“It happened in slow motion.”
Conor Murray was not the only person feeling that way as Johnny Sexton connected with the ball, deep into injury time, at Stade de France.
The Ireland outhalf called the play and followed through with a sublime, gutsy strike that broke French hearts. There have been many versions of that moment replayed over the past few days but RTE’s Michael Corcoran takes the hyperbole biscuit.
🎧 "France have been absolutely destroyed with the final kick of the game"
Listen to @MichaelC_RTE call the dramatic final moments of #FRAvIRE for @SatSportRTE #RTErugby pic.twitter.com/JveUq6D6qq— RTÉ Rugby (@RTErugby) February 3, 2018
We caught up with Murray around an hour after the final whistle had sounded and he was visibly buzzing. There was a real excitement in his voice and an awe as he spoke about Sexton’s drop goal winner.
“You’ve got a rough idea of the distance he needs for a drop-goal, and then you’re communicating with the forwards but also keeping an eye on him.
“I think it was just a look really. You can judge by his body language, and then he just gave me a flick of the eyebrows to know he needed… The French perhaps thought we would go again with the forwards, so I think we timed it quite well.
“Sometimes it doesn’t work. It’s a really difficult thing to do, so as a 15 I thought it was a really clinical way to close out the game.”
Sexton’s celebration, when he knew the kick was good and the game was won, was pretty memorable too.
Sexton, oddly, ran away from his teammates rather than too their embrace.
We asked Murray about that and about when he knew the kick was good. He replied:
“I don’t know because when I turned around he was all the way down the other end of the field in the 22.
“He claims he was going down to look at the other screen but there was one right in front of him.
“I knew when he struck it it looked like it had the legs. They are the moments you’ll remember forever, when you’re just ecstatic.
“I’m sure we’ll get a bit of stick for it in the review, for celebrating like footballers, but it was natural. They are the moments you really enjoy.
“It happened in slow-motion, it was a surreal moment, but great.”
Sexton did not escape his teammates for long:
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bex1FLhg9-M/?taken-by=sexton_johnny10
Brilliant scenes.
