O'Driscoll excited about Aviva move and World Cup

The 31-year-old outside centre was in Londonderry on Monday night as the guest of honour at the Derry Credit Union’s Young People’s awards, which took place in the City Hotel.

“The Six Nations competition was a bit of a mixed bag, the disappointment of France, we came back well and had two great victories over England and Wales and then it just didn’t really happen for us in the Triple Crown decider against Scotland,” he declared.

“However you get certain games like that but we won’t lose any faith or belief in the way we are trying to play the game; we came across good opposition that day and the better team won.

“Obviously we would have liked to have left Croke Park on a high and it leaves a little bit of a sour taste, but who knows one day we might be back at Croke Park?

“I think our home is essentially the old Lansdowne Road ground, the new Aviva Stadium, but a part of me will certainly miss Croke Park, because you play in front of 80,000 people as supposed to 50,000 at the new Aviva Stadium, but I know the atmosphere within the Aviva will be incredible.

“The fans are right on top of you and on top of the pitch and I think it will make it quite a cauldrum and we are looking forward to try and build a place which will be difficult for our opposition.”

With the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand not that far away, the Leinster man isn't getting too carried away with all the hype.

“It’s probably the guts of 18 months away from the World Cup and I have been around long enough to know how long 18 months is in rugby and as much as the team is being planned towards the World Cup, there is plenty of games in the interim period to concentrate on, and from my experience you deal with what is in front of you rather than what’s somewhere down the track.”