The Ireland and Lions centre is out of contract this summer at Leinster.

And Sport of the World understands the Welsh side are planning an amazing transfer coup.

They were linked with Worcester's wantaway All-Black centre Sam Tuitupou, but have turned all their attention to landing Ireland's Grand Slam winner, who has already held talks with the ambitious Welsh region.

D'Arcy, 30, has spent his entire career in Dublin and lifted the Heineken Cup last season with Leinster.

But he has seen the success of Ireland team-mate Tommy Bowe since moving to the Liberty Stadium and is looking for a fresh move.

D'Arcy, capped 41 times, is a proven match-winner and has been one of the top centres in Europe for the past six years.

He formed a lethal partnership for club and country with Brian O'Driscoll and was Six Nations Player of the Tournament in Ireland's Triple Crown successes in 2004 and 2007.

He also twice toured with the Lions in 2005 and again in 2008 when he played alongside Ospreys' James Hook, Mike Phillips and Shane Williams.

It would be a major capture for the Welsh region to land such a prolific player as they look to build a squad capable of conquering Europe.

Under current rules, D'Arcy would take the overseas spot of Filo Tiatia, who is retiring and one of eight players set to leave the Ospreys this summer.

The decision by the Ospreys to chase another inside centre will also raise doubts over a possible return for Gavin Henson, who commanded the No12 jersey before taking leave following injury.

Tommy Bowe insists a Triple Crown would be a satisfactory return from the 2010 RBS 6 Nations a year after Ireland completed the Grand Slam.

The Irish host Scotland in their tournament climax at Croke Park on Saturday needing victory to complete their fifth Home union clean sweep in seven seasons.

France look destined to supplant them as Grand Slam champions when they meet England in Paris and can even afford to lose but retain the title thanks to their vastly superior points difference.

Bowe admits following up last season's heroics, when Ireland swept all before them and then supplied a record number of players to the Lions tour, was always going to be challenging.

The Ospreys winger, however, believes they can be content with a sixth runners-up spot this decade.

He said: 'After the success of last year when we won the Grand Slam and had so many players involved in the Lions, people were probably expecting us to have bit of a downer season.

'We were very disappointed with the loss against France but to come back from that in a season when people were expecting us to go downhill will be great.

'We'll come out of it well if we finish with a Triple Crown. Winning the Triple Crown would be an amazing achievement.

'They've come thick and fast over the last few years but it's still a great achievement.

'The title's obviously out of our grasp because even if France were to lose to England we're behind on points difference, but we'd take the Triple Crown.'

A hallmark of Ireland's championship has been their ruthlessness with the whitewash at their mercy.

They may not have generated as many try-scoring chances as previous years but have finished those that have appeared with aplomb, crossing nine times with only leaders France scoring more.

The wingers have led the assault, Bowe touching down twice and Keith Earls three times to become the tournament's top try-scorer heading into the final round.

He said: 'I'm not sure if we're creating more chances but we are being a lot more clinical. It's well known we have a backline of immense talent.

'We have a centre partnership in Brian O'Driscoll and Gordon D'Arcy that is renowned throughout the world.

'Jonathan Sexton and Ronan O'Gara are two quality outside-halves vying for the position and in the back three there is so much competition.

'Guys like myself and Keith are under pressure to perform in every match.

'We're both good finishers so if we get a sniff we like to think we'll finish chances off.'

Scotland arrive in Dublin knowing that defeat would condemn them to a wooden spoon finish - a demoralising outcome for a side that started the Six Nations with high hopes.

Andy Robinson's team have played well at times and should have beaten Italy and Wales, but Bowe warns there will be no kindness shown by Ireland as they seek to bid a triumphant farewell to Croke Park.

Bowe said: 'Scotland will be very difficult. Everyone knows what we've got to play for, but the Scots are fighting for pride.

'At the start of the campaign I thought they'd be a team to be reckoned with under Andy Robinson.

'Their provinces are going well in the Magners League so they might feel a bit disappointed at the way their Six Nations has unfolded.

'They'll be determined to finish on a high but so will we because we've had some very fond memories at Croke Park.

'We'll be very sad to see it go but we want to finish with a bang this weekend.

'When we first moved to Croke Park people probably thought we wouldn't be able to sell it out as many times as we have.

'People from GAA backgrounds have enjoyed the rugby and we've been able to deliver on the pitch, which is special for us.'

Ireland's players and management have united in expressing their regret that Saturday will be their last appearance at Croke Park - and a glance at their record at the ground explains why.

Their four-year tenancy at GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) headquarters while Lansdowne Road has been rebuilt has coincided with the most successful period in the nation's rugby history.

Should they prevail against Scotland in the RBS 6 Nations this weekend, they will have won a Grand Slam and three Triple Crowns during their residency.

Their overall figures will read played 14, won 10 - a victory tally that include victories over England, France and world champions South Africa - drawn one, lost three.

Such success is bound to create happy memories, but their reluctance to depart the cathedral of Gaelic sport extends beyond silverware alone.

As Brian O'Driscoll states, Croke Park represents more than a playing field to the Irish nation. Instead, it offers a cultural and historical context that cane be claimed by few other grounds.

"We feel extremely privileged to have been allowed onto the hallowed soil of the GAA," said O'Driscoll.

"I grew up playing a lot of Gaelic football in my youth. Every Irish person is aware of their heritage and the GAA is part of that.

"It's been an absolute honour to have played there for the last four years."

The atmosphere has become more subdued over the last two seasons, perhaps because supporters have grown accustomed to victory during the golden age of Irish rugby.

Maybe a quieter breed of fan attends internationals, as the Heineken Cup semi-final between Munster and Leinster last year was hardly short of noise.

But there was nothing restrained about that first season there in 2007, kicked off with a heart-rending loss to France that ultimately denied Ireland the Grand Slam.

The disappointment of defeat was soon forgotten, however, as they produced one of the greatest moments in the nation's sporting history.

England's first visit to Croke Park was shrouded in tension with the ground steeped in history from the conflict between the two countries.

It provided the setting for 'Bloody Sunday' in 1920 when 14 civilians were killed by British soldiers.

To add to the significance, Hill 16, the stadium's only terrace, was built from the rubble of O'Connell Street after it had been bombed by the British during the Easter Rising.

Debate raged over what reception 'God Save the Queen' would receive, but England's anthem passed without incident.

Instead, Ireland celebrated a highly-symbolic moment amid an electric atmosphere with a 43-13 rout that even visiting fans admitted was entirely in keeping with the occasion.

Any lingering opposition to the temporary relaxing of Rule 42, which forbade 'foreign' sports considered to be in competition with their Gaelic rivals, evaporated in the aftermath.

Now the years of intense opposition to opening the gates to rugby and football are a distant memory thanks to an agreement that has proved highly lucrative for the GAA.

On the pitch Ireland have swept nearly all before them with last year the most prolific of all, featuring wins against England, France and South Africa and a draw with Australia.

But lock Paul O'Connell, who led the side in their first appearance at Croke Park because of an injury to O'Driscoll, insists that 2007 thumping of England was the highlight.

"We were very aware of the history and tradition on Croke Park and how difficult it had been to get to play there," he said.

"We were very grateful to the GAA to be allowed to play there, conscious to represent the game well there and to do well there.

"I think we have and hopefully we can finish well there at the weekend.

"The big memory would be the first English game there, particularly after the French defeat.

"The anthems were incredible - very, very emotional for everyone involved. That would be the big standout moment."

The problem now facing the Irish Rugby Football Union is their return to Lansdowne Road will see attendance figures drop from 83,000 to 50,000.

Italy was the only regular fixture they struggled to sell out at Croke Park and they are now facing a considerable drop in revenue from the reduced capacity at the Aviva Stadium.

But contractually it is impossible for them to return to Croke Park for the bigger games, forcing them to reminisce on an agreement that worked on every front for all parties.

via independent.ie

Going nowhere: Ireland put the squeeze on Scottish dominance at the turn of the millennium and haven’t looked back. Pic: ©SNS Group

By Neil Drysdale

17 March 2010 11:11 GMT

For those of us who followed Scottish rugby during the 1990s, the Irish were the one country we could always be relied upon to take to the cleaners. Incredible as it might appear nowadays, the SRU’s finest were unbeaten against their Celtic rivals between 1989 and 1999, a period during which they racked up 11 victories and a draw.

Since then, however, fortune has been turned on its head, with the likes of Brian O’Driscoll, Paul O’Connell and Ronan O’Gara deriving regular pleasure from knocking Scottish noses out of joint. They and their compatriots have win nine of the last 10 meetings between the sides and even that solitary defeat, a 31-21 loss at Murrayfield in 2007, occurred when the visitors were experimenting with their line-up for that year’s World Cup.

If this was just happening in rugby, I suppose we could simply regard it as evidence of the cyclical nature of sport. But in cricket, the Irish have made a habit of qualifying for showpiece tournaments, whereas the Scots have gone backwards since 2005.

In football, Thierry Henry’s deliberate handball might have prevented the Republic from advancing to this summer’s World Cup in South Africa but at least the Irish were in the play-offs in the first place. By comparison, Scotland had long since checked out of their group.

In short, there have to be reasons why Erin’s representatives have established momentum across the spectrum, where the Scots have either stalled or gone into reverse gear. And one of the most obvious differences between the two countries is the success of their provincial structure and the pride in which youngsters derive from participating for the likes of Munster and Leinster.

In Ireland, as I discovered when I was across there recently, there isn’t a relentless obsession with football and, in particular, the foibles of the Old Firm, which ensures that kids are encouraged to pursue other team sports, without growing up with the notion that soccer is the only thing that matters.

In the grand scheme, this has to make a significant difference. Whether in sponsors investing massive sums in youth sports, be it in rugby, hurling, cricket or cycling, or in their governing bodies building pathways between their clubs and provinces, Irish children grow up with a breadth of interests which differs starkly with the situation in Scotland.

Over there, it is a genuine privilege to represent your local community, and the attendances at GAA matches, or even youth rugby competitions, testify to how the process has forged new partnerships as professionalism has kicked in. It doesn’t explain everything, but when was the last time you heard a youngster in Scotland claiming that it was his heart’s desire to play for Glasgow or Edinburgh, Aberdeen or Dundee?

Too often here, the arguments tend to revolve around parochial short-termism and, in rugby at least, it was one of the worst transgressions, perpetrated by the old SRU administrators, when they chose to play fast and loose with their districts, an act of vandalism whose reverberations continue to stunt the development of the game.

By comparison, Munster, Leinster and Ulster boast passionately committed fan bases, comprising tens of thousands of more supporters than those who follow Glasgow and Edinburgh. No wonder their youth set-ups are flourishing, while their success in the Heineken Cup, all three have lifted the trophy in the last 15 years, puts Scotland’s record in that event to shame.

There are a few mitigating factors which should not be ignored. If the SRU’s officials had persevered with a crumbling stadium for another decade in the early 1990s, rather than electing to re-develop Murrayfield by recourse to a debenture scheme, they would have gained government funding, which might have prevented them from falling into dire financial straits.

The IRFU carried on playing internationals at Lansdowne Road, even when the arena was as rickety as their team in the ‘90s, but subsequently benefited from the ephemeral rise of the Irish economy and are in rude fiscal health as a consequence.

So too, the Scots have produced a number of world-class contenders in some pursuits, such as tennis with Andy Murray; Hannah Miley and Kirsty Balfour in swimming; and cycling with Chris Hoy and David Millar, which has not been replicated across the water.

But generally, for a nation with fewer than four million inhabitants, and whether we concentrate on team sports, or marvel at this week’s annual Irish pilgrimage to the Cheltenham Festival, our near neighbours have punched well above their weight at the highest level.

Too many Scots, by comparison, appear fixated with the latest extra-curricular antics of the likes of Allan McGregor and wading into endless refereeing controversies, or regarding beating the English as the be-all-and-end-all.

If prizes were awarded for petty point-scoring, political in-fighting, mutual suspicion between Edinburgh and Glasgow and wallowing in a culture of negativity, the Scots would be kings of the world. But they are not and, once again this weekend, it is Ireland who are chasing a Triple Crown while the Scots are trying to avoid the wooden spoon. Time, surely, for us to ask why?

Last updated: 17 March 2010, 11:14

O'Driscoll: Has sights set on Triple Crown