Kidney’s fly-half dilemma has even Carter in a spin

DAN CARTER is the best fly-half in the world, but the New Zealand superstar admits even he would struggle to choose between Ronan O’Gara and Jonathan Sexton when it comes to who should wear the number 10 jersey for Ireland.

Declan Kidney has failed to make either his preferred option, having given Sexton three starts and O’Gara two as Ireland came third in the Six Nations.

And while Sexton is the man in possession, after his superb performance against England on Saturday, O’Gara proved with his late cameo appearance that his international career is far from over.

That is a very different situation to New Zealand, where Nick Evans, Carter’s understudy, joined Harlequins in order to play regular rugby after the 2007 World Cup. And Carter himself says that he could not pick between the Irish pair, claiming that, ultimately, Kidney should be thankful for having two proven players to pick from in such a vital position.

“Both O’Gara and Sexton are fantastic players in their own right and are proven at international level,” said Carter, who is in London with his Crusaders side ahead of Sunday’s Super 15 game against the Sharks at Twickenham, which will raise money for the victims of last month’s earthquake in Christchurch.

“It gives Ireland a great balance. Depending on the game that they are playing and the opposition they are coming up against, Ireland have two fly-halves that can provide different things.

“I guess that if both of them are playing well then you have that competition which is driving both of them on to fight for that position, which is only healthy for any side.”

But Carter feels that whatever Sexton or O’Gara can achieve in an Ireland shirt, England are the best-positioned northern hemisphere side heading into this year’s World Cup in New Zealand.

Martin Johnson’s side missed out on the Grand Slam after their 24-8 defeat in Dublin on Saturday, but Carter feels they have enough to be a genuine threat to the All Blacks.

“The form team won the Six Nations in England,” he said. “They have had a fantastic 12-18 months.

“Will they provide the biggest northern hemisphere threat in the World Cup? I would say so, yes.

“France are always unpredictable and you can never rule them out but England have built a great squad with real depth and they have some exciting talent.”

And Carter admits he feels incredibly fortunate to be playing rugby after the shocking events of last month, when Christchurch was rocked by a 6.3-magnitude earthquake that left more than 180 people dead.

The Crusaders’ ground, Rugby Park, was badly damaged and Sunday will be the first designated home game for a side that will be nomads for at least a year.

“I had just finished training when it hit and I was in the changing room — it was a pretty fierce shake,” he said. “I count myself very lucky. I dodged a bullet really.

“When something like this happens, you can often feel quite useless, you want to give back and help.

“I have found the best way to do that is by doing what I do and that’s playing rugby, giving people the chance to support their team again and take their mind off what’s going on back home.”