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Ireland looks to shed `nearly men' status in Dublin

"Some of the guys are getting to the end of their careers so we have to make hay while the sun shines."

Brian O'Driscoll, Ireland rugby captain

Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll wants his team to shed their "nearly men" status and win some silverware before the present squad breaks up.

Ireland defeated all their fellow Home Unions -- England, Scotland and Wales -- during last season's Six Nations Championship and so "won" the Triple Crown.

That is a prize for which there is no trophy, but this season, after three straight wins, Ireland are on the brink of their first Championship since 1985 when the tournament comprised just the Five Nations.

Even more exciting for their fans, ahead of tomorrow's showdown against Six Nations champions France at Lansdowne Road, is that the team is on the brink of becoming only the second Ireland team ever, after the celebrated side of 1948, to complete a Championship Grand Slam.

But to do that not only must they beat France but also see off Slam rivals Wales in Cardiff on March 19.

At 26, O'Driscoll, the favorite to lead the British and Irish Lions in New Zealand later this year, is in the prime of his rugby career.

But he is aware that time is running out for the likes of prop Reggie Corrigan (34), hooker Shane Byrne (33) and second row Malcolm O'Kelly (30) to lift a trophy while wearing the famous green jersey.

"We don't want to be nearly men -- we want something tangible as evidence of our improvement," said O'Driscoll, who has led Ireland to successive second-place finishes in the last two tournaments.

"We must improve on winning four out of five games so that in the future we can look back and say we won the championship," the Leinster center added.

"I don't think we've quite reached our potential yet but we have been building for a number of years.

"We have a large number of caps in the side and we must capitalize on using that experience.

"Some of the guys are getting to the end of their careers so we have to make hay while the sun shines."

France will be looking to bounce back after their shock 24-18 defeat by Wales in Paris where Les Bleus somehow squandered a nine-point half-time lead.

And O'Driscoll, who scored the decisive try in Ireland's 19-13 win against England last time out, said: "France are a huge challenge for us but we can beat them if we play to the best of our ability. We are level pegging with them and I think the side with the greater will to win will come through it."

He added: "France have a very tough defense to break down. They don't leak many tries so we'll have our work cut out to breach their line.

"We have to be patient and sometimes we may go backwards but we have to work through the phases and look to create mis-matches," O'Driscoll said.

In the weekend's other matches, England meets Italy in the Six Nations "Wooden Spoon"d ecider at Twickenham tomorrow, while Wales squares off against Scotland.
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