Jonathan Sexton entering the goldfish bowl of France"s Top 14

Jonathan Sexton was given a goldfish to mind as part of an initiation process for the newbies at Racing Metro 92. He was then directed to eat it, a death sentence commuted on the advice of the club doctor, much to the relief of the Ireland and Lions outhalf.

The goldfish has presumably been returned to his bowl, an image with which the 28-year- old might come to identify given the scrutiny he’ll face in his debut season following a high -profile move to France from Leinster.

Tomorrow evening in La Rochelle – Racing Metro elected to move their home match there because many Parisians take their holidays in August – he’ll make his competitive debut against Brive on the opening weekend of the French Top 14 Championship, having enjoyed 40 minutes against Aviva Premiership side, Harlequins, eight days ago.

Aidan McCullen empathises with and understands the challenges Sexton faces albeit adding the rider that his move to Toulouse in2005, coincidentally also as a 28-year-old, was appreciably different.

Even though he had played at underage international level for Ireland, won a senior cap against Samoa (2003) and represented Leinster over 60 times, his arrival in Toulouse was a footnote rather than one commandeering banner headlines. It wasn’t his first experience of French rugby as he’d played with Dax as a 20-year-old.

The disparity
McCullen was courted by Clermont Auvergne (pre Vern Cotter and Joe Schmidt) and Toulouse but the disparity in the welcome he received in the two places made the decision straightforward.

Toulouse, were warm, open and welcoming, manifest in so many personal touches; they genuinely wanted him to join the club, while Clermont’s Jean Marc Lhermet, whom he had played against with Leinster, was more preoccupied with why he wanted to leave Leinster. He agreed a one-year deal with Toulouse.

Now head of Digital for Communicorp Group and an analyst on the French Top 14 for Setanta Sports, McCullen, 36, points out that no matter how mentally tough a player is, there is an acclimatisation period, and that happiness off the pitch is central to an ability to focus on the rugby.

“Johnny’s been signed as the lynchpin of the Racing Metro team on a salary the club believes is commensurate with his ability. There is no doubt that they will get their pound of flesh in terms of game time.

“The commitments are relentless. The set-up is very professional, the training high-quality but French clubs don’t tend to rotate their foreign players as much.

“I fairness to the IRFU they look after the home-based players very well in terms of limiting game-time and rehabilitating injuries. In France if you get injured there is huge pressure to get back quickly. It doesn’t all come from the club. As a player, settling into a new environment, you want to be at the hub of things, not watching at a distance. It can leave you feeling isolated.

Injured players
“I remember a former team-mate of mine and ex-Leinster defence coach, Kurt McQuilkin used to refer to injured players when we were away on tour as ‘food bills’. If a club has invested heavily financially they want you on the pitch. The old culture in French rugby that would see some of the bigger clubs rest many of their front-line players for away trips to the smaller clubs, has changed with the influx of foreign coaches, like Vern Cotter.”

Jonathan Sexton entering the goldfish bowl of France"s Top 14