Rugby How Ireland beat England: No doubt when the Irish squad hooked up for their three-day mini-camp last Tuesday they sought to draw a line under their famous win in Twickenham last Saturday. Next up Italy, and all that. Nevertheless, days like that don't come along often, so it's a day worth reliving.

The most striking aspect about it was how calm and composed they all seemed to be throughout the day. There was an inner belief that the preparatory work had been done, and that, by attacking England out wide, they had the gameplan to beat the world champions.

Breakfast and Bed Heads in Berkshire

"There were a few early risers, and a few late risers - a few of the guys didn't sleep too well and came down with bed heads, like Peter Stringer and, as usual, Axel Foley," recounts Girvan Dempsey.

Everybody has their own, staple, match-day breakfasts. "I had a bowl of porridge, three poached eggs, nice and runny, and the whites of three hard-boiled eggs," says Paul O'Connell. "I didn't feel any differently from any other big match."

Later in the morning, the squad adjourned to the hotel's tennis courts, the forwards to practise lineouts, the backs to play a version of tip rugby and go through a few moves.

"The forwards were very serious as usual," adds Dempsey. "We had to try and keep the noise down because we were giggling so much on the next court."

The forwards held a customary meeting with Niall O'Donovan. "It was a good meeting. There wasn't any blood and thunder," recalls O'Connell. "We just outlined what we had to do. It helped focus the guys and there was plenty of player input. We're used to big games and we all felt very confident about our chances."

Brunch followed, the normal match-day meal. "It's largely pasta-based, carbo-loading food," says Shane Horgan.

Unlike O'Connell, who downed plenty of spaghetti and chicken, the winger was feeling more nervous than most. "I didn't eat a whole lot, just a very little bit of pasta. On the day of a match I look for time to myself, what you might call 'splendid isolation'."

The squad assembled at 1.30, for a 1.45 coach ride to Twickenham. "I was rooming with Simon Easterby and we were half-watching the Man United match," says Ronan O'Gara. "But we knew there was business at hand. The morning of a match is one of the worst feelings. You're struggling to eat. You just want to get on with it. Let's go."

"Eddie (O'Sullivan) said a few words," recalls Horgan. "We were going to have to fight for every blade of grass. Whether it was in the five-metre zone beside the touchline on half-way, or in our 22 or their 22. That stuck with me."

It was a long, 40-minute journey to Twickenham. "We had a police escort but they weren't moving cars out of the way and we stopped at every traffic light," remembers Dempsey. "There seemed to be so many English jerseys on the route, and just one or two green ones. But then once we got to the ground there were a lot more Irish and we got a good roar."

It was Horgan's first game at Twickenham. "As soon as we arrived we went for a walk on the pitch. I couldn't wait to see the stadium. The camera angles in Twickenham gives the stadium a greater enormity than it actually has. Again, it was still very relaxed. I was having a bit of a giggle with Drico (Brian O'Driscoll)."

Back inside the dressing-room, getting ready for the match is a ritual.

"The little intricacies which everybody has," says Horgan. "It's almost soothing. You have to control everything you can. Control the controllables."

Outside, O'Gara, David Humphreys and kicking coach Mark Tainton were getting in some kicking practise. "Then suddenly there was this incredible downpour," recalls O'Gara. "I was looking down to see if the English were staying out, and they were, so we did as well. But it was pretty horrible."

Back inside, O'Sullivan came in to tell the players of the conditions. At about 3.10, they went out for a warm-up, then returned to the dressing-room. Referee Paul Honiss tapped on the door and gave them the call.

"As you go into the huddle you're very focused," says Horgan. "Eddie and Brian say a few words, re-reinforcing the gameplan. But we're playing England, and while tactics are vital, it's the physical confrontation that will win the game."

"All the chat was very positive," maintains O'Connell. "Everything that was said made sense. Sometimes there's a lot of silly things said, but you didn't need to say stuff for no reason. There was no big massive build-up. That was the good thing. We could have been playing the Ivory Coast last Saturday. It was no different to the build-up in the World Cup for Namibia."

Everyone mentions the national anthems, and how they'd never heard a national anthem being sung so loudly as God Save the Queen. "It sent a tingle up the spine," says Horgan. "But I remember feeling good about it. I think the whole team felt pretty good about the occasion."

England v Ireland

The first lineout, which England reduced to four. "The thing about those four-man lineouts is that you need everyone to be playing off the same sheet of music," says O'Connell. "Everybody has to mark their man. Reggie (Corrigan) marked his man, I marked mine, and Mal (O'Kelly) marked his, so that they lifted me at the same time as Kay and I got a clean catch. Excellent."

O'Connell noted how England started miscalling lineouts, as when they over-threw to, of all people, John Hayes. "I've never seen him jump before. Normally you wouldn't get a Rizla paper between him and the ground."

O'Gara hit the post with the first and easiest of his six kicks. But, "pissed off" as he was, he didn't miss another from all angles and ranges. Add in some pinpoint line-kicking, his distribution, adroitly gathering two English overthrows and making nine tackles, and O'Gara has probably never played better for Ireland.

"Jeez, Dallaglio is quite fast off the base. But I managed to get good contact on him. I'd prefer tackling him to the islanders, the Tongans and Samoans."

In a blur, out of the blue, after largely dominating the first quarter for a hard-earned 6-0 lead courtesy of two O'Gara penalties, Ireland were suddenly behind.

"Matt Dawson's try seemed to happen in slow motion. It was almost surreal at the time," recounts Dempsey. "But Drico pulled us in behind the sticks."

After going 10-6 down, critically, O'Gara edged Ireland in front with his third and fourth penalties. "Not a whole lot was made of Ronan's goal-kicking, but it was fantastic," says Horgan, "and that one before half-time was, psychologically, huge."

Half-time England 10, Ireland 12

"Everybody felt there was something on here," recalls Dempsey. "Drico mentioned that no one was really out of breath. There was so much more in the tank. But I remember looking across at Reggie. The front row had had some tough scrums and I'm not sure he would have agreed.

"Eddie spoke for a while, then Niallo took in the forwards and Declan (Kidney) the backs. Decky told us to continue what we were doing, to punch those outside channels, don't be afraid, try those offloads, make the gain lines. Mike Ford went over the defence, and re-reinforced that if we were busted to keep scrambling."

"I didn't say anything," recalls O'Gara, "but I remember thinking that, if we don't perform, England were still capable of beating us well. I still had that fear factor."

Second half

England come out like the clappers, and Cohen "scores" in the corner. Or does he?

"We all watched it on the big screen. The key was that Stringer covered across and actually bumped Ben Cohen, forcing him to go for the double movement," says Dempsey.

The try

"The idea was with that move to get it wide to Tyrone and to come back across again," reveals O'Gara, "but Darce (centre Gordon D'Arcy) has some great footwork and he shot through. It's amazing how easy he makes it look."

From the recycle, O'Gara and Keith Gleeson transferred the attack from left to right, and offloads by Horgan and O'Kelly took Anthony Foley close to the line. From this recycle, D'Arcy and O'Driscoll moved it back left to wing Tyrone Howe.

"Drico pulled out a beaut," says O'Gara. "People say he had a bad game, but I didn't notice it playing with him."

Dempsey admits he was hugging the touchline with half an eye for a crossfield kick. "There were some great hands by Gordon and Brian. When I got the ball I could see a white figure coming across. I didn't know it was Ben Cohen at the time. I thought, 'I better go low here'. The ground was wet, and I slid in. But the initial exhilaration quickly gave way to a sharp pain behind my knee when he hit me late."

"Straight on the black dot," O'Gara recalls fondly of his touchline conversion. "I didn't think it was a difficult kick. Nowadays I don't look on any kick as difficult. There's no point in looking on them like that."

Soon after going off, Dempsey heard this almighty roar. "Rala (baggage manager Paddy O'Reilly) was beside me. 'What happened?' I asked. 'They've scored,' he said. 'Oh no,' I said. Choice words. But then it went to the video referee and Malcolm pulled off the most amazing tackle."

Paul Grayson's 71st-minute penalty reduced Ireland's lead to 19-13.

"The last 10 minutes were what really stood out for me," says Horgan."It was a monumental effort, especially from the guys in the scrum. After 70 or 80 minutes they were still getting up and making massive tackles. Guys like Malcolm, Reggie, Glees and Axel."

Full-time England 13 Ireland 19

"I remember Darce kicked it over the touchline and thinking, 'get it further down the field'," recalls O'Gara. "But then the whistle went. Brilliant. Maggsy (Kevin Maggs) was next to me, and we all know how much beating England means to him. Then I hugged Axel, who was winning his 50th. I was so glad for him. He's had his ups and downs. There aren't many things that excite him, but this did. Then Drico."

"It was just brilliant in the dressing-room," recalls Dempsey. "Gordon came in with the bottle of champagne for man-of-the-match and just sprayed it everywhere."

Yet all of them recount how D'Arcy's celebration was the most exuberant moment of a fairly shattered dressing-room.

The squad didn't leave Twickenham until 7.30, crawling through traffic for a stopover at their new base in Chelsea Harbour, and didn't eventually sit down in the Intercontinental Hotel until 10.30.

"As the night wore on, we were more and more pleased with ourselves," recounts Horgan.

"I walked into the dinner with Reggie and Victor (Costello), and Lawrence Dallaglio was the first person to come over to us. 'Well done lads, wait there and I'll get you a drink.' Reggie commented: 'Isn't it nice when the English captain gets you a drink?' It wasn't said in a gloating way. It was just nice to be able to hold your heads up high as an Irishman having won at Twickenham."

After the dinner, some did make off into the night en route back to their hotel in Chelsea Harbour. O'Gara was one of them. "Myself, Maggsy and Mal, along with our wives or girlfriends, tried to get into a club in Chelsea but a female copper on the door wouldn't let us in. So we went back to the hotel for a few bottles and rather lamely went to bed at about 2.30."

Some were more mindful than others of their 7 a.m. wake-up call. "I didn't get up to anything much. It was tame enough for me, but I made up for it the next day," says O'Connell. "Because it was Axel's 50th he was hit for a few glasses of wine and was well oiled."

Dempsey was reluctant to reveal the closing time. "After midnight, and before 4," he says, laughing.

As for Horgan? "I refuse to answer that question on the grounds that it might incriminate me. But it was a great night."

And if they couldn't have a big night last Saturday, when would they ever be entitled to one?