Brian O'Driscoll

Brian O'Driscoll

Full name	Brian Gerald O'Driscoll
Date of birth	21 January 1979 (1979-01-21)
Place of birth	Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	95 kg (14 st 13 lb)
School	Blackrock College
University	University College Dublin
Rugby union career
Playing career
Position	Centre
Professional / senior clubs
Years	Club / team	Caps	(points)
	UCD Blackrock College Barbarians
correct as of 2007-09-15.
Provincial/State sides
Years	Club / team	Caps	(points)
1999–present	Leinster	151	(271)
correct as of 21 Aug 2011.
National team(s)
Years	Club / team	Caps	(points)
1999–present 2001, 2005, 2009 2000-2004	Ireland Lions Barbarians	117 6 3	(240) (5) (5)
correct as of 11 Dec 2011.

Brian Gerald O'Driscoll (born 21 January 1979) is an Irish professional rugby union player. He is the current captain of the Ireland Rugby team and captained Leinster Rugby until the start of 2008 season. He also captained the British and Irish Lions for their 2005 tour of New Zealand. Registered at University College Dublin RFC, he plays at outside centre for the Irish provincial team Leinster. O'Driscoll was chosen as Player of the Tournament in the 2006, 2007 and 2009 RBS Six Nations Championships.

O'Driscoll has 123 Test caps, 117 for Ireland (80 as captain), and 6 for the British and Irish Lions. During this time he has scored 45 tries for Ireland and 1 try for the Lions in 2001, making him the highest try scorer of all time in Irish Rugby. He is 8th-highest try scorer in rugby union history, and the highest scoring centre of all time. O'Driscoll holds the Six Nations record for most tries scored with 25. He has scored the most Heineken Cup tries (30) for an Irishman. He is widely regarded as one of the best centres of all time.

Early life

O'Driscoll was born in Clontarf on Dublin's Northside to Frank and Geraldine O'Driscoll, both general practitioner doctors.^{[citation needed]} He also has two older sisters Julie and Susan.^{[citation needed]} As a child he played Gaelic football before moving to rugby. He went to Primary School in Clontarf, attending Belgrove Junior Boys and Senior Boys Schools.^{[citation needed]} For his secondary education he attended Blackrock College where he played in the Senior Cup team. He was capped three times for Ireland Schools in 1996. In 1998, O'Driscoll played for the Ireland U-19 side, which also included his senior teammates Donncha O'Callaghan and Paddy Wallace, which won the Under 19 Rugby World Championship. After leaving school, he attended UCD on a scholarship. At UCD, under the respected director John McClean, he first made the under-20 side, before being promoted to the top team near the end of his first year. After two years, O'Driscoll graduated from UCD with a diploma in sports management. He made his Ireland under-21 debut in February 1999, and eventually gained four caps.

Leinster

O'Driscoll made his debut for Leinster in 1999, and under head coach Matt Williams and backs coach Alan Gaffney he became an explosive force in the Leinster backline. In 2001, Leinster won the inaugural Celtic League beating Munster in Lansdowne Road. In 2003, Leinster were heavy favourites for that year's Heineken Cup but were beaten by Perpignan in the semi finals.

Following the semi final defeat, Gaffney left for the head coaching job in Munster whilst Williams became the Scottish national coach. In 2004, Leinster failed to make the knock out stages of the competition with new head coach Gary Ella and following the season Ella would leave the post. Declan Kidney, former Munster coach came into the job in 2005. However, a heavy home quarter-final defeat to Leicester Tigers was followed by the departure of Kidney back to Munster.

10 November 2007. Leinster Rugby v Leicester Tigers in Heineken Cup

Leinster appointed Michael Cheika in the summer of 2005 and despite rumours of O'Driscoll moving to France, O'Driscoll agreed to another year in Ireland. That year, O'Driscoll returning from a shoulder injury suffered on the Lions tour, would assume the captaincy for the season. Under backs coach David Knox and the movement of Argentine international Felipe Contepomi to fly half, the Leinster back line became one of the most potent in Europe, complete with many notable international players. With centre partner Gordon D'Arcy, wings Denis Hickie and Shane Horgan along with full back Girvan Dempsey, the backline would put in strong performances in the Magners League and in Europe. O'Driscoll excelled in wins over Bath Rugby and Toulouse away from home. These victories would set up an Heineken Cup semi-final in Lansdowne Road against Munster, but defeat against the eventual champions Munster would deny O'Driscoll and his team a final berth. Leinster were also denied a Magners League title, with David Humphreys of Ulster slotting an injury time drop goal to give victory to Ulster in their final game of the season.

2007 and 2008 would once again prove difficult for Leinster in Europe. In 2007, Wasps beat them in the quarter-finals. In 2008, Leinster lost in the group stages. Indifferent Heineken Cup form, however, was not replicated in the league. In 2007, Leinster would once again come to the final hurdle of the league only to be denied by the Ospreys and Cardiff. In 2008, Leinster won the title ahead of Munster, marking O'Driscoll's second honour with the province, his first and only as captain.

The 2008–2009 season marked a shift in focus for O'Driscoll. Despite retaining the Irish captaincy under new coach Declan Kidney, he handed the honour of Leinster captain to Leo Cullen. Leinster began with inconsistent league form and in Europe. O'Driscoll scored two tries in the defeat of English champions London Wasps, but was followed by away defeats for Leinster to both London Wasps and Castres. Despite these defeats, Leinster advanced to the quarter-finals to face Harlequins in the Twickenham Stoop. When O'Driscoll was absent through injury in April 2009, Leinster relinquished their Magners League crown to Munster at Thomond Park. Against Harlequins, Leinster scored a 6–5 victory, the game infamous for the bloodgate incident.

The semi-final against rivals Munster in Croke Park, a 82,206 sell out, a world record club attendance. O'Driscoll was awarded the man of the match award (which he later dedicated to the entire team) after an intercept try completed a convincing win for Leinster and sending O'Driscoll to his first final. Leinster captured the Heineken Cup against a team who had previously defeated them in the knockout stages, Leicester Tigers on 23 May 2009. The 19–16 Heineken Cup victory included a drop goal from O'Driscoll who was suffering from a shoulder injury.

In the 2010–2011 season, O'Driscoll won his second Heineken Cup with Leinster. Having been injured in a Magners League game one week before the final, O'Driscoll was a major doubt, but he recovered sufficiently and was named in the starting XV. In the final held at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff on 21 May 2011, Leinster came from behind to defeat Northampton 33–22.

International Rugby

Ireland

B.O'D. captaining Ireland vs Georgia in the 2007 RWC

In 1999, O'Driscoll was selected for the senior squad and was on the bench for a match against Italy (this was not a Six Nations match as Italy did not enter the competition until the following year), although he did not play. He won his first Test cap at age 20 on 12 June 1999 in a 46–10 loss to Australia in Brisbane as part of the tour of Australia. Since then, he has established himself as one of rugby's top outside centres. O'Driscoll played for Ireland before he played for the senior Leinster team. In 2000, O'Driscoll scored a Hat-trick of tries in a Six Nations Championship victory against France in Paris, propelling Ireland to their first win in Paris since 1972.

O'Driscoll's popularity in Ireland was expressed by supporters wearing T-shirts bearing the motto "In BOD We Trust" (a play on "In God We Trust", the phrase that appears on all United States currency and coinage). In 2002, O'Driscoll starred in Irelands 18–9 win over Australia, the first Irish victory over the Wallabies since 1979. In 2003, following the international retirement of long-time Ireland captain Keith Wood, he was awarded the captaincy. In that year, O'Driscoll led Ireland to second place in the Six Nations Championship. This was followed by Triple Crowns in 2004 (Ireland's first crown since 1985), 2006 and 2007. In 2004, O'Driscoll captained Ireland to a 17–12 victory over South Africa, the first Irish win over the Springboks since 1965.

In 2009, O'Driscoll was again selected as captain, leading Ireland to win the Triple Crown, Six Nations Championship and their first Grand Slam in 61 years. He scored a try in every match except one, culminating in a 17–15 victory in Cardiff in which O'Driscoll again scored a try and was the RBS man of the match. On 27 March 2009, he was named as player of the 2009 Six Nations Championship. O'Driscoll won a fans' online poll ahead of runner-up, Italy back-row Sergio Parisse, and Ireland lock Paul O'Connell who came third. In May 2009, he was named the Bord Gáis Energy IRUPA Players' Player of the Year for the past season.

On 15 November 2009, in a 20–20 draw against Australia at Croke Park, O'Driscoll scored a last minute try. The next day, he was named as one of the seven nominations for the 2009 International Rugby Board player of the year, but, to much criticism, he controversially missed out to Richie McCaw for this title by a solitary point.

O'Driscoll started for and captained Ireland for every match during the 2010 Six Nations Championship. He picked up his 100th test cap for Ireland against Wales in the Millennium Stadium. He scored his 40th test try against New Zealand on 12 June 2010.

He started every match for Ireland in the 2010 Autumn Tests, and bested the Four/Five/Six Nations record for tries scored against England in March 2011.

O'Driscoll has played for Ireland in the last three World Cups (13 caps, 6 tries). He became Ireland's most capped player on 26 June 2010 against Australia, winning his 103rd cap.

In the 2011 Six Nations Championship, O’Driscoll’s 47th minute try against England, took him past Ian Smith’s 78-year-old record of 24 tries to become the leading Championship try scorer of all time with 25 Tries. On that day, O'Driscoll also equaled John Smit's International Captaincy caps of 75.

British and Irish Lions

O'Driscoll appeared in all three British and Irish Lions Tests on the team's 2001 tour of Australia where he announced himself as a world star with an outstanding individual try in the 1st Test victory at The Gabba in Brisbane. On 11 April 2005, he was named captain of the team for their 2005 tour of New Zealand. Prior to that tour, he had been named captain of the Northern Hemisphere side for the IRB Rugby Aid Match (a 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami fundraiser) held at Twickenham in March 2005, but was forced to withdraw due to a shoulder injury, but appeared pitch-side for the match.

O'Driscoll's playing contribution to the 2005 Lions ended in the opening minutes of the first Test against the All Blacks in Christchurch on 25 June 2005, when he was carried off the field on a stretcher with a shoulder injury just after being spear-tackled in tandem by All Blacks skipper Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu after the ball had been cleared out of a ruck. He extended one arm to protect his head, and his shoulder was dislocated on impact.

The independent citing commissioner found that the New Zealand players had no case to answer, and The Lions management were criticised by New Zealanders for attempting to divert attention from the teams poor performance. However, four months later, and following new footage of the incident, the International Rugby Board unequivocally condemned the spear tackle by Tana Umaga and Keven Mealamu, stating: "This footage wasn't available at the time and the IRB are unable to act retrospectively because the two sides had both signed a tour agreement whereby disciplinary matters had to be resolved within 12 hours of the match". The International Rugby Board's communications manager Greg Thomas stated "...that dangerous tackles like this have no part in the game". Although unable to play, O'Driscoll remained as non-playing captain on a losing tour and only underwent surgery on his return. He then released a DVD entitled Brian O'Driscoll's Lions Diary in which he described his tour experience and his opinion of the events that transpired.

On 21 April 2009, O'Driscoll was selected as part of the 2009 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa. On 1 June 2009, he was named as captain of the Lions for the game against the Golden Lions taking place on 3 June, in place of the rested Paul O'Connell. This was the first time he has captained the Lions since the spear tackle incident in New Zealand in 2005. He was also named in the outside centre position for the Lions in their first test of the 2009 tour against South Africa, in which he made two assists as the Lions lost 26 – 21. He was forced to withdraw from the tour on 30 June before the third and final test due to a head injury and subsequent concussion he suffered in the second test.

Barbarians

O'Driscoll has appeared three times for the invitational Barbarians rugby team: against South Africa on 10 December 2000, against Scotland on 22 May 2004, and against England on 30 May 2004. Against South Africa, O'Driscoll scored his only try as a part of the Barbarians team.

Injury comeback

In September 2005, as O'Driscoll was said to be preparing to leave Irish provincial rugby and agree to a contract to play in France, the IRFU quickly announced they would do all they could to keep him in Ireland. O'Driscoll subsequently signed a deal with the IRFU to keep him at Leinster through the 2007 World Cup. O'Driscoll made his playing comeback for Leinster in December 2005 at Ravenhill against Ulster.

Tributes and awards

In 2001, 2002 and 2009, O'Driscoll was nominated for the IRB World Player of the Year. In 2001, he lost out to his Irish teammate Keith Wood; in 2002, to Fabien Galthié; and, in 2009, when widely regarded as favourite for the award, somewhat surprisingly to Richie McCaw by a solitary point, with one judge who would otherwise have given O'Driscoll the award, citing a flawed voting system.

O'Driscoll was chosen as Player of the Tournament in the 2006, 2007 and 2009 RBS Six Nations Championships.

In 2007, former England centre and captain Will Carling published his list of the '50 Greatest Rugby players' in The Telegraph, and ranked O'Driscoll the tenth greatest player of all time, stating; "As a balanced centre he has everything – pace, strength, great attacking skill and is as good in defence as attack. On the 2001 Lions tour, he showed his outstanding talent as the stand out back in the series. He has the ability to prise open defences that other players cannot even contemplate. With his poise, his change of speed and his closeness to the ground it is very hard to stop him. Ireland are half the side without him".

In summer 2008 O'Driscoll received the Dubliner of the Year Award from The Dubliner magazine.

In January 2010, O'Driscoll was voted World Rugby player of the decade (2000–2009) by the influential magazine Rugby World.

Personal life

“'Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.”

^{O'Driscoll's widely-quoted philosophical musing when asked to give his view on former Lions team mate and current England manager, Martin Johnson, ahead of Ireland's Six Nations Championship clash with England at Croke Park on 28 February 2009.}

O'Driscoll married actress Amy Huberman in July 2010.

He has published one book, "A Year in the Centre" (2005), a memoir of a year as professional rugby player. A biography of O'Driscoll, called In BOD We Trust, by Marcus Stead was published in March 2008. A revised and extended version of Stead's book was published in August 2011, titled "Brian O'Driscoll: The Biography".

In February 2011, O'Driscoll and his wife were invited to the Wedding of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine Middleton, but only his wife attended, due to his club team's (Leinster) preparation for their Heineken Cup semi-final against Toulouse the day after the wedding.

On 18 May 2011, O'Driscoll attended a state dinner hosted by President Mary McAleese to mark Queen Elizabeth II's visit to the Republic of Ireland.

Statistics

International Tries

Main article: List of international rugby union tries by Brian O'Driscoll

International Analysis by Opposition

Against	Played	Won	Lost	Drawn	Tries	Points	% Won
Argentina	7	5	2	0	1	5	71.43
Australia	12	3	8	1	4	23	29.17
Canada	1	1	0	0	0	0	100
England	11	8	3	0	3	18	70
Fiji	2	2	0	0	2	10	100
France	11	4	7	0	8	40	36.36
Georgia	2	2	0	0	2	10	100
Italy	11	11	0	0	5	25	100
Japan	1	1	0	0	2	10	100
Namibia	2	2	0	0	1	5	100
New Zealand	9	0	9	0	3	21	0
Pacific Islanders	1	1	0	0	0	0	100
Romania	3	3	0	0	1	8	100
Russia	1	1	0	0	0	0	100
Samoa	1	1	0	0	0	0	100
Scotland	12	9	3	0	5	25	75
South Africa	8	3	5	0	1	5	37.5
United States	2	2	0	0	1	5	100
Wales	12	9	3	0	5	25	75
Total	108	68	39	1	44	235	62.62

Correct as of 19 March 2011

Honours

Underage Team

• IRB Under 19 Rugby World Championship – 1998
• Leinster Schools Rugby Senior Cup

Professional Club

• European Cup – 2008/2009, 2010/2011;
• Magners League – 2001/2002, 2007/2008

International Team

• Grand Slam – 2009
• Six Nations Championship – 2009
• Triple Crown – 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009
• British and Irish Lions rugby union Tourist – 2001, 2005 (captain), 2009

Individual Awards

• 6 Nations All time top try scorer with 25 tournament tries.
• 6 Nations Player of the Year – 2006, 2007, 2009.
• 6 Nations Top try scorer – 2009 (tied with Riki Flutey).
• European Cup Top try scorer – 2009.
• Shortlisted for IRB International Player of the Year 3 times – 2001, 2002, 2009.
• Named on ERC European Dream Team (to mark the first 15 years of the Heineken Cup).
• IRB International Try of the Year 2008 ( Australia v Ireland).
• IRUPA Players' Player of the Year – 2008/09.
• Texaco Sportstars Rugby Award – 2000, 2002, 2007, 2009.
• 'Rugby World' magazines' Player of the Decade.
• Named on 'Rugby World' magazines' Team of the Decade.
• English Rugby Union Writers' Club Pat Marshall Memorial Award as the sport's outstanding personality for 2009.
• Dubliner of the Year Award – 2008.

Biography

A Year in the Centre, 2005, Dublin, Penguin Books, Ltd ISBN 1-84488-078-8

See also

• List of leading Rugby union Test try scorers

External links

• Leinster profile
• IRFU profile
• Lions profile
• Barbarians profile
• ESPNscrum profile

Sporting positions
Preceded by Anthony Foley David Humphreys David Humphreys Simon Best	Ireland Rugby Union Captain Nov 2002 – Jun 2005 Jun 2005 – Nov 2005 2006 – May 2007 2008–present	Succeeded by David Humphreys Simon Easterby Simon Best incumbent
Preceded by Martin Johnson	British and Irish Lions Captain 2005 (Tour) May–Jun 2005 (active)	Succeeded by Tour – Paul O'Connell active: Martin Corry