Paul O'Connell part of an elite group, says Shane Horgan
Wednesday 14 October 2015 16:58, UK
When Paul O'Connell made his Ireland debut against Wales in 2002, Shane Horgan was in the television studio making his broadcasting bow.
Injury had ruled Horgan out of the Six Nations opener at Lansdowne Road, which gave him the chance to sit back and analyse this highly-rated 22-year-old from Young Munster who was partnering Mick Galwey in the second row.
"Even though I'd played against him before with Leinster and he had a big reputation, I didn't know him that well," admits Horgan.
"He performed from day one, even though he doesn't remember that first day too well after getting a bang on the head! He scored a try against Wales and never had an issue with playing at that level."
O'Connell has long achieved legendary status in Ireland but Hogan feels it's the impression the Munster lock made outside the island that underlines his contribution to Irish rugby.
When we went on tour to New Zealand, they didn't know the names of any Irish players, or rate them. But they all knew who Paul O'Connell was; he was just so good.
"He's one of an elite group of players that influenced Irish rugby worldwide," said Horgan, who played alongside O'Connell at the 2003 and 2007 World Cups and won three Six Nations Triple Crowns.
"In the professional era, Paul and Brian O'Driscoll - and Keith Wood before them - stand alone as being people that supersedes just playing for Ireland. Paul had name recognition all over the world. You can well regarded and well-known in Ireland but when you're known all over the world, that gives an indication of what a quality player you are.
"Very often when we went on tour, and New Zealand is the one that springs to mind the most, they didn't know the names of any Irish players, or rate them. But they all knew who Paul O'Connell was; he was just so good."
Longevity
Horgan won 65 caps during a 10-year international career, scoring 21 tries before a knee-injury forced him to hang up his boots.
During his time with Ireland he witnessed first-hand the influence O'Connell has, both on and off the pitch, and says his dedication in training was one of the main factors behind his longevity at international level.
He said: "Paul's had a number of serious injuries that kept him out for a long period. There were a couple that were very concerning as to whether he'd come back or not.
"But he did come back, which was remarkable in itself. Maybe in some ways it saved him to some degree as well. It's crazy saying that as he's won 108 caps for Ireland but he did a couple of enforced breaks, and that may have helped him to play for as long as he did.
"Also, he always kept himself in really good physical shape. That helped him have the length of career that he's had, by being so dedicated.
"It allowed him to have a long, good career, but he also helped other players. He certainly drove on that professionalism in Munster and Ireland. A of players have spoken about his influence on a daily basis.
"People have also spoken about him being a leader. The best way you can be a leader is doing your job really well, every single day. I think he did that. The other way is to perform on the pitch, and he did that as well.
"Sometimes it's hard to define what a good leader is. For some people it can be those who make inspirational speeches but for me, being a good leader is someone who does their job really well, raises the standards of everyone else, and combines that with performing.
"Paul didn't make many mistakes during his whole career. He didn't miss many tackles and was ultra-secure at lineouts. That's where leadership came in.
"You couple those two things with the fact he does a huge amount of work around lineout time, and had become almost a pseudo coach.
"I think that's one of the reasons why Toulon went for him. Although there's not a huge drop-off in performance, if you were going for Paul O'Connell you'd go for the model of five years ago.
"You're getting something else. You're getting a rugby player-plus."
While Ireland will be without O'Connell's imposing figure in the lineout against Argentina in Sunday's World Cup quarter-final, Horgan is backing Devin Toner and Iain Henderson to fill the void.
"I think Devin Toner is quite comfortable with calling lineouts," said Horgan of his former Leinster team-mate.
"He has been Paul's apprentice now for quite a period of time so I don't think it's going to be a big issue. Iain Henderson will probably get picked alongside him and that doesn't hugely diminish the second row.
"You certainly lose some of Paul's traits but in Henderson you've got a guy with a huge future ahead of him. He's not the polished article but he's doing a lot of the right things at the moment."
