O’Driscoll’s immense contribution was the decisive factor

WHEN a player of Brian O’Driscoll’s renown and stature admits that “this was one of the more physical Test matches I’ve played in a long, long time,” the point is well made.

The captain’s contribution was immense, his strength of character never better exemplified than in the way he took what was essentially the game’s vital score after his side had swarmed all over the English line for seemingly ages before the breach was finally made.

Failure to do so at that point might well have proved fatal. Crucially, O’Gara landed a vital penalty and his critics would do well to note that without that score, the outcome might very well have been a whole lot different.