One more year and that’s it, insists O’Driscoll

Brian O’Driscoll has ruled out extending his career beyond next June.

Last week the Ireland and Leinster star ended the immediate speculation surrounding his future by signing a new one-year contract with the IRFU.

However, the 34-year-old insists he won’t extend his career beyond that, explaining he had promised his wife, actress Amy Huberman, that he’d call time on his career next year. He added he couldn’t cope with another year dominated by questions about his future.

Explaining his decision to give it one more year, O’Driscoll told the Second Captains podcast: “There were lots of different factors, like who was going to come in as national coach and potentially who was going to come in at provincial level.

“From a family situation [we had to look] at my wife’s set-up, career wise, having a new baby girl and how the body felt.

“It’s just about weighing up all the options and deciding in my head was I ready to give it up. You’re a long time retired. I just felt that I had to plenty left to give, to allow myself one more year.”

O’Driscoll admitted Ronan O’Gara’s decision to take up a coaching role with Racing Metro came as a surprise and predicted the dynamic between the Munster man and Jonny Sexton would work well.

He said: “I was as shocked as anyone else. The boys have had an interesting relationship over the last few years but it’s grown into a good friendship recently. The dynamic will work well over there.”

O’Driscoll also paid a glowing tribute to O’Gara. “There’s very few guys that you’d be willing to put your life on but he’s definitely one of them. He backed himself right to the very end and I think that confidence has stood to him over a fantastic career. He is without a shadow of a doubt one of the better players I’ve ever played with.”