Brian O'Driscoll touch and go for final – Rugby News Update
Brian O’Driscoll, the 33-year-old Leinster and Irish centre, is fighting against time to be fit in time for his team's Heineken Cup final against Ulster, on Saturday at Twickenham.
Leinster is gunning for back-to-back European titles and they would want their talisman to play a part in reaching their quest, as he is considered one of the most dangerous players in world rugby, both offensively and defensively.
The Leinster team is hoping that the 33-year-old recovers with rest and he will be able to join in training later this week before the crucial game.
“We are just going to give him a rest for the next couple of days and hopefully he will be up fully and running by Thursday," explained coach Joe Schmidt. "He is one of the most resilient men I have met and one of the most competitive people I know. He will
want to be there."
The Dublin-born O’Driscoll was destined for greatness from an early age, and his impressive performances for Ireland Schools, U19 and U21 levels, earning him his first international cap in 1999 against Australia at Brisbane on June 12, 1999.
Schmidt has other injury concerns to contend with as well. O’Driscoll's partner in the centre for Leinster, Gordon D'Arcy, has a damaged eye after clashing with one of his teammates during their game against Glasgow. He will also be assessed over the next
few days to see how his eye responds.
For this all important clash they will want O’Driscoll, the 117 time capped Ireland player, who has also represented the British and Irish Lions 6 times. He is the record Irish try scorer with 245 points. The fact is also not lost on the coach, who feels
this is the most important week of the season.
"We'll see who can train on Monday, it'll be a bit of a walk-through put together against Ulster. Tuesday we'll try to train a bit and really up-tempo training will be on Thursday.”
Come the final, all the players will be focused on the match, and they will want to take back the trophy to Leinster.
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