Grateful O’Gara counts his blessings

RONAN O’GARA counts his blessings every day, not least because he has stayed fairly injury-free in eight years playing professional rugby.

Ireland’s record point holder also leads the field in the Heineken Cup, and by some distance, his 731 points is testimony to his endurance as much as his accuracy.

He has just recovered from a gruelling few weeks when his ability to play in Sunday’s Heineken Cup semi-final against Leinster was in question. He overcame a hamstring strain to play against Perpignan but then sustained a nasty knee injury and has been sidelined since.