Sean O'Brien smashes through David Skrela

First trololol

I genuinely don't know any other player in the world as good at breaking through the line as this guy. I say that as an English fan. I've never seen anyone run over people with such ease and maintain speed like he does. It's crazy. He's big, but he's not the biggest guy around but somehow he stays on his feet for much longer than he should be able to.

The guy is an absolute machine. As a Northampton fan it pained me to see him wreck us in the Heineken Cup final back in May =[ a future lion no doubt.

Best 6 in the world and he's only 24.

Imagine having Brussow @ 6, Pocock @ 7 and O'Brien @ 8. That would be the best back row in the world.

"yaawn" bet this was probably the only "exciting" (I use that term loosely) thing that happened in that game.

This actually happens all the time in tri nations matches.

Learn to play like the big boys down here and you might actually have a chance of performing in the RWC!

@Sione

I really enjoyed those last two 3N matches. So much faster and more exciting than northern hemi rugby... oh wait.....

South Africa are always boring, NZ are more boring without Carter and McCaw and AUS are mercurial. Look at last week and the week before in the 3N.

Fully fit Ferris or O'Brien???

@Sione it happens down there so much because most SH players can't tackle to save their lives! Don't get me started on the handling skills as well. It's no good being flashy if you can't peform in the vital areas.

O'Brien or Ferris? Ferris is very good, but obrien is in a class of his own.

Please ignore the troll ffs

O'Brien is immense. Wonderful player

"This actually happens all the time in tri nations matches."

I'm a huge fan of the Tri-Nations and of course it happens in games but it's not always the same player.

This is a typical O'Brien carry, I can't think of any other player in world rugby that runs over people like this every time he plays.

Sean O Brien is a complete freak of nature. The only person I can think of like him is Jonah Lomu.

dont ever make that statement again... Jonah Lomu ??? Get real...

Jonah 2.0

the question isnt obrien or ferris its ferris or wallace. id go for ferris

SOB is good. The only problem with his breaks, is that often he makes a big break from nothing so the rest of the leinster team are left 20 metres behind.

O'Brien, Heaslip, Ferris(if back fully fit)...

And with the ability to bring on David Wallace as a sub! One area I'm not worried about as an Ire fan is the backrow

Obrien isnt great because he smashes defenses apart single handedly. he is great because he dumped that stupid prick haskel on his head:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vu9SZPlxjVk&feature=related

View Video

I can't believe that Stephen Ferris who until recently was undoubtedly the best blindside flanker in Britain and Ireland and one of the best in the world, is going to be confined to the bench from now on. Sean O'Brien is just deadly.

Reality above..

Ferris can still take Wallace's place

He's called the Tullow Tank for a reason, he just motored through Skrela there. Pure wrecking ball stuff and he's been at it for at least a year now.

Ireland have the best back row in the worl. shame about the rest of the team

how it took kidney so long to see o brien amazes me.

the selection for backrow for ireland is a tough call , yet it's pretty obvious who will start v. Aus.

6. o'brien
7. Wallace
8. Heaslip

ferris as sub.

ppl are arguing that ferris shud start ahead of Wallace, but its not going to happen. Ferris is just back from injury and a team, any team, must have a number 7. having two 6's just doesn't work.

Ferris fully fit is still the all rpound better player - so under rated. O'brien good - hopefully both will be in the starting line up

Heaslip's all round game, Ferris ferocious tackling and O'Brien's amazing runs and breaks give Ireland, in my humble opinion, the best back row in Europe, nailing for a little bit the sublime french back row of Dusatuoir, Oudreaogo and Harinordoquy.

Ferris is out and out 6, O'Brien is a 6/7/8, better 7 than Wallace if you ask me at the moment. Heaslip for 8, Wallace to be back row cover. It makes more sence to have Wallace on the bench, he's a true impact player, can play 7/8, Ferris and SOB can cover 6. All good in the hood.

Guys, you've got it all wrong.

It's O'Brien/Heaslip/Wallace in the back 3, and Ferris moves in and takes over the 12 spot for D'Arcy and Paddy Wallace.

Bam. Two birds with one stone.

You're welcome.

SA have the best back row in the world!

I actually considered putting SOB 12. I mean Lomu wasn't known for his passing, (even though he was a pretty mean offloader). Seriously, Ire have to utilize the backrow to batter people, even if an injury occurs, Leamy is chomping at the bit to play, he loves playing in NZ and plays with something to prove.

ha love it know it all... he'd clean up in midfield

I'm from New Zealand and I love watching O'Brien play for Ireland and Leinster. He's a unit all right! Can't wait to see him come down under and cause havoc at the RWC along with Heaslip! Definately one of my favourite players

@Darren

SOB at 12 is pure genius. I know it won't ever happen but that would be a potential solution to Ireland's lack of suitable 12s. Someone like SOB in Ireland's midfield would give them the penetration they're backs are lacking right now and he'd get the team on the front foot more often.

I wonder if it's ever been considered.

Here's an idea ferris at 4 since he has more pushing power the the other 2 locks and he is tall. That solves the back row problem

Best 6 in the world? Dont make me laugh.
WilkoKing is clearly an irish guy pretending to be english to make o'brien seem better.

Who gives a shit how good he is, ireland are gonna get whipped in the world cup anyway.

"Best 6 in the world? Dont make me laugh.
WilkoKing is clearly an irish guy pretending to be english to make o'brien seem better."

Probably.He is the best though. Whose better @ 6?

^^^ Anyone from the SH...

sorry buddy. the southern hemi probably has the best 7 and 8, but not 6.

Dusautoir
Brussow
Kaino
All better than him

^^
Brussow is better at winning back ball and is an openside, he's still going to get smashed like everybody else.

The other two aren't fit to tie his boots.

Anonymous said...

Dusautoir
Brussow
Kaino
All better than him

The first two are 7s and Kaino is made to look good by McCaw.

The problem with O'Brien atm is although he might be very strong and powerful he just doesn't seem to have the dark arts required to slow down rucks when needed, pick the right moment to step in or just have an all round game that extends beyond power. I'm hoping he picks that up over time and can become a player of the same standard as someone like Richard Hill.

Brussow is an openside. Kaino & Dussatior are by no means better. O'Brien excels most when playing with a Leinster backrow as it is the most balanced. Jennings is an out and out openside and Wallace isn't. Not bringing Jennings will come back to Haunt Kidney.

Dunno. That's as debatable as the day is long.

Current best 8's in the world? Names like Harinordoquy (though he does flanker a lot), Heaslip, Spies(when he's on his game), Read, and Parisse come to mind - all for different reasons. Fernndez Lobbe even pops up because of how well he takes high ball - like a fullback he does it.

Best 7's? Pretty clear that it's McCaw, Pocock, Brussow(despite wearing a 6, he has the role traditionally of an openside) Several players are probably also worth bringing up, but aren't comparable to those top three: James Haskell (try as he might), Todd Clever, Kelly Brown, Stephen Ferris, and Mauro Bergamasco all perform consistently well (minus Haskell) for their sides, but again...they just don't get in there like those SH opensides do.

As for the 6's (Brussow shouldn't count there), there is plenty of talent in the SH. I guess Burger might not count for the same reasons Brussow wouldn't, but Burger has more of a blindside style than he seems to of openside, so I'd consider him a 6. Kaino is a definite threat when he's wearing 6 and not jumping in as lock or openside or any other forward spot. And Elsom seemed a better player back in Leinster than he does sometimes now in Australia, but he can still pull off one hell of a game. But I'd probably agree that off the top of my head, I'd rather have Sean O'Brien in there right now - or even Ferris at 6. Dan Lydiate is starting to make a name for himself as well. And Dusautoir can be an amazing six at times.

So, really, I guess I'd agree with most of the idea that SH teams tend to have the best ball stealers in the international game and NH sides have some of the best line crashers around...but the 8 spot is pretty up-in-the-air.

In the end, it looks like the loose forwards is one thing Kidney doesn't have to worry about.

Sorry, that comment was to the Anonymous at 2:50AM.

Anon at 3:55AM - wow, I can't believe I didn't even think of Jennings. I guess that's how good Ireland have it in loose forwards...start talking about the ones whose names are hot right now, and you might forget about some others who are nearly equally as talented.

maybe Ireland should be play him at inside centre. hed be better than any of they're other options

The man is only 24 years of age, http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=BDTmdDhGO50 have a look at this to see his "all round" game! It will be interesting to see how he does compare against Australia. Lets wait and see!

O'Brien is the best Irish player at the moment, by a long way.

SOB smashing into Skrela has turned to be a very good thing for the French. Skrela shouldn't be in the WC squad, he's rubbish!
No chance France would have won that game with Skrela, merci SOB! by far the best Irish player on the pitch, from the 1st minute to the final whistle, very impressive...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ox24cJMUZdc&feature=related
pure beast jennings does allow him to have a free role! not sure the irish back row will have the perfect balance!

View Video

Anonymous, at August 24, 2011 8:07 AM - that's an awesome compilation.

know-it-all at 3:59 AM - I may be jumping the gun slightly, but I reckon Sam Warburton will be in your list of best 7s soon.

a fantastic player!
a mix of shalk burger and kronfeld for the power and pace.
i see a great future for this player, ireland will have to base their team arund the back-row after the rwc.

ps: though, skrela is a very bad defender (the o'gara from france) and o'brien scored as France was just waiting for the final whistle

Don't get too excited, Skrela is the French equivalent for Ronan "target" O'Gara. He simply likes to be walked on!

As a Bok fan, I'm more worried about Warburton than SOB. Warburton has electric pace which can get round players. SOB isn't going to get far by trying to run over Schalk Burger.

Quality line break and has gas to burn, good lad. Confession, never heard of him before a week ago.

"As a Bok fan, I'm more worried about Warburton than SOB. Warburton has electric pace which can get round players. SOB isn't going to get far by trying to run over Schalk Burger."

Schalk Burger is blindside flanker. Sean O'Brien is a blindside flanker.

David Skrela is a fly-half. Ball carrying blindsides tend to run at flyhalves if they can.

If Ireland do play the Boks it won't be Burger that O'Brien is running at. It will be Morne Steyn.

It's likely to be Butch James actually. Good luck getting through him.

The world's best blindside is injured and wont be at the world cup - Juan Smith. SOB is a fantastic ball carrier though, I love watching him play.

i'm pretty sure o'brien has more pace than warburton.

I don't know about best in the World, but certainly best 6 in Ireland and probably Europe. Rumour has it he is the lovechild of a chance encounter between Chuck Norris and a rhinoceros. Can't wait to see him up against the big Southern boys to make a name for himself

can't wait to see SOB against top opposition! He's been awesome all year for Leinster :)

ferris, heaslip and o'brien. that's some back row, even without david wallace

I think bothering people by only saying rubbish like "anyone who thinks X or Y isn't the best player in the wolrd just doesn't know anything about rugby" is a bit like trolling...anyway, who cares? SOB is great, but come on, most international players can look good due to circumstances: a tackling player who's too low or not well positioned, or anything...and to asnwer Colombes mate you're wrong, Skrela is actually good in defence, he just sucks at anything else.

btw wasn't his father a former France coach?

anyway, @ stoopid Sione who thinks NH is rubbish and all that, NZ is NOTHING like the huge team they are when Carter and McCaw aren't on the pitch: even the French can beat them when those two are not here! speaking of, the French seem to have at least 29 excellent players! so, if this WC is full of injuries, they might actually have a pretty clear shot considering that no other team has such depth when in comes to replacements...e.g if Mc Caw bumps into Carter and both are broken, (not wishing that though, we'd be deprived ofan amazing show!)

O'brein is one of the best ball carriers in the world and has great pace but i would say that Warburton is better in the rucks.

Great carries by O'Brien but has a tendency to go missing for large chunks of games. Ferris also carries well and goes through a phenomenal amount of back row work. A tough call. Wallace is an eight playing seven, so a switch with Ferris wouldn't be too different a balance in the back row especially since Ferris has such great pace.

'Not bringing Jennings will come back to Haunt Kidney.'

Have to say I agree with this. David Wallace is 35 now and not taking specialist cover is a worry. Ireland have long suffered for not having a ball poaching 7 in a balanced back row. SOB is the obvious cover but I think Kidney missed a trick by bringing Ryan in the 'utility' 4/6 role. I'd have used Ferris in this role and brought Jennings. Imagine with 20 mins to go, Ferris coming on for DOC and Jennings for Wallace. Allied with Heaslip and SOB, that's some combination to finish off a game!

"Have to say I agree with this. David Wallace is 35 now and not taking specialist cover is a worry."

If Wallace does get "injured", Jennings can still be called up. Better to have him ready at home than taking up one of 30.

On sent que la coupe du monde arrive : et mon quipe c'est la meilleure, et nos joueurs c'est les meilleurs, et c'est moi qui ai la plus grosse, et blablabla... Tellement fatiguant! J'espre juste qu'on verra le plus de beau jeu possible.

This is just one hit of many check out this vid to see more

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDTmdDhGO50

Best 6 on the planet at the minute.

View Video

O'Brien and Kaino best 6's in the world.

Who even knows or gives a shit about Warburton anonymous 1:24

people are forgetting wallace is the only 7 ireland have,he is also one of the most under rated players in the world,he always makes ground,good tackler ,and all round beast,he isnt the biggest 7 in the world,but i have yet to see him play a bad game ...very honest player too,which sometimes isnt great,especally in the back row..SOB is a beast,him ahead of ferris,id love to see ferric with pauly in the second row

lol at people seeing him bounce skrela and thinking sob just ran over a weak defender. sob runs over everyone. this is typical.

Wow, the Irish are a proud race. Good on them.

SOB is a good player but he is yet to be properly tested. I hope he succeeds but he should not be considered a patch on the guys who have proven themselves over the years. He reminds me of Jean Deysel (who was featured on here a while back) and he hasn't done much at international level either.

Irish is not a race... and he has been tested.

Hmmm...I imagine that, historically, you could call Irish a race. But that's sort of pointless, anyway.

But I agree, O'Brien has played some big international matches. He may not have tons of experience against all of the SH sides, but that's why he's an exciting prospect for this WC...it'll give him a chance to really show what he can do.

Deysel is no laughing matter, either. Like Kankowski, he just gets a bit overlooked in favor of the other big names. It'd be wise for PdV to have a guy like him on the bench and bring him on when the defense starts getting a bit tired...he tends to bust right through them.

Yeah, SOB hasnt been tested. Only helped Ireland prevent an English GS, been one of the most consistent players in the 6N out of all the teams and been the key cog in helping Leinster win a HC through a group of death, where the easiest team were Racing Metro - the richest club in Europe, as no offence, I'm taking it you're not a European rugby fan in terms of viewing.

The guy has defo beent tested and i seriously hope he remains a first teamer, because if he doesnt hes had a serious injury or massive drop in form. His talent is outrageous.

please rubgy world do NOT call this guy SOB. with the irish players everyone has 3 letters and an O in the middle. this just gets confusing for the rest of the world with nomal names. great run tho. respect to SOB

You mean people like BOD, POC, DOC, ROG, coach EOS, and now SOB?

o'Brien is very effective as is Ferris but Wallace is the only real footballer of the 3. he is of course getting old but he still has his pace and understands a game better than most back-rows out there. Also Wallace and Leamy have both played a number of games for Munster in the backline back in the day...at 12 and wing both. Leamy even used to be a serious goal kicker for Ireland Schools.My choice back-row to start would be 6.Ferris 7.Wallace 8.Heaslip with O'Brien on the side-lines being told exactly where the gaps are apearing and where to hit them...can come on for any of the 3 BR positions and pick his angles of 10 & 12...

Can't believe no one has mentioned that although this looks good, it essentially cost ire the game because Skrela ain't no Trinh Duc.

Also, the first Ire game I haven't seen in around 8 years... and I'm probably going to miss the Eng game too..... aghhh.

Damn earning money in the middle of nowhere!!!!

Also SOB at 12 is a great idea.

Yes, Leamy and Wallace played there for Munster, Leamy a couple of times, once worked, the other didn't. Wallace was at 1 stage in the early 2000s Munster's fastest player so it made sense in a way. Ok, when Anthony Horgan is 1 of your wings even Hayes could do a job for you out wide.

And starting Ferris could be a gamble. He's so physical he might not last the first half, even though Wallace is 35, he is as fit as ever and had an absolute stormer for 80 in Magners Final.

This guy is a beast! Excellent backrow from Ireland!

SOB. Slow, Overweight Bastard.

You guys are just so excited about your beloved SOB but come on, don't overestimate him. He's a good ball carrier : correct, he's only 24 and will get better with years : correct. The best back row in the world ??? WRONG. He is powerfull and has great pace, but once he breaks the line, nothing happens, you can't play after him, hedoesn't look around. He's not especially good in defense, as well as in rucks on line-outs, and is absolutely not unstoppable, remember how Szaezewski and Trinh Duc dumped him in the warm up matches. Calm down guys, SOB is Good but he is no god.

No anonymous, SOB is the best backrow in the world currently.

Even McCaw is trying to order SOB addidas 360 studs.

latest news in Ireland is that O Brien has injured himself in training. It would be terribly unfortunate to lose him, only hopeful point is that the newspaper that reported this today is an absolute joke so it might be bullshit (irish indo - hugh farrelly!)

Anon, 3 above...

have a look at this video and then come back and tell me he doesn't look around once he makes a line break....So many of his line breaks this season were followed by excellent off loads..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ox24cJMUZdc

He should not be considered the best in the world just yet, he is only young and has only had one good season...Remember hailing Rob Kearney as the best FB in the world after the lions tour?

Let see how he fares at the world cup against the likes of McCaw and Kaino and Pocock and brussow and Elsom and Dusatoir and Harinordiquay etc before we start coronating him king of Ireland...

View Video

Agreed the mull.
He's a very impressive player, from what we've seen so far.
But he has yet to do this or paly particularly impressivley against the top teams (Aus, NZ, SA).
If he can repeat this against them, and facing guys like Kaino, Mccaw, Burger, Brussow, Pocock and Elsom, then he deserves to be considered one of the best in the world.
Luckily there's a world cup in a couple weeks, so we'll get to see very soon.

Come on, he looks a good player yes, but hailing him the best in the world? Bit early isn't it?
He ran over a fly-half. Good stuff. But let's see him do this week in, week out, for a few years against the best teams (and the best teams don't play in the 6 nations).

Well done Bill, you're an ignorant troll and you proved yourself incorrect and dumb!

@Bill Junior
He didn't run over just any flyhalf, he ran over a flyhalf nicknamed "the goat" in France. But he did run through three good defenders for the last try of the match (although I've got to say that I can't be certain of the French commitment at the time: 81st minute, game already won).

@Moddeur and Bill

He does do this week in week out and it's not generally a weak fly half. Don't judge him on one or two matches.

Bills Dad, what did I say that was incorrect?
Dipute me with facts.
The top three teams don't play in the 6 nations. That's a fact. Check the world rankings. Check the for and against record of the top teams.
O'Brien is a very good player, as I just said, and this was a very good run.
But until he dopes this against the top three teams in world rugby he can't be considered the best. If he can do this to NZ, SA and Aus than he's worthy of being called the best or one of the best.

@Bill
I don't know how accurate the IRB rankings are. Points are adjusted according to the event, hence test matches count much less than Tri Nations encounters. And since the top three teams play each other 6 times a year, they have a better chance of staying in the top 3. They help each other, do you see? Whereas teams ranked 4 to 9, play each other only once a year, and a single misstep costs them dearly in the rankings.

If you don't catch my drift, here's the perfect example: France have lost only 3 matches to South Africa in their last 10 encounters since 2001, 6 of these played in South Africa ... so why is South Africa always ahead of France in the IRB rankings? Because test matches count less than VI nations ones, and so one loss to Wales or Scotland, and BAM! there goes France's ranking.

to settle this once and for all...guys, it is far too obvious than an Irish fan will be biased and too enthusiastic when it comes to their players! that's just natural!
what would you guys say if I said that Servat is the best hooker in the world, or that Harinordoquy is the best n8 or Medard the best fullback??? "oh, this guy's French, period". and you'd be right...

modduer the rankings are NOT adjusted depending on the context of the game. Test matches do NOT count for less than 3nations or 6 nations games.
They count the same.
And SA, Aus and NZ earn the points by winning more games than they lose.
France? They have beaten South Africa a fair bit in the last few years, but what's their record against Australia and New Zealand? It's pretty bad. Just in the last year or so, they;ve lost to South Africa, Argentina, Australia and Italy. That's why they arent ranked highly.
And you know what that's accurate. France arent playing all that well recently.
And the rankings are current, not based on what happened ten years ago.
If New Zealand can beat every European team over and over agin, they deserved to be ranked no 1.

Actually you're right, I just went and checked and it's only world cup games that weigh more.

I still don't believe that the "top 3" is a valid notion. My take is that the top two teams are squarely above everyone else, especially the #1 spot. But from 3rd to 5th, it's fair game for all: France will beat SA which will beat England which will beat France.

"to settle this once and for all...guys, it is far too obvious than an Irish fan will be biased and too enthusiastic when it comes to their players! that's just natural!
what would you guys say if I said that Servat is the best hooker in the world, or that Harinordoquy is the best n8 or Medard the best fullback??? "oh, this guy's French, period". and you'd be right..."

well id say you are wrong because you are wrong, not because you are french

You guys are so stupid, calling Skrela the o gara from France concerning tackles. You don't even know what you're talking about. Skrela is the fly half who defends the most during the TOP 14. He is also 100kg, nothing to compare with o gara that is only been used to kick for 10 years now. He has just been surprised, also good players can be driven backward.

^^

O'Gara is generally much more of a player than just a "kicker" his defence is the only thing that really lets him down...

SOB was anonymous against us today. just shows that the irish rate their own too highly

Thank you anon. 3 above. What the hell are people talking about comparing ogara's to skrela's? skrela is 6'3 and 100kilos and ronan o gara is 6ft and 82kg... how can people compare the two?

o'brien is shorter than skrela and is only about 8kg heavier

@ Anonymous 2 above

lol.. you troll. Sean o' Brien wasn't playing against England today

MUPPET

Sorry Modduer, you seem a reasonable guy, so please don;t be offended, but there's no way France deserve to be ranked up with NZ, Aus and SA.
Again they recently lost to Australia by about 50, South Africa by 30, Argentina by 30, and Itlay beat them!
They aren't very impressive recently.
Beating other 6 nations teams doesn't count for as much, because, those same 6 nations teams ALSO go and lose regularly to the 3 nations sides. It's pretty damn hard to argue with the IRB rankings. It's not like FIFA where they make no sense. The IRB rankings are very fair.

Bill, the rankings are a joke. That's well known. However, the 3N are above the 6N in the rankings and not in the rankings.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ox24cJMUZdc

View Video

Why are the rankings a joke?
In what way?
They are pretty simple. They based on win/loss ratios.
Aus, NZ and SA have a winning record (ie they've won more than they've lost usually by a considerable percentage) against every single European team that plays rugby.
Of course they are ranked higher.

Just checked him out on YouTube. Surprising amount of pace and he can step as well. Great offloads. Not just a crash baller.

Evidently, we are the big boys. Eat it Slone!