Johnny BE GOOD

Such is his standing, there was no hesitation about Leinster’s star 10 facing Toulouse today, despite poor form and a lack of games recently

IT was the frantic final minutes of Ireland’s clash with the All Blacks last November and Jacob Stockdale’s wonder try had given Ireland a precious seven-point cushion. The hosts were forced to soak up waves of late attacks as New Zealand threw everything into a final-quarter siege. Coaches often talk about fine margins and small moments at the top level. With seven minutes to play, Ireland were holding on to a 16-9 lead. The exhausted Irish were in need of some inspiration and Johnny Sexton stepped up.

He had been virtually flawless that night. The chief strategist of Joe Schmidt’s operation, Sexton had once again delivered on the big stage. He’d also taken over the captaincy from Rory Best – who had left the action in the 65th minute – for good measure.

When Ben Smith gathered a loose ball deep in New Zealand territory, the elusive winger sought to run his way out of danger.

Smith was collared by Stockdale before Sexton finished the job by hammering him into touch.

Ireland’s out-half then let out a guttural roar and punched the air as the decibel levels in Lansdowne Road reached stratospheric levels. That felt like game over. Ireland had shaded another mini-battle and Sexton was to the fore.

It had been that way all season. That maiden win over New Zealand on home soil was the coup de grace of an unforgettable 12 months. There were Grand Slam, Pro14 and European Champions Cup titles in the trophy cabinet before he even took the field that night. There was also a 2-1 series triumph in Australia for good measure.

A week later, Sexton would be taking to the stage in Monaco to collect the World Player of the Year award.

The 33-year-old had lost his voice during the course of the night with Best on hand to deliver his winning speech. It was pretty much the only thing Sexton had lost all year.

Even his former mentor and current backs coach Felipe Contepomi was jumping on the hype train, comparing Sexton to the best footballer on the planet.

‘Everyone speaks about Messi, but when you talk to a friend or colleague of Messi, they say he’s the first one to arrive, the last one to leave,’ said the Argentine earlier this season.

‘So you have that talent but you

have to back it up with hard work. He’s a talented footballer but definitely when you see him, the way he’s been all his career, the way he behaves, that’s what made him become a different player.’

Ireland were being tipped for World Cup glory and Sexton was being compared to another sporting superstar in New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady by Stuart Lancaster.

Sexton’s been in the game long enough to understand the ebbs and flows of modern rugby but even he would have been taken aback by the nosedive in his – and Ireland’s – fortunes in the past six months.

His frustrations were glaringly apparent throughout a difficult Six Nations campaign. Sexton has always worn his heart on his sleeve, but some of his outbursts in the championship looked borne out of impatience and annoyance.

This team – usually so efficient and fluent under Schmidt’s watch – was malfunctioning and Sexton looked at a loss as to how to fix it. There were still flashes of his tactical brilliance, however. There was his try after his trademark loop play against the French or that superbly-executed cross-kick to Stockdale in the early stages of that harrowing loss to Wales on the final day of the championship.

That defeat in Cardiff was his last time on a rugby pitch.

A quad injury has kept him on the sidelines for the past 36 days with Ross Byrne running the show at Leinster.

It says everything about Sexton’s influence and standing at the province that Leo Cullen should throw him straight into the action from the off at Lansdowne Road tomorrow.

He has yet to feature for Leinster in 2019. Sexton’s last appearance was against Munster at Thomond Park on December 29. Those with bad memories might have forgotten about Sexton’s skirmish with Fineen Wycherley that night.

Munster’s rookie flanker wanted to make an early statement and decided to flatten the best player on the planet early doors.

Sexton didn’t take kindly to the special attention and subsequently used Wycherley’s scrum cap as a makeshift weapon.

Leinster would lose that game 26-17 and Sexton would hobble off with a knee injury.

One of the quirks of the IRFU’s central contract system is players can feature in an entire Six Nations campaign and not a play a minute for their province.

That was very much the case with Sexton this term.

In his absence, Byrne has kept the show on the road, steering Leinster through the later stages of the pool before guiding them past Ulster in that pulsating quarterfinal in the capital.

Byrne doesn’t seem to be on Schmidt’s radar for some reason (his lack of pace has been mooted as a possible reason for his Test exile) but even Ireland’s head coach could have been nothing but impressed by that gutsy late penalty when the young No10 was suffering with cramp.

Cullen would have had a tough conversation with Byrne this week. It seems cruel to drop a player that has contributed so much to the cause this season, but Byrne knows the score.

He is making way for a player of proven quality. Sexton has come in for much criticism in recent months.

His temperament, injury profile and age have been hot topics.

Earlier this week, Conor Murray gave a candid interview to a British newspaper and observed that the heat inevitably comes on him and Sexton when things start to go wrong, which is exactly what happened during the Six Nations campaign.

Sexton is back on the field today, the same arena where he spearheaded that win over the All Blacks. Six months is a long tine in sport, but he will be looking to remind everyone that he is still the best in the business.

‘EVEN SEXTON MUST HAVE BEEN TAKEN ABACK BY HIS NOSEDIVE’