Size isn’t everything.

Garry Ringrose made a hugely successful return in a green jersey this past weekend, with a stunning performance in Ireland’s win over Scotland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

The young centre has struggled with injury in recent months, undergoing shoulder surgery, before damaging his ankle soon after making his return for Leinster a few weeks back.

He hadn’t worn an Ireland jersey since last June, but it was as if he had never left. One thing has changed a little though, and that’s Ringrose’s physique. The centre has bulked up since his last outing under Joe Schmidt, but it’s not something he’s keep to continue doing.

“It was a bit tricky for the first couple of months with my shoulders, but I was in the gym doing whatever S &C I could, and then when I was out with the ankle it gave me the opportunity to bulk up a little bit,” Ringrose said after the win over Scotland.

“I didn’t get too distracted with it, it’s certainly not the kind of player I am, being an overly big one. So still trying to get skills sessions in was the main focus and then, when I got the opportunity, to work on my fitness and strength stuff.”

Ringrose says he takes inspiration from Munster winger and Ireland teammate Keith Earls, who has openly discussed his problems with physique over the years. Earls has admitted he became obsessed with getting bigger in the past. He ended up losing some form, and was compounded with a number of injuries.

These days Earls is much lighter and happy with his size. He’s now playing some of his best rugby to date as a result.

“I think someone like Keith Earls is an inspiration for me, he’s not the biggest guy but he’s one of the most effective on the pitch.

“So personally I wouldn’t get too distracted by the number on a weighing scales, it’s kind of a combination of loads of different things but it adds to a complete player, so I was just trying to tick off as much as I could within the parameters.”