Eddie Butler pays tribute to Brian O'Driscoll's 2009 rejuvination on the morning of his 100th Test cap in The Observer.
"Then something utterly extraordinary happened, one of the great sporting reinventions of the age. Maybe it was Leinster's catalogue of failure that drove him, perhaps it was Ireland's inability to go the whole hog in the Six Nations. Perhaps he didn't like the sneers.
"But suddenly there was this force of nature at work on the rugby field, not flowing, long-locked, in midfield, but strutting into confined quarters and seizing the ball reserved for forwards and showing them the way to the line. O'Driscoll had always been a try-scorer – Ireland's record-holder with 36 – but not like this.
"If it was a sign of more thrust from close range and less of the purr from afar, O'Driscoll then showed that there was plenty left in the tank. In defence he began to be more conspicuous than ever, flying into tackles all over the shop, bouncing back to his feet and looking for more. Gone was the winking, lop-sided grinner. In his place was this lunatic with a glint in his eye, looking for trouble."
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