Brian O’Driscoll is passed fit to play the Springboks
Captain Brian O’Driscoll has been passed fit to play for Ireland against South Africa on Saturday, 6 November at the Aviva Stadium.
The British and Irish Lion will be able to play after under-going intensive treatment on a hamstring injury. The centre will now play alongside Leinster team-mate Gordon D’Arcy in the midfield position.
O’Driscoll was seen as a serious doubt for the international after he picked up a hamstring injury in Leinster’s Heineken Cup win against Racing Metro of France on 9 October.
The Irish captain is one of eight Leinster players in the team. In the back line, Tommy Bowe of the Ospreys is the only player who does not play for the Irish province.
Jonathan Sexton held off competition from Ronan O’Gara for the out-half position, while scrum-half Eoin Reddan will play because of Tomas O’Leary’s injury.
Keith Earls has also been passed fit to play and the versatile player may be included on the substitute bench. Earls, Andrew Trimble and Paddy Wallace will all wait to see who the Irish coach Declan Kidney will name as his last substitute for the Test match.
Kidney will be delighted that O’Driscoll will be able to play. The centre is both the catalyst for Ireland in terms of attack and defence and he is still renowned as the best outside centre in the world.
Ireland will be confident that they can record another victory over the Springboks who lost to Ireland 15-10 during last year’s Autumn Internationals at Dublin.
The team will still be without the British and Irish Lion captain Paul O’Connell, but with O’Driscoll back Ireland will go into the game against the World Cup winners in a confident mood.
If the captain manages to make it through the Test with South Africa he will be expected to start for the remaining Tests against Samoa, New Zealand and Argentina.
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