The 2024/25 season has been a mixed one so far for Dave Heffernan.
The 33-year-old has been in career-best form this season, but that has been offset by a frustrating time in Ireland camp in November.
A seven-cap international, he had been tipped by many to be Ireland's first-choice hooker during the November internationals when Rónan Kelleher and Rob Herring came into the campaign carrying injuries, while Dan Sheehan was sidelined with a long-term knee injury.
In the end, the Connacht veteran was the only member of the Ireland squad who didn't see any game time, with Andy Farrell giving an opportunity to young Leinster prospect Gus McCarthy, while Kelleher and Herring recovered just in time for the opening game of the month against the All Blacks.
A major factor in that disappointment was missing out on getting another cap in Ireland.
Looking back on his seven previous caps, it’s worth noting when and where they came.
Of his five caps at Aviva Stadium, four of those came in an empty stadium during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, while the other was in front of a crowd of just 6,000 when the restrictions were eased in the summer of 2021.
His only Ireland appearances in front of a real crowd were against the USA away from home in 2017, and Ireland's first Test defeat in New Zealand in 2022.
"Obviously I’m very disappointed with it. I’d love to have played a proper home game at the Aviva Stadium, it would have been class.
"Very disappointing, but that’s life sometimes, and in fairness to Gus [McCarthy] he did unbelievably well when he got in there, as did Rob and Rónan.
"There’s constant dialogue there, and I think they have been pretty happy with how I have been playing, but I think they just wanted to look to the future and try someone new.
"That seemed to be the path they were heading down. In terms of my own play, they seemed to be reasonably happy with it, but they just wanted to go down a different route which is completely fair as well."
Heffernan (above), who turns 34 next month, has played more than 200 games for Connacht since coming through the province’s academy, and he admits his international frustrations will weigh on his mind as he gets closer to deciding on his future.
"My contract is up at the end of the season, and I’d love to finish out my career here.
"The Ireland stuff... does it play a role? Of course it does. It’s something that I’ll think about when the time comes.
"Look, I’ve been pretty happy with how I’ve been playing this year. I thought I had a good start to the season, a solid performance at the weekend there.
"I think I’m playing a bit more free. I’m trying to not get in my own way, or put too much pressure on myself, trying to have a better understanding of the game as well.
"That happens a bit naturally as you get a bit older, but it’s something I would have put a big focus on last season.
"I think my game has grown a lot over the last year. I just need to keep pushing on and doing everything I can possibly do."
Heffernan’s Christmas came early this year, when the province announced on Monday that it would be playing the BKT United Rugby Championship Interpro against Munster in March at Hastings Insurance MacHale Park in Castlebar (below).
A Mayo native, Heffernan played Gaelic Football with Ballina Stepehnites until minor level before concentrating on rugby. And he says it will be a dream come true if he’s able to tog out at the home of Mayo GAA when they bring Munster to Castlebar on 29 March.
"It’s going to be pretty special. Gaelic Football was a huge part of my life growing up and it had always been a dream of mine to play for Mayo and play for them in MacHale Park but I never got to do that.
"The door closed for me there but hopefully now I can get the chance if selected. We’ll see what happens, I would love to play there, it would be a very special game for me.
"Gaelic Football was my first sport growing up. David Brady was my hero, he only lived down the road from me there and my dad would have played with Liam McHale as well.
"I wouldn't go so far as to say it was an illustrious underage career, but I played with Ballina Stephenites up to minor level and I did play in MacHale Park, we won an under-16 county championship there."
While Heffernan took the route into rugby after going to school in Blackrock College in Dublin, his family have deep roots in the GAA.
His father Ivan played in goals for Mayo, and won an All Ireland U21 title with the county in 1974, while his uncle Niall also played for the county, and managed Ballina to the county championship in 2023 and 2024.
And Heffernan says this week’s announcement from Connacht will be extra special for people like his father, who was also a stalwart in the back row for Ballina RFC, and had a huge influence on his career.
"He played both sports for most of his life. He obviously played for all the Mayo underage teams, he did win an All-Ireland under-21. He won a couple of Sigersons with UCD as well.
"He was always my hero growing up, he still is. And that's probably why I wanted to play for Mayo as well from a young age.
"But there was never any pressure from him in terms of which way [rugby or GAA], he just kind of said, 'whoever forces you to make the decision, go the opposite way’.
"And it kind of did come to a fork in the road where the Gaelic side of things were saying, 'Look, we need you to make a commitment, one way or the other'.
"And, obviously, with rugby, you've got a very short window from underage to academy to try and go pro, so I just went with the rugby at that stage, not knowing what would come of it.
"It'll be a special occasion for everyone involved in in rugby in Mayo, but especially for the guys who have been involved in both sports."
