Josh van der Flier would want to be careful.
The last thing the 2022 World Rugby player of the year needs is to get a reputation as an impact sub.
Leinster were "clunky", according to senior coach Jacques Nienaber, for large spells of the weekend's URC win over Dragons but impetus arrived when Van der Flier came on for his first appearance of the season in the 62nd minute.
Within 30 seconds of landing he had completed a tackle and busied four defenders with a bullocking run in midfield. They scored three tries in the remaining 18 minutes of the 34-6 victory.
Last season, Van der Flier started three of his side's most important games on the bench, with Will Connors preferred at openside for their two Champions Cup games against La Rochelle and the final against Toulouse, in which Van der Flier scored Leinster's only try of the 31-22 defeat.
For Ireland boss Andy Farrell, the Wicklow man remains one of the first names on the team sheet.
The 31-year-old had the 7 jersey for 10 of their last 11 Tests, the one exception being a run off the bench against Italy in the second round of the Six Nations.
"I'm happy where I'm put, I suppose, but my obvious preference is playing all the games, starting the games and that's what I've been most used to.
"Last year I probably played a few games off the bench for, kind of, eh, different reasons, and yeah, it's a hard one because you want to make a big impact but you need to make sure you are doing it when you are playing from the start.
"Whenever you are playing off the bench, whatever area you are good at, it's easier to be good at because everyone else is tired.
"At the end of the game you could play 20 minutes, do exactly the same thing as you would have done at the start of the game and you end up with a few big carries and a couple of turnovers and a few big tackles because people are tired and a bit sluggish.
"It's part of the game."
While Van der Flier was "thrilled" to return to action, he did reveal that the 13-month 2023/24 season, including a World Cup back in September and a Test series in South Africa last July, took its toll.
"I'd five weeks off in total," said Van der Flier, who has 64 Irish caps, of his summer holidays.
"We were still doing a bit and keeping fit but for the first four weeks I was like, I don't know how I'm going to be ready to play a season, mentally, to go through it again.
"I think it was 13 months in the end from starting pre-season last year to finishing the season.
"But by the fifth week I was itching to get back.
"Having that break allowed me to freshen up because at the end of last season my body felt really great but mentally it's hard.
"Especially the training because you always get yourself up for matches, they are all big games but when you are constantly training, training, training, I suppose mentally that can be difficult enough in a long season.
"But I'm feeling fresh now... and excited to crack into another season."
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