Sexton eager to banish RWC blues

Jonny Sexton does not expect the great Irish fly-half debate to stop any time soon but for now, as the incumbent, he is going to enjoy being on the right side of the argument.

It is Declan Kidney’s oft-repeated assertion that Ireland is blessed with two great fly-halves in Sexton and Ronan O’Gara and that each Test match brings a selection dilemma that is no nearer resolution than when the young Leinster No.10 emerged to challenge the senior statesman from Munster.

It has, in fact, intensified as a re-energised O’Gara has enjoyed an age-defying renaissance in both Munster red and Ireland green. Sexton started the first two games of last season’s Six Nations before O’Gara’s stronger kicking game as a replacement steadied an often rocky ship and earned him starts against Scotland and Wales. Back came Sexton for the finale against England and he walked away from the championship with a man of the match display as Ireland produced the team performance of the season.

There was the same to and fro at the World Cup last autumn – Sexton starting the first two games before a dip in place-kicking form saw O’Gara close out the victory over Australia and retain the jersey for the rest of the tournament.

Which for the 26-year-old Sexton makes selection as the starting out-half to face Wales on Sunday all the more satisfying.

“Obviously it’s a nervous time for us all in the squad a night before the announcement. I’m just delighted to be named,” Sexton said yesterday. “I’m sure everyone will still be sitting on their bar stools talking about it but we won’t mind that.

“You don’t get sick of hearing your name being called out. The contrast with not hearing it is the thing. You don’t want to feel that way. So every time you hear it, it’s great.”

Sexton said he has learned a great deal from both last season, during which he also inspired Leinster to that remarkable second-half comeback against Northampton in the Heineken Cup final, and the World Cup.

“I think probably learning when to slow the game down and when to put the ball in the corner, putting the forwards on the front foot is important,” he said of the lessons from the 2011 Six Nations.

“Last year we had a mindset of playing with the ball in hand. At times we probably got carried away. I remember the French game. Everything was going brilliantly for the first 20 minutes, creating chances. Maybe that was the time to slow it down and give the forwards a breather.

“We started making mistakes and the flow of the game then started going against us. Maybe that was the time to slow it.

“I think I’ve learned those little things about international rugby. It’s like Heineken Cup rugby. You learn these things.”

Of Ireland’s campaign in New Zealand, Sexton admitted he was still punishing himself for some below-par performances with the boot against the United States and Australia.

“Obviously I place-kicked poorly in a couple of games at the World Cup. That can happen to any place-kicker. Unfortunately it happened to me on the world stage in the two biggest games of my career. That’s life. You move on from it. I beat myself up a bit at the time. I couldn’t have practiced any harder. Even against Australia, I nailed one straight after half-time. Then there was another good kick which hit the post.

“Who knows what might have happened had that gone over. I could have kept kicking until the end, might have had five out of seven, which is not a bad return in a big international game and we would never have been talking about this. But those are the small margins.

“At the time I wasn’t thinking like that. But I’ve a lot of good people around me and that’s the fact of the matter.

“But it still doesn’t sit well with me that it happened on the world stage, something I’d been building up towards for a couple of years. It still hurts now but I’ve tried to move on.

“Hopefully I’ll be there again to put it right. Now I want to play in the Six Nations and do well.”