Rob Kearney: Ireland planning to give Paul O’Connell World Cup winning send-off

Rob Kearney says the Ireland squad are desperate to give Paul O’Connell a ‘fairytale’ send-off by winning the Rugby World Cup.

O’Connell brought the curtain down on his Munster career after Saturday’s Pro 12 Final defeat to Glasgow and is expected to retire from international rugby after this year’s World Cup before heading to France with Toulon.

And Kearney says the Ireland squad are desperate to emulate the farewell Brian O’Driscoll enjoyed when Joe Schmidt’s side won the Six Nations title in his final international last year.

“Fairytale endings are very difficult to write and they happen to very few people,” said Kearney, who has played alongside O’Connell in the national side for the past eight seasons.

“Brian was lucky enough in that he did get his fairytale ending and I desperately hope Paul gets the same fairytale ending too.

“If we can draw a little inspiration and motivation from the situation it can only be a good thing.

“He has been one of the greatest servants to Irish rugby as a fantastic player and a fantastic captain who has given so much to the game.

“If he retires from international rugby after the World Cup it’s really important the guys around him make sure this is a memorable one for him.”

Kearney has also backed O’Connell to make his Toulon spell a success, although he has warned that Johnny Sexton’s unhappy stint at Racing Metro stands as a warning to those considering leaving Ireland.

So far the IRFU have been largely successful in keeping their players with the provinces, although Kearney has warned that challenge will become ever more difficult in the face of renewed interest from big French and English clubs.

He added: “If Paulie did want a life change and to take his wife and two kids away and to live a different culture, I don’t think there’s one person in the whole of Ireland who could begrudge him that.

“Johnny went off mid-career for one reason or another, he didn’t enjoy it, he’s ended up coming back now, if Paulie ends up going off now at 35, then that’s brilliant for his career, to be able to do that.

“Does Ireland need an Australia-style overseas rule? Not at the moment: because most guys want to stay at home.

“They are of course going to come under more and more challenges from the French and English clubs with bigger budgets, so when that time does come they’ll maybe start looking at more support structures and ways to enable them to keep the best players at home.”