Fitting finale

Dublin braced for Ireland-England showdown

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By Brian O'Driscoll, Rugby World

WHICHEVER way this RBS Six Nations stacks up, one thing is for sure: it will end with a magnificent occasion at Lansdowne Road.

England will arrive in Dublin for that last match -- and what better way to finish such a great tournament.

It's how it ended in 2001 and on that occasion Ireland pulled off a famous win, albeit coming in the autumn after the first game was postponed due to foot and mouth.

I suppose if I had to get a win against any team in the world I would pick England. Not because they are the 'auld enemy' or anything like that, but because I feel they are the best team in the world at the moment.

And everyone knows that if you beat England you must be playing very well. They seem the toughest side to beat. We'll want to kill each other for 80 minutes but, especially because of the Lions tour, I have some great mates in the English side and it will all be quickly forgotten over a few drinks afterwards.

Whether either side -- or both -- is chasing the Grand Slam or not, it will be the sort of match that every player looks forward to.

We picked up two excellent wins in the first two rounds of this year's championship, but I think our schedule has shown that changes need to be made for future seasons.

We were asked to play away games on successive weekends and, with the advent of Sunday matches, that meant only six days between games in Edinburgh and Rome. And we had to go back to Dublin in between, so it made for a week of travelling. I know other sides suffered injury problems -- increased by the new condensed format -- but I wouldn't want any other side to have to go through that in future years.

What those problems did do, though, was show what great strength in depth we are developing in this Ireland squad. The call between whether Shane Horgan or Geordan Murphy started in the first game against Scotland was 50-50, and then when Shane was injured Geordy stepped in to play superbly. Both guys are fantastic players.

In those first two games I think the second row and back row, particularly the unsung guys like Gary Longwell and Malcolm O'Kelly, really stood out and gave me and others the platform to score the tries.

The pack have ensured that we're going forward, which is what you need when you try and play the expansive style we crave.

I know people in England can't understand when Geordy isn't playing every game for Ireland, but I don't think he is penalised for playing in England. Leicester are on the television so much over here and Eddie O'Sullivan covers so many miles every season, watching everyone who's in the frame.

The rest of the team are making my job far easier as this is the first Six Nations campaign with me as captain. Most of my role takes place in the week running up to the game, but when it starts we have two, three or four guys leading by example, and particularly Anthony Foley, my lieutenant on the field.

I think the media make a little too much of the captaincy issue anyway. Former Ireland coach Warren Gatland criticised my appointment recently, but he's entitled to his opinion and it's like water off a duck's back to me. Most of us are so critical of our own performances anyway and if I need another critic I will always approach my coach, as you know you'll get a straight answer from him.

Brian O'Driscoll is captain of Ireland.

 

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