I first played there straight out of school as an 18-year-old second-row forward playing for UCC. I learned more that day than a modern academy lock would glean in a month of current instruction.

Hard-nosed “Cookies” forwards, such as Richie Daly, Mick Sheehan and Jim McNamara were in their prime and loved nothing more than to introduce promising college forwards, with burgeoning reputations, to the reality of Munster club rugby. If you could survive and thrive there, you were well on the road towards greater honours. Education comes in many different forms.

By the time I left college and joined “Cons”, as they like to call us in Limerick, I had progressed to the ranks of Munster and Ireland, with several visits over the intervening seasons to Greenfields contributing handsomely to my rugby development.

The important role the league still plays was highlighted again last weekend by the presence of Kevin O’Byrne, the unsung hero of Munster’s win over Leicester Tigers at Welford Road. He was called upon after injury ruled out both Niall Scannell and Rhys Marshall, in the middle of the Con front row. Yes, our clubs still have a valuable role to play in Irish rugby.

Heading into the clubhouse after Saturday’s encounter, it was impossible to miss the life-sized mural of the club’s most famous son, former Ireland and Lions captain Paul O’Connell, that adorns the stairway to the upstairs bar. It set me thinking.

The role of the modern day second row has changed enormously since I hung up my boots. There was no armchair ride with lifting in the lineout and a penalty every time an opponent lays a finger anywhere near you in the air. What a luxury that would have been back then.

Lifting comes at a price, however, as you are now expected to contribute so much more than just being a primary ball-winner. You must make your presence felt in the loose and are held as accountable as any midfield back in terms of making meaningful tackles. In addition to your responsibilities as a ball carrier and a support player at the breakdown, you are now tasked with developing your skills as a link player and decision-maker in attack.

In that respect, the game has evolved even in the brief period since O’Connell departed the scene. New Leinster sensation James Ryan represents the latest incarnation. New Zealand’s highly influential lock Brodie Retallick changed the ground rules over the last few years by augmenting the basic set-piece requirements of the role in the scrum, at the lineout and at restarts with his ability to operate as a playmaker in broken play.

In the same way that every new Irish centre is unfairly tagged the “new Brian O’Driscoll”, Ryan is now been labelled the “new O’Connell”. From the time I saw Ryan play with the Irish U20 side, it was clear at first viewing that he was the real deal. His towering presence at 6’ 8”, flexibility in the air, soft hands in possession and ability to generate forward momentum in the tackle signalled him out as an international in waiting. It didn’t take long, and a try within minutes of his arrival on the international stage — before he had made his Leinster debut — against USA last summer only served to confirm the promise.

He is a different animal than O’Connell, however. Firstly, he is far too angelic looking to be compared to Paulie. The Limerick colossus learned quickly while serving his apprenticeship with Young Munster, straight from Ardscoil Rís, and thrived in the physical environment that came with every club training session. He loved it and thirsted for physical confrontation in his early days.

Ryan is naturally more athletic and far more comfortable on the ball than O’Connell was at a similar age. His arrival could not be better timed, given the desire and necessity for Joe Schmidt to expand the way Ireland play.

Schmidt needs more of his forwards to become decision makers in possession. Retallick was the first lock to appear relaxed in the pivot role at international level, making key decisions whether to carry himself, pop off to a support runner in the front line or effect a screen pass behind that runner to feed a second line of attack.

Devin Toner has become increasingly influential operating in that role over the last two seasons and made eight passes in the game against Italy last time out. Toner lacks the natural athleticism that Ryan brings to the party and, with Iain Henderson equally gifted in that department, has found himself on the bench in the big games against Argentina and France recently, despite his excellent form for Leinster this season.

The 2019 World Cup is at the forefront of Schmidt’s thinking at all times and, as a result, he is fast-tracking the development of Ryan and Henderson, who, right now, represent his first-choice, second-row partnership for that tournament. As a pairing, they offer massive potential.

Fitness permitting, those two, along with Toner, will all see game time against Wales on Saturday, when they will come face-to-face with one of the most gifted and consistent performers in the game in Welsh captain Alun Wyn Jones.

Now in his testimonial year, he is set to win his 116th Welsh cap this weekend. Alongside him — a relative novice and one of the much-maligned “Geography Six” from the Lions tour? — is Cory Hill, who, to be fair, has enjoyed a good tournament and suits the free-flowing game Wales are now chasing.

Having played in the second row with O’Connell on successive Lions tours in 2009 and 2013, Alun Wyn will be more than aware of the accolades being tossed Ryan’s way and will be keen to halt his march if their paths cross on Saturday.

He will also have noted the qualities that Henderson brings to the position, having spent seven weeks with him in New Zealand last summer.

On a day when a favourable weather forecast looks set to shift the spotlight to some really exciting, broken-field runners in Keith Earls, Jacob Stockdale, Liam Williams, Steff Evans and George North, spare a thought and a trained eye on the input of the respective second rows on show. They are likely to prove every bit as influential in deciding this one.