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.