Brian knew that the interview was probably prerecorded as Clive was away on holiday that week, but what could this mean? Was the captaincy in the bag? Or was Clive taking some time away to ponder his decision? Brian’s heart began to race as his thoughts turned to the future and what this could all mean.
Within a day, he had snapped out of it and reassessed his priorities. He reminded himself that first and foremost it was a privilege to even be selected for a Lions squad and if picked to play he owed it to himself and the team to try to produce the best rugby of his life.
In the meantime, he had to focus on his responsibilities with Leinster but this was easier said than done. The Six Nations had completely dominated his life since Christmas and he had thought about little else day and night over the past three months. Now it was over and he felt a real sense of anti-climax. The adrenaline had gone from his body and all of a sudden every bump and knock he had experienced during the tournament had come back to haunt him. His body felt battered, bruised and exhausted, but he knew he couldn’t sit back and relax for too long as Leinster’s vital Heineken Cup match against Leicester was just around the corner and he had to be back in shape for that.
Most importantly, his hamstring wasn’t quite right and he knew that it was important to give it time to heal if he was to be fully fit for the Leicester game, so he decided to sit out Leinster’s Celtic League fixture the weekend before.
His relationship with model Glenda Gilson – of which there had been much gossip in the Irish press in the preceding months – was back on, but Brian was keen to keep things as low profile as possible. Comparisons had been made in the Irish press to Posh and Becks, but in reality nothing could have been further from the truth. Their relationship had been on and off a few times before and they certainly did not do much to court press attention, especially outside Ireland, where hardly anybody had heard of her. But the fact he was seeing such a glamorous woman inevitably meant their relationship would attract the attention of the press.
Yet there was an upside to the high profile Brian now enjoyed in Ireland. He had become something of a marketing dream in his home country, and now, more than ever, advertisers were keen to have him associated with their products. Second only to Roy Keane, he was Ireland’s most marketable sportsman.
The Irish rugby press had noted that Brian would regularly be seen drinking from a bottle of Powerade, and argued that it was happening too often to be a coincidence. Then there was the golf club on the Wicklow–Wexford border that Brian had described as ‘an amazing place’. He had just signed an exclusive sponsorship deal with the club. He said of it, ‘When I visited [the club], I knew right away I had found what I was looking for; I can finish training and be on the first tee here in just over an hour.’
Observers depict Brian, who holds qualifications in sports management, as level-headed and financially savvy. In 2001, he set up a company to handle many of his commercial deals. His father, Frank, is a director of the company and advises his son on which offers to take. ODM Promotions made a profit of around €125,000 for the year ending 31 August 2003 and had retained profits of €188,000. But, by now, things had moved on considerably.
One Irish sports agent said that, if Brian was offered the Lions captaincy, he could charge whatever he liked. He said, ‘For example, he’s in such high demand to make personal appearances he can probably ask for around ?5,000 a day. He’s in a take-it-or-leave-it position.’
Fintan Drury, chief executive of Drury Sports Management, tried to put Brian’s earning power into perspective. He explained, ‘Other than being a fantastic player, he’s bright, articulate, young and has a good image. However, there’s a very simple equation at work here – rugby players don’t earn as much as footballers, there is a massive gap.’
Drury was blunt in comparing Brian’s earning power with that of Roy Keane. He said, ‘If Brian were to have as long a career as Roy Keane has had, regardless of what he is getting paid by his employers at the IRFU, he still wouldn’t be in the same league. It doesn’t matter how successful he proves to be with the Lions – Adidas is always going to be able to sell more pairs of boots with a football player.’
Another agent, who has experience in handling several Irish rugby players, backed up this view, saying, ‘It’s a Mickey Mouse sport compared to soccer. Roy Keane makes more in one month than Brian O’Driscoll could possibly make in a year. Keane can get away with asking for £10,000 a day for personal appearances. In rugby that’s just not on. You can’t even really compare it to the likes of tennis or golf. Padraig Harrington probably makes several million a year in prize money alone.’
Times have certainly changed since rugby turned professional, but these accounts go a long way towards showing that the earning power of even the most glamorous and high profile of rugby players does not even come close to matching that of other sports. As the press attention surrounding his private life proves, Brian was, by now, much more than just a rugby player in his homeland – he was a celebrity in his own right. So, the fact that he does not have the financial clout of other sports stars from Ireland may come as something of a surprise, yet it is clear that Brian has benefited considerably from the professionalisation of rugby and his earning power is considerably higher than it would have been had he come along a decade earlier.
One down side the professional era had brought was the criticism he had to face for not turning out for Leinster in Celtic League matches as often as many traditionalists would have liked. On this occasion, he really did need to rest his hamstring and save himself for the Heineken Cup.
To this point in the season, he had played four Celtic League games, six in the Heineken Cup, which require a similar standard of preparation to internationals, and eight Ireland matches, giving a total of 18 full-on games by the middle of March. In the old days, there would have been one international in the autumn and four games in the Five Nations, plus some far less demanding club games, and that would be about it. There is no comparison between the intensity of the two eras, and the physical demands placed on the modern players is undoubtedly more intense. On this basis, few would argue that leading players such as Brian should be preserved for the key games.
Since he was ‘resting’ that weekend, Brian decided to head on a night out with his mates in Dublin on Friday night. On the Saturday morning, he headed for brunch at a local café. While he was there, he received a voice message on his mobile from Clive Woodward, who was still on holiday somewhere in the Caribbean. Clive asked him to call back as soon as possible, but Brian had difficulty getting through to him. He tried again 15 minutes later. Still no luck.
Brian knew full well that this phone call would either make or break his hopes of being Lions captain. All this waiting to get through to Clive was torture.
It seemed like many hours, but in truth only about 20 minutes had passed when Clive’s phone finally rang. They exchanged pleasantries for a few moments – it turned out Clive was in Barbados in the baking heat and had just come back from a morning swim. Then came the big news. Brian was formally offered captaincy of the Lions. Brian immediately accepted, and clenched his fist and punched the air for joy.
It took a minute or two to sink in. He recalled the meeting in Henley a few months earlier, but then in the past few weeks the press had bandied about other names and Clive was playing his cards very close to his chest. Brian needn’t have worried. Clive had pretty much decided on the night of the Henley meeting that Brian had matured enough as a person and was now absolutely the right man to captain the Lions.
There was no time for wild celebrations as Clive immediately began talking about the hectic schedule that stood in front of him in the months ahead. First up was the big lunch on Monday, 11 April at the Hilton Hotel, Heathrow, for the management and captain. Brian would be expected to arrive on the Sunday night and the big announcement would be made live on Sky on the Monday afternoon.
Brian’s attempt at humour fell flat: ‘I’m not sure I will be able to fit that in,’ he said.
There was a long pause at the other end. Clive seemed irritated.
Brian