Paul O'Connell and 5 Rugby Veterans Who Could Easily Play on Next Year

Paul O’Connell admitted to the media after Ireland’s win over England that it was probably the last time he would face the Red Rose Brigade at home in a Six Nations clash, per the Irish Independent.

The Lions legend may even hang his boots up altogether after the 2015 World Cup, but he told the press he will make that call after the tournament.

O’Connell has shown only minor signs that his ability to play at the highest level is diminishing with the advance of time, and he could yet eke another campaign out after leading Ireland through the next global showpiece.

In fact, the same newspaper has reported a move to France with Grenoble could be his next chapter:

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Former Leinster and Ireland hooker Bernard Jackman is the head coach at the Top-14 club and, more importantly, his former Young Munster and provincial team-mate Mike Prendergast is the skills coach.

There is a contractual impediment rooted in the fact O'Connell has a centralised IRFU deal to the summer of 2016, although this could be short-circuited on the grounds of service rendered.

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The giant lock, then, seems still to be a wanted man. He is not the only player still cutting it at the highest level whose birthday cake is starting to get a bit crowded with candles.

Here are five more men who could play on next year.

Richie McCaw

The All Blacks skipper has received some well-deserved rest periods in recent seasons, which have helped prolong the career of one of the greatest back rowers ever to grace the game.

The odds are short on the New Zealand talisman lifting another Webb Ellis Cup this autumn. It would be the perfect end to a glittering career for the man who turns 35 this New Year’s Eve and has already revealed, per Sky Sports, that he is likely to call it a day rather than take on a lucrative move to France.

With nothing left to prove or win, McCaw probably thinks his body can do without the cut and thrust of a wintry season on the fields of Europe, but such is his quality that he would be a major addition to any side.

Someone will surely get the chequebook out to try to convince him.

Sergio Parisse

Parisse will only be 32 at the end of the World Cup, but his 111 caps make it seem as though he has been around at the top level forever.

His international career has spanned 13 years so far. John Kirwan gave the Stade Francais stalwart his debut as an 18-year-old in 2002.

The toll on Parisse’s body may be higher than that on some other players who have been around for as long as the Italian skipper.

He has always carried so much of the burden for the national side as they have fought for their place at the top table in Europe, but his standards have never dropped.

He can and will carry on. It would be quite something to see him let loose in Super Rugby where he could use less of the grunt and more of the ball skills that make him such a unique player for a European back rower.

Maybe he could slot into Richie McCaw's shirt at the Crusaders!

Bryan Habana

Habana will also be 32 by the end of the World Cup and has also amassed more than 100 caps for South Africa.

He continues to score tries regularly and still has the pace to frighten any defence.

He is also at a club in Toulon who seem to specialize in prolonging careers of the world’s best players.

Just ask Jonny Wilkinson, who couldn’t seem to leave his house without getting injured while he played in the North East of England.

Sun, sea, sand and the fanatical rugby town of Toulon all seemed to cure those ills.

Habana will be able to keep going well beyond 2015.

Keven Mealamu

All Blacks hooker Mealamu has lost the top spot to Dane Coles for the national side but has been a handy player to call from the bench in the last couple of years.

He is now 35 and told the media this Super Rugby campaign would be his last, per Newstalk ZB on Yahoo.

That’s not to say a European club will not tempt the Auckland Blues man north.

His combative style would be well-suited to the European club game, and if used sparingly he could certainly make it through another season.

Conrad Smith

The third All Black in our selection is mooted as another who is ready for the pipe and slippers after the World Cup.

He will have turned 34 by the end of the year, and you'd expect the outside centre to have lost a yard.

But Smith's brain has always been worth that extra bit of pace, and his rugby senses are as sharp as ever.

He is quitting Test rugby and has agreed to move to French second-tier outfit Pau, per the New Zealand Herald.

But don't bet against a club that is in need of some class further up the rugby pyramid to come calling before long.