Max Deegan made his Ireland debut in the 2020 Six Nations and looked ready made for that level.
Two years on, the appearance against Wales remains his only Test cap.
Deegan suffered an ACL injury in October 2020 and was out for a year, before making his return for Leinster last October
The back row has made 10 appearances since but only his second start of the season - and first 80 minute showing - came in last week's URC victory over Edinburgh.
For the 25-year-old, it's another step back towards another Ireland cap.
"It's a complicated injury," said Deegan. "It came back, it kind of reacted, as expected.
"I was getting a bit stiff, achy and things like that so I probably wasn't playing my best rugby at the start of the year but then kind of got back into the swing of things."
Competition for back row involvement in Leinster is so fierce, of course, but with the Six Nations on, Caelan Doris, Josh van der Flier and Jack Conan are unavailable to their province.
For Deegan, a series of rearranged games in the coming five weeks is a welcome chance to re-assert himself. Next up is Saturday night's home tie against Ospreys at the RDS Arena.
"Like, there's so much competition, being behind Jack and Caelan for that block of those European games, I was OK with that at the time," he said.
"But now I’ve got the chance to start and the chance to put in 80 minute performances, that’s really what I’m looking for now in this block of four or five games."
And the knee? "I don't have to think about it at all now, whether it's training or a match, which is a big thing," he admitted.
"At the start of the year I'd still have had a little bit of a feeling in it.
"It was always in the back of my mind, not massively, but sometimes you might get a bang on it during a game and you're like 'Oh God, what was that?'.
"Once you've two, three, four games under your belt, I think I'm well immersed in it. I don't feel like I'm playing catch-up at the moment.
"It's feeling great and I can just focus 100% on my performance which is ideal."
Playing for Ireland seems like a good bit off still. But Deegan could come onto Andy Farrell's radar for the summer or next Autumn if he can build back to his best form.
"I haven't really set a target, to be honest with you," Deegan insisted. "Like, Leinster is unbelievably competitive, the Leinster back row is the Ireland back row.
"I'm focused on getting back in the team at Leinster, getting in the mix there. If I'm in the mix there and playing well, hopefully I'll be in the mix for Ireland as well.
"I haven't put any markers or goals down for that. I think if I can go well in these games and put my stamp down then maybe I can start thinking about green jerseys.
"But at the moment I'm just focussing on Leinster and my own performances."
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
