Leading a side to a Heineken European Cup semi-final has got to be one of the best ways of breaking on to the international scene, even you have been inexplicably frozen out for eight years.

Bob Casey has done just that and if the London Irish captain manages to guide his side past the mighty Toulouse tomorrow and into the final he will have completed a remarkable personal and team effort.

The last of the lock's five caps came against Canada eight years ago but under Eddie O'Sullivan his Test career stalled.  Since then, the 29-year-old has become one of the most consistent and accomplished secondrows in the English Premiership.

The Exiles captain is now hoping for a fresh start to his Ireland career after O'Sullivan was shown the door in the wake of World Cup and Six Nations failure.

The IRFU looks set to appoint Munster's Declan Kidney as the new head coach, possibly as early as next week, which can't be "any worse" than having O'Sullivan at the helm, according to Casey.

"As long as I'm playing I'll always have the dream of representing Ireland again," he said.  "The better London Irish do and the better I play, the more chance I'll have of achieving that.

"The lack of recognition I've had over the last few years has been frustrating and I try not to think about it.

"There will be a new man in charge and from my perspective it certainly can't get any worse than when Eddie O'Sullivan was head coach.

"Under O'Sullivan there were times when I felt I should have been in the mix but it was his decision and until this season he was viewed as a successful Ireland coach.

"But with someone else in charge and London Irish being in the knockout stages of the Heineken Cup, things are looking up for me," he added. "A strong performance against Toulouse would really put me in the shop window for the new guy coming in."

Three-time champions Toulouse start the match as favourites despite a star-studded casualty list that includes Vincent Clerc and Clement Poitrenaud and could yet claim Thierry Dusautoir.

For Irish the knockout stages of the tournament are unchartered territory but their startling 20-9 demolition of big-spending Perpignan has flooded the team with self-belief.

"We're really confident in what we've been doing at London Irish over the last two or three seasons," Casey said. "We're building and have some really talented players ourselves. We're looking forward to showing European rugby what we're capable of."

Ironically, Casey may well have a better chance of making his comeback if the Exiles fail to reach the final and if Munster succeed.

Ireland face a fixture against the Barbarians on May 27th and with the European final on the 24th anyone involved in the latter is unlikely to be available to the new coach.