O’Kelly remains as driven as ever

IRELAND’S most capped rugby player, Malcolm O’Kelly, is a man at ease with himself these days.

He has decided, and form dictates it, that he isn’t quite ready to hang up his boots.

For those following in line, O’Kelly has warned that he desperately wants to add to his haul of 89 caps and to become the first Irish rugby centurion.

He insisted that the end was not nigh, saying: “I will keep putting back the retirement date as long as I keep playing well and I’m enjoying the rugby. This is what I love.

“I think I know my job very well, my game has changed a lot over the years; what I enjoy doing now I wouldn’t have enjoyed some years back (scrummaging), so it’s pretty satisfying overall.”

O’Kelly was the only Leinster forward in the Irish World Cup squad but that representation swelled to five this week when Eddie O’Sullivan named his 33-strong Six Nations squad.

He was particularly pleased to see young players such as Luke Fitzgerald, Rob Kearney, Jonathan Sexton and Cian Healy come through to the national squad.

“I’m delighted for all of them and particularly for Cian because I see a lot of him up close. It’s a massive learning curve for a guy so young, but every week I can see an improvement,” he said.

He is convinced Healy will make it to the top.

“Cian has a massive attitude and he is an incredible athlete in the gym,” says O’Kelly. “He’s way ahead of some of us, so it’s just a matter of him learning the game a bit more from guys like myself, Ollie Le Roux and the more experienced players.

“It’s fantastic to see young guys come through for Leinster and for Ireland. There was talk not so long ago that nobody was coming through to push for places in the front row, but I think you’re now seeing development in that area, and Cian is one of the players to look to the future.”

O’Kelly said he wasn’t quite sure who to compare Healy with, saying; “Maybe it’s Paul Wallace, but I’m not sure whether that’s on the pitch or off the pitch!

“He’s great around the pitch, very aware of what’s going on around him and he’s not afraid to scrummage against anyone. That makes him a very exciting prospect.”

O’Kelly will be at the coalface for Leinster in tomorrow’s make-or-break Heineken Cup pool game against Leicester Tigers at Welford Road. Experience tells him it’s going to be an arduous day.

Despite the English club’s surprise early exit from the competition, O’Kelly noted: “They’ve been hugely influential in the growth of the Heineken Cup; their competitive record is superb and they’re notoriously hard to beat at home.”

Like Leinster before Christmas, Leicester are smarting after a sensational loss to Edinburgh.

“We were in the same boat and that, I’m sure, will motivate them in front of their own fans. Leicester don’t like losing and they will want to take out their frustration on the next opponents — which happens to be us,” he said.

But O’Kelly emphasised that Leinster have won at Welford Road before.

“I’ve played against them a few times, and I reckon the honours are fairly even. We’ll be going over looking for the win and we won’t hold back. We can’t afford to at this stage,” he said.

Neither does O’Kelly believe that a Toulouse victory is cast in stone: “They’re favourites to win and their record at home is awesome, but Edinburgh have proved they’re no jokers.

“If they can stick in there, then they could well prove a handful for Toulouse."