Ireland have carved out an impressive record in Cardiff, where they have lost just once in 12 meetings dating back as far as 1983.
“It’s very, very loud and is definitely one of the best stadiums in the world to play in because of the atmosphere and the noise generated there. The crowd is right in on top of you,” he said.
“It’s not somewhere we love going to, but it’s not somewhere that we fear going to. It’s a game that’s up for grabs depending on whether you play better than the opposition. And they’re the sort of odds you want going into any game.”
Ireland clinched the Grand Slam in 2009 at the Millennium Stadium while the Munster players within the Irish squad have tasted double success in the Heineken Cup with victories in 2006 and 2008.
“A lot of guys who have played there before have good memories,” added O’Driscoll. “The Munster boys won two Heineken Cups there while we have a Slam to remember from the last time we were in Cardiff.
O’Driscoll will come face to face to Jamie Roberts, his midfield partner from the 2009 British and Irish Lions team which performed so well in South Africa.
“Jamie’s a talented footballer, a great ball carrier and a big, hard physical guy who uses his size really well,” said O’Driscoll.
“He’s the sort of guy who accelerates into tackles and knows what his power can do. He’s definitely a player of a very high calibre and getting better with each Test he plays. He’s a big threat.”
Wales: L Byrne (Ospreys); L Halfpenny (Cardiff Blues), J Roberts (Cardiff Blues), J Davies (Scarlets), S Williams (Ospreys); J Hook (Ospreys), M Phillips (Ospreys); P James (Ospreys), M Rees (Scarlets, capt), C Mitchell (Ospreys), B Davies (Cardiff Blues), A-W Jones (Ospreys), D Lydiate (Newport Gwent Dragons), S Warburton (Cardiff Blues), R Jones (Ospreys).
Replacements: R Hibbard (Ospreys), J Yapp (Cardiff Blues), D Peel (Sale Sharks), S Jones (Scarlets), M Stoddart (Scarlets), plus two from R McCusker (Scarlets), A Powell (Wasps) and J Thomas (Ospreys).
Ireland: L Fitzgerald (Leinster); T Bowe (Ospreys), B O’Driscoll (Leinster, capt), G D’Arcy (Leinster), K Earls (Munster); R O’Gara (Munster), E Reddan (Leinster); C Healy (Leinster), R Best (Ulster), M Ross (Leinster), D O’Callaghan (Munster), P O’Connell (Munster), S O’Brien (Leinster), D Wallace (Munster), J Heaslip (Leinster).
Replacements: S Cronin (Connacht), T Court (Ulster), L Cullen (Leinster), D Leamy (Munster), P Stringer (Munster), J Sexton (Leinster), P Wallace (Ulster).
