Hall of Fame honour for O'Driscoll

Ireland's Brian O'Driscoll is to be inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame at a special ceremony on Thursday.

O'Driscoll is Ireland's record try-scorer and cap-holder with 46 tries in his 133 Test appearances from 1999-2014, while he also won eight caps for the British and Irish Lions in four tours.

A three-time IRB Player of the Year nominee, O'Driscoll captained Ireland to their first Grand Slam in 61 years in 2009, while he won three Heineken Cups, four Celtic Leagues and the Challenge Cup with Leinster.

He is one of 12 inductees to the hall of fame this year with Shane Williams (Wales), Jeremy Guscott (England) and Lawrence Dallaglio (England) among those to be honoured at the ceremony to celebrate the official opening of the physical visitor experience in Rugby, England.

"The World Rugby Hall of Fame recognises those who have made an indelible mark on our sport through feats on the field of play, displays of great character or through their tireless and inspirational work in driving forward our great game," World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont sad.

"The latest set of inductions includes some real legends, players who have helped to shape the image of rugby and inspire generations of fans. They are truly some of the biggest names in our sport and all have contributed immensely to the enjoyment we have all felt watching top level rugby over the decades. Each of these 12 inductees has made a positive impression on the sport that will last the test of time.

"While the Hall of Fame has been in existence for some years, it is exciting that finally it will have a permanent home and fitting that it should be in the town that gave our game its name, Rugby. The physical Hall of Fame will be a wonderful focal point for the game and will attract fans from all over the world to relive the great exploits of rugby's most prominent and talented individuals."

2016 Hall of Fame inductees:

Brian O'Driscoll (121, Ireland), Shane Williams (122, Wales), Jeremy Guscott (123, England), Lawrence Dallaglio (124, England), Heather Moyse (125, Canada), John Dawes (126, Wales), GPS Macpherson (127, Scotland), Arthur Gould (128, Wales), Jonny Wilkinson (129, England), Daniel Carroll (130, Australia and USA), Daisuke Ohata (131, Japan) and Maggie Alphonsi (132, England).

Setanta Sports is now eir Sport. We have 6 great channels of live sport including eir Sport 1 & 2 and all 4 BT Sport channels. The eir Sport pack is free to all eir broadband customers. To learn more about setting sport free visit www.eir.ie/sport .