Twelve months ago, there was a fear in the air that Ireland would struggle to shake off their World Cup hangover as they prepared to travel to Marseille for their Guinness Six Nations opener away to France.
Ireland had traditionally been fast starters in campaigns under Andy Farrell's watch, but with Johnny Sexton retired and the World Cup exit still raw, an away trip to France felt like the last thing they wanted, and needed.
In the end, they exploded out of the blocks at Stade Velodrome that night, and their record-breaking 38-17 win is up there Ireland's best ever Six Nations outings.
They’ve struggled to hit those heights since, particularly early in campaigns. In their first Test defeat away to South Africa last summer they looked sluggish, while they were off the pace in their Autumn Nations Series opener against the All Blacks in November.
And with England coming to Aviva Stadium on Saturday in their 2025 Six Nations opener, Garry Ringrose knows another slow start could leave them chasing their tails across the remaining four games.
"I think we grew as the games went on," the centre says of their November campaign.
"It was disappointing to start with that result but each game there was new combinations, trying different things. Some worked, some didn't and we evolved as November went on and learned important lessons.
"Certainly the importance of starting well in any campaign and maybe going through that experience has made us narrow the focus. Not that we would have taken our eye off the ball but it sharpens the focus to make sure we prepare as well and start as well against England as we can."
It doesn't feel long ago that Ringrose was seen as the next Big Thing in Irish rugby, and the heir to Brian O’Driscoll’s 13 shirt. Now one of the experienced heads in the side, the Blackrock man is a father to six-month old boy, Freddie, and celebrated his 30th birthday yesterday while away on Ireland’s Algarve training camp.
And while he certainly isn't feeling like one of the "old" members of the squad, he believes experience has helped him appreciate his job that little bit more.
"I think about that sometimes. With experience you get comfortable in those occasions and there's benefits to that.
"You're not overwhelmed by some things, so on some of the big days and big games, I thankfully have been involved in a few of them, there's certain elements that you can brush aside and not factor in or even pay attention to, while also at the same time not for one second taking any of it for granted.
"Also, with the day-to-day and the mundane stuff, to make sure you don't take one part of it for granted at all. Simple stuff like being out here [in Portugal] with the group for 10 days or so, some of the places we get to travel to, some of the support we get to experience, even the nature of what we do and the different challenges each week," he added.
He got to experience one of those "different challenges" just last week, with a rare outing on the wing for Leinster in their Investec Champions Cup win against Bath (above).
The centre has often covered the right wing during games, but last week he started in the 14 shirt for the first time since the 2015/16 season, as Leo Cullen looked to find a way to fit Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw and Jordie Barrett into the same side.
"It was a humbling start when Bath scored their first try! I'm glad it happened early in the game anyway, it was like 'right, we're in it now', and it was good fun," he says of Bath’s opening try, where Ringrose was caught defending too narrowly.
"Defence-wise, what I'm lucky to have at 13 making defensive reads is a bit of a safety net if you get it wrong. I'd certainly rely heavily on my wingers in Ireland to cover my back when I do ultimately get it wrong and the same in Leinster.
"I think if I had my time back, [I would] read Finn Russell and the challenge he poses, read him a little bit better as to what his intention is before he gets the ball or certainly as he has the ball. So there would be a few things."
While Ireland come into this Six Nations campaign in fine health from a squad perspective, they will be navigating the championship without head coach Andy Farrell, who has handed the reins over to Simon Easterby (above) while he concentrates on the British and Irish Lions until the summer.
"Someone like Faz [Farrell] would be irreplaceable from that perspective, that he's just such a presence.
"But at the same time what has definitely been the case over the last couple of years is that all the coaches that are here as well would have a huge input on what's going on and it's been pretty seamless from that perspective, that I don't think anything is being missed in terms of making sure we're preparing as best as we can.
"Si [Easterby], Paulie [O’Connell], Fogs [John Fogarty] and Goody [Andrew Goodman] would all have such a voice in what's happening day to day and challenge us in training and after training, so from that perspective it's been seamless and it hasn't changed too much," he added.
