Quotes from Brian O'Driscoll

For me, it took five years to understand what professionalism meant. But I'm more settled now. I'm married, life changes, and I've been lucky in managing my injuries.

Everyone has tests in their life. They come in lots of different forms. I had two or three together, which definitely challenged me as a person and as a sportsman. The big thing is how you react to those situations. You want to come out positively at the other end, and that's what I focused on doing.

In a team situation, I think the players are more inclined to give the answer they believe the psychologist is looking for rather than maybe being totally honest.

It feels great to be a two-time Six Nations winner.

The victory is always sweeter... winning things with friends.

I tell you one you straight off in Scotland - Nick de Luca. I don't see his name quoted, but I've played against Nick quite a lot and he is a good player - one of the trickiest centres I've played against.

When you've done something for more than a third of your life, your whole adult life, and then all of a sudden you're going to have to switch off and say, 'No more,' you want to grasp as much of it and enjoy the last few years of it as much as you can. Because you can't get those years back.

I don't care that people thought I was one way for my whole career because now that I am not attached to a team, I can have my own opinion, I can have my own voice. I can link myself to my own thought process rather than a generic message most teams try to get across.

It's rare enough as an older generation player that you're 100% fit - there's always something niggling.

In your mid-20s, you think you'll go on for eternity. Then a point comes where you realise that's not going to be the case.

I was exposed to the gym at about 28. I never had a huge love or appetite for it - it was just a means to an end.

The Polynesian guys are pretty strong without going to the gym.

I would say I thrive in a competitive environment.

Timmy Horan was a childhood hero. He was a great distributor, elusive, good stepper, very physical, defensively very sound. What a rounded player.

You can't rely on your defence to win a World Cup.

Rugby gave me a confidence. I was quite shy and relatively timid, but it gave me the confidence to be a little bit more out-going and back myself a bit more.

There have been a couple of things I've been involved in launching that have been a bit more public, but I've always had other things tipping away in the background.

Rugby takes its toll.

If you start thinking about retirement in six months' time, you're already there.

Being recognised by Guinness World Records in their 60th year is a real honour. It's also a real privilege for me to be positioned beside such sporting greats.

Practise things you're good at. Keep on top of things you're not so good at, but be world-class at your best. Never think, 'I'm very good at this and that, I can leave those for a bit.'

The 2001 tour to Australia would have been a great highlight in my career if the Lions had won the series. That might sound strange because it was a great tour in many ways, but, for me, the more time goes by, the less of a career highlight it becomes, and just more of a frustration.

I love going out every day and training and being part of the team, and having friendships built up over a number of years. It's those aspects of sport that I feel are really important.

Games bring another level out in you. There is no way you can train to the same intensity when you are playing a game. It is just impossible. Your head won't allow you to do it. Because the adrenalin of a game and the importance of it steps it up to another level.