Johnny Sexton

Johnny Sexton turns 37 today – the birthday boy has now won so much that he has to be recognised as the best we've had.

“It is his mindset, his drive, his passion, his love for the game; he has been world player of the year for a reason and he is obviously talented; he ticks all the boxes really. He has a presence that everyone feels; that the nation feels and the whole world can feel when he is on the pitch. He made just one in the game – seeking to get as much out of a kick to touch as possible. It is easy to overlook that he had five further involvements in that move, his short simple passes a sacrifice of his ego, his longer, whipped delivery to Mack Hansen buying Ireland an extra couple of yards. Again, it was Sexton who wrong-footed the All Blacks by faking to go wide when he instead stayed narrow, sending Andrew Porter clear. He impressed in his third win, not so much in his fourth, but still walked away with a winner’s medal. Given the ruggedness of his play and his character, he hasn’t fought his way into the nation’s hearts in the way other sports stars have, such as Katie Taylor, Shane Lowry … Brian O’Driscoll. O’Driscoll lost to the All Blacks 13 times. O’Driscoll broke the mould, scored that hat-trick in Paris, the game that turned Irish rugby around. O’Driscoll played the All Blacks 13 times. Brian O’Driscoll had repeatedly stood up in the dressing room and told his Leinster team mates that unless they started to call him out on mistakes then they would never progress from contenders to champions. O’Driscoll threw the kid a sloppy pass.