Johnny Sexton: 'I offered my hand. He told me to f*** off'

Johnny Sexton has opened up about his heated relationship with Ronan O’Gara, recalling their infamous on-field clash in 2009.

Sexton has written about the drama in his new book – Obsessed: The Autobiography of Johnny Sexton. Extracts from the book have been published in this weekend’s Sunday Times.

The tensions between the two Ireland fly-halves escalated prior to that day at a Leinster-Munster match, where a scuffle led to a verbal exchange. O’Gara called Sexton “useless” and “a nobody,” fueling their rivalry.

Handre Pollard sheds light on Ireland without Johnny Sexton

Handre Pollard sheds light on Ireland without Johnny Sexton

“The real flare-up started when I went to clear out Lifeimi Mafi after he’d tip-tackled Chris Whitaker. I caught him above the eye with a stud by accident and he retaliated. A few fists were thrown.

“Paul O’Connell was quick on the scene, asking Mafi who’d caused the gash above his eye. Suddenly I have Paulie pointing the finger at me and giving me a mouthful. A scary sight. I squared my shoulders at him, but from a safe distance.

“With Paulie there for protection, O’Gara was also in my face: “What the f*** are you doing?” I responded by shaping to punch him, just drawing my fist back. When he winced, I called him a coward. That really set him off.

“Call me a coward? You’re nothing! You’re useless! A nobody!”

“It soon broke up, but I stored his words in a place where they could fester.”

Later that season, Sexton confronted O’Gara again after Leinster’s win over Munster in the Heineken Cup semi-final in Croke Park.

“I was delighted with how I played at Croker that day, but my performance is remembered for two things only: that first penalty kick and the famous flashpoint, in the left corner just after Darce’s try, when I got into O’Gara’s face.

“I’ve spent a lot of time apologising for that moment over the years — how I regretted being disrespectful towards him, how I may have caused embarrassment to my Munster relations. I remember that I received a letter from a Munster fan, telling me how unsportsmanlike I’d been.

“At this stage, I’m actually glad that I did it. I was just being me.

“I know it wasn’t setting a great example to the thousands of kids who were watching. I’m not sure how I’d feel about my kids seeing it, or how I’ll explain it to them when the time comes. But stuff like this happens in competitive sport. And was it really that bad? His words had played over and over in my head for weeks building up to this game. “You’re useless, a nobody.”

“I went over to O’Gara on the final whistle and offered my hand. He told me to f*** off. He had the hump, big-time. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Brian [O’Driscoll] had intercepted him for our final try.”

While they eventually formed a friendship as coach and player at Racing 92, the rivalry has been reignited following another spat during the 2023 Champions Cup final in the Aviva Stadium, where the pair once again exchanged words.

Obsessed, The Autobiography by Johnny Sexton is published by Penguin, Sandycove on the 10th Oct at £20/€25. Available to pre-order now