O’Gara’s shadow hung over Sexton

Jonny Sexton has admitted he wasn’t sure if his Irish team-mates were listening to him in the early days of his international career due to Ronan O’Gara’s influence at the time.

Sexton’s breakthrough to the Irish national side started a long-running debate about which out half offered more. However the Leinster man, having taken over from O’Gara, has admitted he was unsure of himself at first.

“I found it tough when I first came in because Ronan O’Gara had been the outside-half in that team for 10 years and 100 games previously and it was tough to come in,” he said.