Johnny Watterson talks to a Leinster player who despite his jersey number seems destined for a bright future

While you can't choose destiny, the view is that if you have any connections upstairs you would know not to become a backrow forward in Ireland. These days, the voice from the burning bush would say: "There's a glut of them in town, become a prop instead and don't try on the number 13 shirt. That, my friend, is taken."

Brian O'Driscoll handles the divinely absurd hyperbole with quiet dignity but his current understudy at Leinster, Kieron Lewis, has to deal with a career stretching out in front of him, largely cloudless for the moment, but with the promise that O'Driscoll and his low-slung, mercurial talent will arrive back to cast a shadow in Donnybrook sometime in December.

Lewis is the player trying on O'Driscoll's garments. Opinion is that he is the guy most likely to fit into them.

At 23 years old, Lewis was seen coming from a distance. For three years he has been saying no to the student dream of a full-time contract with Leinster, preferring to concentrate on his vocational degree in Occupational Therapy. On a rugby scholarship with Trinity, he then moved seamlessly from the undergraduate whirl to an AIL season with St Mary's and now, finally, in rugby harness he's in the provincial starting line-up.

"I went for the degree first. It's a vocational profession and it's what I enjoy and now I've a good chance to play rugby," he says. "Was Brian O'Driscoll in my mind when Leinster offered the contract? Certainly. Obviously it's a hard team to break into but as development as a player, I thought it was a good place to go. The new set-up this season with the Celtic League and Cup was a persuading factor as well. The fact I would get some games was important.

"As I see it, I have Brian O'Driscoll there to learn from. That's obviously a great resource. Obviously it might be easy for me to say that now. I've only just started into it. Maybe in three years' time I'll be getting very frustrated but as of now, no I'm not frustrated.

"Brian O'Driscoll is world class but I can try to develop in other positions. Injuries can happen. You actually don't know what's going to happen."

Tony Smeeth, as Director of Rugby in Trinity, has been bringing along young players now for some years in College Park. He sees Lewis as the best outside back he's had walk under the Campanile in Front Square. He's an athlete too, no doubt. Sub-11 seconds for the 100 metres.

"Kieron was an exception. He had a professional attitude even at that age in college. He's intelligent too, just talk to him," says Smeeth. "We tried to work out his weaknesses but we couldn't. I think he's the best outside centre prospect in Ireland. He has great pace, great hands and defends well. He is definitely the guy to back up O'Driscoll and if he'd been full-time for a few years, he may have gone to the World Cup."

The week before last Lewis started against Munster and played well on Mike Mullins. No surprise. For some months now his routine has changed from being the energetic semi-pro to the full-time lifestyle-rugby player. His physical development, one area of relative frailty, has improved but his head, too, has been repositioned from the books to the pitch and is now in the right place.

"I'm optimistic going into the coming months," he says. "I'm getting in good training and I'm feeling very good, dying to be involved. It's ultra commitment now. I like to dive headlong into things. I don't like to do things by half. Like my degree.

"I was fully committed to that. Now I intend to do the same with rugby. No, I don't see the rugby as a time-out from Occupational Therapy. That would be doing it a disservice.

"I see it as a fantastic honour to be able to play for Leinster and for Ireland."

It is likely that, injury-free and in form, Lewis will play at least 20 games this year for Leinster, while the physical hangover from the World Cup and the Six Nations next year will account for much of O'Driscoll's rugby time. He has still some way to go in developing, maybe taking the ball on more, making things happen with his pace and guile. He knows it too.

"In my first year as a professional, I would say that to be in the 22-man European Cup squad would be my target for the year. But I'm just trying to get my foot in the door. I can't possibly start thinking in my mind about competition with other players.

"I believe I've just gotta try and become the best player I can be."