Bright new dawn for warrior Donncha O'Callaghan

Worcester 13 Northampton 12: It wasn’t just a new dawn for English rugby that kicked off at Sixways last night, just six days removed from the World Cup hosts’ disastrous exit. 

In amongst the mix of recriminations and point-proving as the Aviva Premiership dusted itself down and began a new campaign, Donncha O’Callaghan was starting a new and very different chapter in a career that refuses to go quietly into the night.

At the age of 36 and with 94 Ireland caps under his belt, the veteran lock who refused to settle for a bit-part role at his beloved Munster, O’Callaghan embarked on his Worcester Warriors career last night and if it was strange to see the man who donned the red of his home province a record 263 times over 17 seasons dressed in Warriors’ Leinster-like blue, imagine how it must have felt for the player himself.