Bring it Sean

O’BRIEN READY FOR HEAVY WORKLOAD IN LONDON

SEAN O’BRIEN insists he will not be wrapped in cotton wool when he joins London Irish on a three-year deal after the World Cup.

The Tullow Tank is set to remain in the No.8 jersey when Ireland face Italy in Rome on Sunday after starting the win over Scotland at Murrayfield. O’brien, 32, is looking for a run of games after an injury-ravaged spell following an outstanding tour with the Lions in New Zealand two summers ago.

He will leave Leinster after more than a decade’s service later in the year, a decision that he admits caused “a few tears to be shed”.

But it’s one that will see him reunite with Declan Kidney who first capped him at Test level.

O’brien will no longer be a part of the much-admired Irish player welfare programme, which sees the country’s top players meticulously managed physically.

And, with London Irish leading the way in the Championship, it is expected he will be thrown in at the deep end of a Premiership campaign next season. But he has told Kidney, the Exiles’ director of rugby, he will be available for every match possible.

“I’ll play every game if I can, if I’m fit,” O’brien stressed. “I won’t be managed as such. Deccie does know me well but that’s one thing I did say to him, that I wanted to play every game and don’t want to be managed.

“The more games I play the better I get. That’s always been the case throughout my career.”

O’brien claims he has no regrets leaving Leinster, despite missing out on the Champions Cup and PRO14 double triumph last season.

He is also hopeful the World Cup will not spell the end of his Ireland career, despite the current IRFU policy of ignoring the claims of players abroad.

And given his injury profile, the versatile back row has no fears of taking a further battering at the relentless coalface of English club rugby.

“No, because when I get back fit I feel great and in good shape,” O’brien stated. “I don’t have mileage on the clock these past two years. That was a big part of it too.

“If I can get myself back battlehardened again and match fit, I think my body’s in great shape otherwise.

“It’s about getting a run of games. Getting back at this level, even playing 65 minutes the last day, I felt pretty good after it. If I’m fit I can stay at that level to compete and do well.”