It has been a difficult transition for the Leinster No.8 with Ireland’s squad decimated by injury, with among others fly-half Jonathan Sexton forced to watch from the sidelines.

It is also a time of change for the Ireland squad with Kidney making some big calls during the Championship, including the decision to omit veteran fly-half Ronan O’Gara from the squad for this weekend’s clash with France at the Aviva Stadium.

But, while others may be questioning Heaslip’s leadership, Kidney is adamant he has stood up to be counted.

“When things aren’t going as well as you want them to, you push the comments that are out there to one side and get on with your job,” he said.

“Jamie has done that and done it very well. There’s a bit of adversity around the place and it’s the measure of a man as to how he deals with that.

“Jamie’s making strong decisions for us and all we need to do is execute on those decisions. In rugby terms this has been the most challenging Six Nations I’ve experienced.

“The frustrating thing is that we’ve put ourselves in positions to win matches. As a result of not taking one or two chances, we are where we are.”