Ronan O’Gara responds to Johnny Sexton beating his record in excellent fashion
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Overtaken.
Ronan O’Gara’s longstanding points record with Ireland was finally defeated on Saturday, with Johnny Sexton overtaking his former teammate and coach with his try against Tonga.
O’Gara has long been Ireland’s record point scorer but when Sexton confirmed he was sticking around for one more World Cup – it was inevitable the 38-year-old would overtake the current La Rochelle head coach.
The pair began their relationship under some controversy when Sexton first burst onto the scene – with a number of ‘bust-ups’ so to speak, before going on to be great friends at Racing 92 where Sexton was a player and O’Gara was a coach.
O’Gara was asked this week about Sexton overtaking him and revealed he’s not disappointed, but happy for Johnny.
Although he did sneak in a mention about La Rochelle’s two European final wins over Leinster!
“I didn’t feel much. This record lasted for [18] years and I was shocked that it lasted that long.” O’Gara told Rugbyrama
“The only way for me to keep this record would have been if Johnny had retired. But when he decided to play on until the World Cup, it was obvious that he was going to break the record”
“It’s something that happens a lot. It’s sport! I’m not disappointed at all. I stopped playing 10 years ago and am super lucky and privileged to have experienced what I experienced.
“I am very happy for Johnny, he works a lot and takes it very serious. For me, having the opportunity to coach La Rochelle and win two [European] titles with La Rochelle is phenomenal. When I was a player, I was very competitive. But it has been a long time now!”