Tough start: Tomas O'Leary
Irish scrum-half Tomas O'Leary says he has no regrets about swapping Munster for the Madejski Stadium.
The 28-year-old had been a Munster stalwart before moving on. But things have not started well in Reading with a just one win out of five claimed.
Last week's 35-11 loss at Worcester followed their first victory of the season at Bath the week before but O'Leary insists the mood is upbeat.
"I have no regrets about the move," said O'Leary.
"It's been a tough start in terms of results but it's a long, hard season, there are no easy games in the Premiership. I'm enjoying the competitive nature of the games. It's a fresh start for me, it's the first time I've moved clubs but the boys have made it very easy to settle in and they've made me feel really welcome.
"I felt I needed a new challenge, things didn't go too well for me at Munster last season and one of the reasons I left was to come and challenge myself.
"I had a great few years at Munster, we won the Heineken Cup and a few league titles which was obviously a great experience. It was a privilege to have played for them.
"Hopefully if we can be a bit more consistent at Irish we can get a similar sort of success."
Despite the loss at Sixways it was the Exiles who made the brighter start with a try from number eight Ofisa Treviranus before the hosts ran away with it in the second half.
And while international O'Leary admits there are positives to take from their most recent fixture, he wants to see a concerted 80-minute performance put in on a regular basis.
"I suppose we had put ourselves in a position to win the game, we were pleased with the opening 20 minutes or so but we fell apart towards the end and let them in for a couple of easy tries," he added.
"We had a good start but for whatever reason we didn't perform, we need to play for the entire 80 minutes on a consistent basis.
"It was disappointing because there was a lot of confidence in training after the win at Bath, we were looking forward to the game but we have to try and get back on the horse this weekend against Northampton Saints."
Comments
Gleek says...
Always thought Munster should have done with O'Leary what Sale/Northampton did with Foden and convert him to a full back. He is a decent rugby player and an excellent athlete - just does not have the decision making to play 9 at the highest level. Possibly too late for London Irish to attempt a renaissance.
Posted 22:44 03rd October 2012