Sexton happy Irish stars are staying at home

He may be bedding in to life in France, but Jonathan Sexton’s opinion the best Irish players need to stick to home comforts back here has, if anything, only solidified after over 12 months on the continent.

The out-half kicked four penalties from four last weekend as Racing Metro edged out Montpellier on the road in the opening game of a campaign in which the Parisian side is targeting both domestic and European silverware.

Yet, the loss of the Dubliner to the French game hasn’t resulted in the feared exodus of the top players from the provinces with Jamie Heaslip – named yesterday as Leinster’s new captain – and Sean O’Brien among those to snub Gallic advances.