, both here at Leinster and with Ireland really, you know. I’m happy with just winning penalties or winning one against the head in the scrum and what have you but, you know, scoring tries – the more they can do, the better it reflects on the pack’s work really.”

McBryde also noted that he was impressed with other aspects of the forwards’ games during the international break, singling out the driving maul against Argentina.

Driving mauls and break-off runs from these mauls led to five of Ireland’s seven tries in Dublin at the weekend – both directly and indirectly.

On top of their excellence in scoring, the Irish forwards excelled with powerful carries that helped their side gain important metres – stats seen below are all via OptaJonny.

Caelan Doris topped the charts in the Autumn Nations Series with 36 carries to his name, while his teammate Jack Conan racked up 32 in two games – the pair’s numbers make up 45% of Ireland’s total in the three games (152).

Conan committed at least two tacklers from 19 of those carries and was a useful edge forward option in the first two games.

The two Leinster back rowers were also strong presences at rucks – Doris hit 99 rucks in total in the November Internationals, a total shared with Wales and Dragons flanker Taine Basham.

The evolution of forwards from solely three-man-pod crash-ball experts into mobile wide threats has been a trend several national teams have picked up on, including Andy Farrell’s Ireland.

Tadhg Furlong’s role as the wide player in the first pod of two in Ireland’s 1-3-2-2 attack underlines the threat of this tactic.

Furlong, arguably the world’s most complete tighthead, burst through defences several times in all three Autumn Nations Series games with the ball in his hands.

Josh Van Der Flier and Ronan Kelleher must also be commended for their carrying ability, as well as Ryan Baird who excelled against Argentina.

All forwards mentioned are on Leinster’s books and McBryde believes the multi-faceted ability of today’s packs is a huge asset for both province and country.

“You can’t rely on size alone, if you’ve got lemons, you make lemonade. You’re never gonna have the biggest pack ever – here in Leinster or in Ireland really – so you’re gonna have to play to your strengths and I think that’s what Ireland have done in the past month…”

“…that’s what the modern-day forward is all about really – being able to contribute around the field and obviously nailing the set-piece as well.”

Leinster return to action on Saturday night when they welcome Ulster to the RDS Arena for their first interprovincial clash of the season.

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The Irish international suffered a head injury in the national side’s 53-7 rout of Argentina at the weekend and has entered Leinster’s Return to Play protocols.

The second-rower will miss the team’s first interprovincial game of the season against Ulster on Saturday night but McBryde knows that it is for the best to put Ryan’s health first.

“We’ll be led by the medics. I don’t think it’s just confined to Leinster. It’s throughout world rugby at the moment with regards to trying to lessen these impacts and making sure that we look after the player. Put their health first,” McBryde said.

“You’ve just got to go through those protocols and trust that they’re in the best hands. I’m sure they are. We’ll just have to wait and see on that one.”

Leinster have a 10-game stretch on the horizon after the end of the international window and will tap into their depth throughout those ten weeks.

In the case of their first match of that block against Ulster, first-team players such as Ryan, Jack Conan (quad) and captain Jonathan Sexton (knee and ankle) will not be available for selection.

McBryde applauds the province’s strength-in-depth and believes it will shine positively on the most recent league champions in the coming weeks, with their European fixtures also set to kick-off soon.

“The guys back here have been working hard for this past month and I know they’re ready to take an opportunity if it comes their way.

“We’re fortunate that we’ve got good strength-in-depth, so we can afford to treat each individual case with regards to how much minutes they’ve played etc. Make sure they don’t get burn out.

“Because it’s going to be a busy schedule ahead of us, this next block of games for us. We’re into the interpros and then we’re into Europe.

“Back into the interpros and then they’re straight into the Six Nations after going back into Europe.

“It’s a big block of games, but we have got strength in depth. We’ve got quality. Hopefully, we’ll be able to manage everybody and make sure none of them get that burnt-out feeling.”

The game this week is Leinster’s first matchup of the United Rugby Championship’s new Irish Shield – points in this match go towards both the regular-season table and a smaller table with all four provinces.

Ulster come into the match against the unbeaten Pro 14 champions off the back of a heavy defeat to Connacht at the Aviva Stadium.

However, McBryde knows the quality of the opponent that his team are scheduled to face this weekend.

“They proved difficult in the last game we played them in the Rainbow Cup. They’re big men, they’ve got good go-forward.

“They carry hard, they make it really difficult for the opposition to get their game going as well.

“It will be a big test for us, but it will be hopefully one that we can stand up to and show some of the work we’ve done in the past month as well with these guys.

“We haven’t been standing still, we’ve been working on one or two things and hopefully we’ll see that come to the fore on Saturday.”

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