Wallace happy to be man in the middle

FOR Paddy Wallace, a first ever Six Nations Championship bow at Croke Park on Saturday will be like finding gold at the end of a rainbow.

For years, following his participation in Ireland’s under 19 FIRA/Youth World Cup victory back in 1998, Wallace has been struggling to earn even a slice of the type of international recognition won by his then centre colleague Brian O’Driscoll.

He has been seen by many as a talent that’s never quite lived up to expectation but he hopes that will all change — starting on Saturday against France.