Dublin banks on Brennan to stoke the home fires

The Heineken Cup final next week is not quite an exclusively French affair

When the luck of the Irish disappeared down the Liffey, it turned what should have been a Gaelic occasion into a Gallic affair. It is sod's law that Lansdowne Road in Dublin should be the venue next Saturday for the first all-French Heineken Cup final.

Having decided on the place and time last year, European Cup Rugby Ltd were not tempted to switch the denouement to somewhere in France simply because Toulouse and Perpignan emerged as the finalists. The party line, that the organisers and hosts needed time to build the European Cup final into a major sporting occasion, is being maintained. But there is no escaping the fact that when Toulouse put out Munster and Perpignan defeated Leinster in the semi-finals, the party in Dublin lost much of its joie de vivre. Had one of the Irish provinces reached the climax, a black market in tickets would have been created. Another irony is that in France, where there is a ban on alcohol advertising, the Heineken Cup is abbreviated to the H Cup.

As it is, the Irish Tourist Board, who could have named their price for hotel rooms last month, have had to apply the hard sell. It could have been worse. It was a toss-up whether to stage the final at Twickenham, which has about 30,000 more seats than Lansdowne Road.

Toulouse are the best-supported club in France, and even Perpignan supporters should cross the channel for this one. It is hoped that any shortfall will be taken up by the indigenous population, not only to support the event in the fair city but to witness the return of one of their own. It has not always been the sentiment, but thank God for Trevor Brennan, the Toulouse No 6.

The one-time Dublin milkman became something of a cult figure during the 1999 World Cup, when he had drinks, of the lethal cocktail variety, named after him. In Ireland's defeat to Australia at Lansdowne Road, Brennan floored Jeremy Paul in an off-the-ball incident and was subsequently set upon by the Wallabies No 8, Toutai Kefu. Brennan's face was a mess but he has since learnt, he says, to turn the other cheek.

It was his fighting spirit, the milkman who had a lot of bottle, that attracted Toulouse to Brennan. Playing for Leinster, he had a big game against the French club in Europe and when they made him an offer last year he, like others in Britain and Ireland, found the option of playing and living in France irresistible.

"I have no regrets,'' Brennan said, "or as they say here, sans rien. Joining Toulouse has been one of my best decisions. They've brought on my game leaps and bounds and I've never been fitter. Back home, Trevor Brennan had bad hands, and if you made one mistake every few games, people picked up on it.''

Other Irish players brushing up on their French next season are Justin Fitzpatrick, off to Castres, and Mark Blair, to Narbonne. Mick O'Driscoll, the Munster legend, is joining Perpignan, where he will meet up with the England wing Dan Luger, the Australian centre Daniel Herbert, the All Black flanker Scott Robertson and the Leicester prop Perry Freshwater.

Because Luger's Premiership appearances would be reduced next season by the World Cup, Harlequins offered him a reduced salary of £50,000. Although there is no salary cap in France, Luger says his income in Perpignan, where he has signed to play until 2006, is not dissimilar to what it would have been in London. "It's not about money,'' he said, "it's more about the lifestyle.''

Brennan, who has a flat in Dublin, still has a high profile in Ireland, where he has a newspaper column. "I've gone through a whole change in lifestyle, right down to how and what I eat and the amount of alcohol I drink,'' he said. "After a match you'd find it hard to get somebody to go for a pint. They're just not big drinkers. When I went home at Christmas I was fairly conscious of the amount people were drinking around me, and I never thought I'd say that. After every home game in Toulouse we go out as a team, have a meal and there's a couple of bottles of wine, but by 10.30 fellas would drift off, whereas at home you'd have more team-mates to have a few drinks with.''

Toulouse, the odds-on favourites, won the inaugural cup in 1996, when they beat Cardiff 21-18 in extra time at the Arms Park. The only survivor is the peerless Emile Ntamack. He and Brennan featured in the 13-12 defeat of Munster in the semi-finals, and the next day watched the Leinster-Perpignan tie, which was played at Lansdowne Road, on television.

"I'd been looking forward to meeting Leinster in the final,'' Brennan said. "It was a great opportunity for them and I feel sorry for a lot of my friends. I hope the Irish supporters will come out. I'd hate to think Lansdowne will be empty.''