'Could not work him out' - Brian O'Driscoll ranks his five toughest opponents - Ruck

‘Could not work him out’ – Brian O’Driscoll ranks his five toughest opponents

Take a look at who retired Ireland, Leinster and Lions centre Brian O’Driscoll picked out as his toughest opponents.

Sourcing several Q&A’s from down the years, including one with the Six Nations website, here are his top five opponents from his stellar career:

#5. JASON ROBINSON (ENGLAND)

O’DRISCOLL SAID: “To get to see in close quarters what he was capable of. You see so much on a Saturday, but when you’re training and playing and watching players of that calibre leading up to a Saturday. You see some exceptional stuff that cameras don’t always catch.

“Jason, I knew so little of him in 2001 other than his rugby league talent. But to have a full appreciation of what his footwork was like, you need to defend against it, and it was horrible at times in training.

“I would’ve analysed him a lot as I played against him, he was equally comfortable on either foot, it made no difference to him. There was no preference on ball carry, you just could not work him out. He honed the ability to be unpredictable as well.

“He might’ve been a small guy, but he packed a serious punch too.”

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