With Sunday’s RaboDirect Pro 12 Final, the end of an era has finally been reached. The professional career of the great Brian O’Driscoll has come to a close. The Irish centre is undoubtedly one of the best players ever. He’s captained Leinster, Ireland and the British and Irish Lions in 2005. O’Driscoll is the highest-scoring non-winger of all time, and has the record for the most ever 6 Nations tries with 26. But now, the time has come for the 35-year-old, rugby’s most-capped player (he has 141 international test matches under his belt), to hang up the boots.
Leinster’s 34-12 victory over the Glasgow Warriors gave them their second Pro 12 championship in as many years. Unfortunately, Drico was forced out of the match just eight minutes in with an injury, putting a damper on what was supposed to be his swan song. Nevertheless, the RDS crowd was sure to thank him for his years of service with thunderous applause. On a personal note, my eyes began to mist up when he went on stage to accept his winner’s medal.
So, the time has come to say goodbye to one of the most iconic players of this era. We will never again see his astounding displays of strength, speed and bravery. so, what better way to pay tribute to him than to relive the most memorable moments of his career?
5. 2009 Heineken Cup Semi-Final – Brian O’Driscoll’s Brilliant Interception
In May of 2009, O’Driscoll’s Leinster side were matched against rivals Munster in a European Cup match to take place in Croke Park. The lads in blue held off the Munster attack for the whole match, going on to win 25-6. This game was a brilliant team effort, and O’Driscoll was right in dedicating his man-of-the-match award to the whole squad, however it’ll always be remembered for the centre’s unbelievable 70-metre try.
Munster’s Ronan O’Gara (another Irish legend) received the pass out of the ruck, and hesitated just a second too long before attempting a long pass out to Paul O’Connell. O’Driscoll keenly picked it out of the air, by which point there was nothing to be done to stop him running the length of the pitch and scoring under the posts.
The win in this semi-final put Leinster in their first ever Heineken Cup final, in which the boys in blue triumphed 19-16 over Leicester Tigers.
4. 2001 Lions Tour to Australia – “Give Me the Ball and I’ll Score”
The 2001 Lions tour was one of the breakout moments early in O’Driscoll’s career; one of his last steps to becoming an undisputed international superstar. At the start of the second half in the first test in Brisbane, the Dubliner received a pass from his out-half Jonny Wilkinson. Catching the ball with considerable speed, he broke straight through the Wallaby line of three defenders, sidestepped the fullback Matt Burke and evaded the late tackle attempts to score. The try has gone down as one of the best in Lions history, and as one of the best of O’Driscoll’s career. In the words of commentator Stuart Barnes, it was “genius”. Later, when asked about it, Wilkinson said that O’Driscoll had told him, “give me the ball and I’ll score”.
Unfortunately, the rest of the tour didn’t go quite as well, as the first was the only test won by the Northern tourists. However, this game really represented O’Driscoll introducing himself to the Southern Hemisphere with a bang.
3. 2014 6 Nations – The Legend’s Last Hurrah
When it was announced that the 2014 6 Nations tournament would be O’Driscoll’s last, Ireland fans were more eager than ever for their boys in green to finally reclaim the title. And reclaim it they did, as Ireland dominated Scotland, Italy and a very good Welsh side. In O’Driscoll’s final match in Ireland, the team’s penultimate round of the tournament against Italy, he was thanked by fans at the Aviva with a standing ovation, and was rightly named man of the match.
Then, it all came down to the final round. If Ireland won in France – something they hadn’t done for 14 years – then the title was theirs. Trailing by a point at half-time, the Irish squad and O’Driscoll played a cracking final 40, and held off France’s comeback attempt to survive with a 2-point victory (22-20). Drico received his second man of the match award in a row as he was granted the perfect ending to an absolutely brilliant career. On the week of St. Patrick’s Day, Irish fans celebrated jubilantly as they bid their fond farewell to a legend.
2. 2000 6 Nations – Making a Name for Himself
At the 2000 Six Nations tournament, O’Driscoll really burst on to the scene of international rugby. Winning in Paris has always been, as I already mentioned, a daunting task for Ireland. However, history meant nothing to the 21-year-old Brian O’Driscoll. Having already been sent in under the posts for one try, he was instrumental in pushing Ireland to come back from being down 19-7, 53 minutes in. He stunned the entire world by scoring two more tries, becoming the eighth Irishman to score an international hat trick, and propelling the boys in green to a shocking 27-25 victory. This unbelievable display quickly turned O’Driscoll into a national hero back at home.
Although Ireland didn’t win the championship, the future certainly looked bright for them, because of the emerging star in the number 13 jersey.
1. 2009 6 Nations – Oh Captain, My Captain
Other than perhaps the World Cup, there are few accomplishments in rugby more impressive than a Grand Slam Six Nations championship. To do it, a team needs something very special. In 2009, Brian O’Driscoll, as captain, was just that for Ireland.
The Irish side opened the tournament with an emphatic 30-21 win in Dublin against France, featuring a lovely 43rd-minute try from the man himself. Next, an interception in Ireland’s second round match in Rome led to O’Driscoll’s brilliant 80-metre try, and his squad’s 38-9 triumph. Back in Dublin the following week, the crucial tie with England came right down to the wire. Ronan O’Gara had missed crucial kicks, so O’Driscoll took matters into his own hands, with a drop goal and a try to push his side past their rivals, 14-13. After beating Scotland 25-22 at Murrayfield, the stage was set for Ireland to claim their first Grand Slam since 1948. The only thing standing in their way was an intimidating Welsh side in Cardiff.
Down 6-0 at half-time, Ireland required a strong start to get back in the game. O’Driscoll delivered. After a breakdown right on the Welsh try line, O’Driscoll, somehow, summoned the power to pick the ball out and drive over. It required the TMO, but all of Ireland breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that their captain had pushed over the line, and that the try had been awarded.
O’Gara regained his form in that game, helping Ireland squeak past Wales 17-15. O’Driscoll had finally won his first Six Nations title – in wonderful fashion – cementing his status as a national hero.
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