Age no barrier as Donncha drives on

Age is but a number according to Munster, Ireland and Lions second row forward Donncha O’Callaghan, who is determined to set a new benchmark for longevity at the top of the Irish game.

Ask O’Callaghan about possible retirement and he will look aghast before relating the stories of two overseas icons in the form of Brad Thorn and Simon Shaw, both of whom have defied logic to play at the highest level approaching their 40th birthdays.

Thorn, World Cup winner with New Zealand, and Shaw, a member of England’s World Cup final team in 2007, are 37 and 39 respectively. By comparison, O’Callaghan is a mere pup at 33 and he figures another five years or more at the top is not beyond the bounds of possibility.