JOHNNY SEXTON has joked that Rieko Ioane’s move to Leinster has forced him to cross Irish rugby’s biggest divide. Ioane will join up with the province next season, in a sabbatical from New Zealand Rugby, much like Jordie Barrett did this term. But his arrival has caused a stir given the All Black’s previous with Leinster and Ireland legend Sexton. In his autobiography, Sexton lifted the lid on the row between the pair after Ireland had lost to New Zealand in the 2023 Rugby World Cup. He wrote that, after referee Wayne Barnes blew the final whistle, Ioane said to him ‘Don’t miss your flight tomorrow. Enjoy your retirement you c***’. Sexton responded by calling him ‘a fake-humble f*****’. The Auckland native reignited the row after the All Blacks beat Ireland last November with an Instagram post with the caption ‘Put that in the book’. And Ioane admitted that he might have to win over a few people when he lands in Dublin later this summer. He said: “By all my friends’ accounts, it’s about 50-50 at the moment. We’ll try to get that to 60-40 in my favour.” But Sexton quipped that he will not be hanging around. When asked about Ioane’s impending arrival, he said: “I purchased my Munster season ticket last week, put it that way.”