Copeland fears Irish call will never come

Robin Copeland fears he will be denied his dream of playing for Ireland. The Wexford No 8 received widespread plaudits after his man-of-the-match performance in Cardiff Blues’ famous Heineken Cup victory over reigning champions Toulon on Saturday.

His all-action performance is sure to have grabbed the attention of Joe Schmidt and the IRFU have been in contact. But Copeland reckons an international call-up is a long way off due to Ireland’s unwritten rule of not selecting overseas players.

Jonny Sexton is the only non-provincial player in Schmidt’s autumn training squad and Copeland reckons there is a policy to ensure the fly-half is the only exception.

Copeland said: “It’s a tricky situation with Ireland because they’re only allowed one overseas player in the squad, which is an issue for me as Sexton is probably the favourite for that despite how well I play.

“I only learnt about it on Tuesday and don’t have much knowledge of it but I was gutted when I heard. I have touched base with a few people back home and have had a few e-mails to get information but I think it’s more a case of back up. I’m on their radar as much as I can be but I know I have a lot of improvements to make and have a long way to go before I am a shoo-in.

“I will continue to do my best in a Blue shirt to pull on a green one.”

Despite coming through the age-grade ranks at Leinster, the Wexford man was forced to pursue a career in England, first with Plymouth and then Rotherham Titans.

He was picked up by Cardiff Blues last year and has quickly established himself as a crowd favourite at the Arms Park.

He is well aware of the competition he faces to pull on an Ireland jersey and admits he could turn to Wales when he qualifies in 2015 if Ireland do not come knocking.

He said: “There are a lot of great players back in Ireland, Jamie Heaslip is there, Sean O’Brien is a good No 8, Peter O’Mahony at Munster — these are fantastic players who prove themselves week in week out.

“I’m an Irishman and my dream is to pull the green shirt on but if those opportunities aren’t there I still want to play at the best level and keep moving up the ladder wherever I am.

“I have been in Wales a long time, play with a lot of the boys and would jump at the opportunity.”

The 25-year-old will have another opportunity to impress in Friday night’s RaboDirect Pro12 clash against Ulster at Ravenhill.

And he insists the Blues must build upon the historic victory over the kings of Europe when they visit Belfast.

He added: “There’s a fairly unanimous feeling that it was a first step rather than job done. It won’t count for anything unless we back it up.”