After the week that was, Brian O’Driscoll’s column in the Telegraph today lets us in on how he felt watching the Lions win the series without him.
While the vast majority of people, pundits and fans alike, felt that Brian O’Driscoll should have played some part in the third and decisive final Lions Test in Sydney, it wasn’t to be.
Warren Gatland’s selection did the business against Australia in some style and now we now what BOD felt as he watched the 41-16 win in his suit on the sidelines.
In his Telegraph column today, the centre says that the final whistle was “bittersweet”. After participating on four tours, this was his first win but he admitted that “you do not feel as much part of it if you have not played”.
He goes on to say: “It was a massive mix of emotions: delight at being part of this historic moment alongside guys you have battled with, but tempered by not playing. It was hard and I would be lying if I said otherwise.”
However, if you had any doubts that he wasn’t right behind his team, think again.
“You are desperately envious of those who are out there but there is not a sliver of ambiguity about wanting to see the boys win. That is non-negotiable: 100 per cent you want to the team to go well. I have spent a lot of time with these guys.
“But thanks be to God, I am a series winner with the British and Irish Lions, albeit it did not finish as I would have liked it to. But you cannot write your own script. Other people write it for you.”
BOD also recalls his only other experiences of being dropped.
“I got dropped as a 17-year-old in a schools game and I got the shepherd’s hook once in an under‑21s game with 20 minutes to go against Wales. But I have never been dropped in my professional career.”
The entire piece is a cracking read, we recommend you check it out.
