O’Kelly wants glory days to continue

BYRON KELLEHER is 33, Malcolm O’Kelly 35, and, such is the talent available to their respective coaches ahead of Saturday’s Heineken Cup semi-final between Toulouse and Leinster, there is every chance neither will start.

But when it comes to the business end of what promises to be a thrilling encounter, the wise betting is on both to be there, lending their vast experience and expertise.

O’Kelly was there when it all kicked-off 15 years ago — and the Irish international lock rates Leinster’s sensational 41-35 quarter-final win against Toulouse at Le Stadium in 2006 as “right up there as one of my top three Heineken Cup memories.”

He played in Leinster’s opening tournament match, a 24-21 victory in Milan on November 1, 1995, and ended his 69th tournament appearance at Murrayfield on May 23, 2009, with a coveted Heineken Cup winners’ medal.

Now the champions return to Le Stadium on Saturday for their semi-final showdown against the triple Heineken Cup winners knowing only a repeat performance of four years ago will be good enough to take them to Stade de France on Saturday, May 22 and back-to-back tournament finals.

“That quarter-final against Toulouse is a great memory for sure. Along with last season’s final against Leicester Tigers and the semi-final with Munster it has to be in the top three,” said the 35-year-old.

“No-one expected us to do anything, but we had a certain belief in ourselves and managed to pull off a truly massive performance.”

This will be the eighth Heineken Cup meeting between the teams, Toulouse 4-3 ahead, with O’Kelly pinpointing former All Blacks scrum-half Byron Kelleher and French internationals Thierry Dusautoir and Yannick Jauzion as the main dangermen.

“Toulouse are obviously one of the truly great European sides, along with the likes of Munster and Leicester Tigers,” he said. “They have a tremendous history and tradition and consistently do well in the Heineken Cup – as well as being one of the most professional outfits in Europe.