Who is Johnny Sexton: Ten things you should know about the Ireland fly-half

Ireland captain Johnny Sexton is a rugby icon who made his international debut in 2009 against Fiji.

The majority of Sexton’s professional career has been spent at Leinster, where he won the European Cup in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2018, while he also had a two-year stint in Paris with Racing 92 between 2013 and 2015.

In 2023, Sexton became the oldest player to appear in the Six Nations, taking the record from England’s Simon Shaw.

Related: Johnny Sexton’s Life in Pictures

Ten things you should know about Johnny Sexton

1. Sexton was part of the first Ireland men’s team to beat New Zealand in a Test match, kicking ten points in their 40-29 victory in Chicago in 2016. He was also at fly-half when they beat the All Blacks for a second time, in Dublin in 2018, and provided 11 points from his boot in the 16-9 triumph.

2. He has a younger brother, Jerry Sexton, who plays for the Doncaster Knights in the English Championship and has been capped by Ireland U20. Their uncle, Willie Sexton, also won three caps for Ireland.

3. Sexton played in all six Tests on the 2013 and 2017 British & Irish Lions tours, which resulted in a 2-1 series win in Australia and a drawn series in New Zealand.

How old is Johnny Sexton?

4. He was born on 11 July 1985 in Dublin and has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from University College Dublin.

5. Sexton is an ambassador for Make-A-Wish Ireland alongside Ireland team-mates Andrew Conway and Keith Earls.

6. He married his childhood sweetheart Laura Priestley in 2013 and the couple have three children together – Luca, Amy and Sophie.

When was Johnny Sexton World Player of the Year?

7. In 2018, he was named World Rugby’s Player of the Year, which made him only the second Irishman to receive the honour. Hooker Keith Wood won the accolade back in 2001.

8. Sexton kicked a late drop-goal against France in Paris in the first round of the 2018 Six Nations to secure an 15-13 victory and put Ireland on their way to a Grand Slam. He also won won Six Nations titles in 2014 and 2015.

9. His favourite TV show is the Netflix hit Narcos and his favourite film is Quentin Tarantino’s 2009 release Inglourious Basterds.

10. He made his 100th Test appearance against Wales in the Autumn Nations Cup in 2020.

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