A learning experience for all involved

NO ONE would quibble that Brian O’Driscoll’s 37th try for his country might not make it into the top 25 of his career in terms of artistic merit on his part, but there will be few that will give him as much satisfaction. The Ireland captain’s timely intervention rescued a draw that the team’s performance probably merited over the 80 minutes.

His reaction in sending the ball spiralling skyward on touching down illustrated his emotions in one snapshot. “I’m pleased that we’d been rewarded for having good bottle and sticking with them to the death, and grinding out a draw.

“As Declan (Kidney) alluded to, we tried a lot of things. Not everything stuck, in fact quite a lot didn’t, but if you don’t try these things you don’t learn a lot about yourselves and you don’t get better as a team. So, after that performance, we’ll be all the better next week.

“It’s difficult just to click perfectly having not played together for six months. We were against a side who have played a hell of a lot together and I thought for the most part we did reasonably well.”

He also confirmed that the match-saving try came straight from the training ground, its gene pool an amalgam of player and backs’ coach Alan Gaffney’s input.

“It’s a smart play we’ve practised a hell of a lot over the last year and in the Six Nations we didn’t have an opportunity to do it. At training it’s had good effect, but the real test is playing in Test matches. It’s great it (the gap) opened up but it was great from Tomás (O’Leary) to pick the pass.”

O’Driscoll further elaborated on O’Leary’s involvement for Tommy Bowe’s try, highlighting the scrumhalf’s vision before celebrating the contribution of outhalf Ronan O’Gara. “I thought he was very good. He kicked immaculately, both off the ground and out of hand, and read things well. It was a big performance. Not that any of his team-mates who have played with him felt he needed it. He’s been solid and when you’re involved in a team top of their Heineken Cup group and third or fourth in the Magners League, and people are giving out about their 10, I think it’s a little rough.”

Sitting alongside O’Driscoll and Ireland coach Declan Kidney was debutant Cian Healy, looking remarkably fresh-faced for a young man who contributed hugely in every facet of the game, not least one brilliant burgeoning run that provided the preamble to Bowe’s try.

“I was pretty happy; I’d be a bit happier with better scrums but sure that gives us something to work on. The guys supported me well. They gave me a boost when I needed to get up and I look forward to playing again hopefully.”

For coach Declan Kidney the satisfaction was gleaned from the manner in which his team stuck to their task right to the final whistle to earn a belated reward. There were aspects of the game that didn’t please him but one significant positive was the team’s willingness to eschew the orthodox at times. “I’m delighted we tried things. You don’t find out about yourself (if you don’t) and it’s a case of mixing that in with what we did last year. We said at the end of last (season) we were a good side, not a great side. I’d still hold with that, and I think I said before we need to be realistic about what to expect. We were hoping for it go a little bit better but we didn’t go too badly either.

“Australia stopped us pretty much on the gain-line in the first half when we picked and went around. We managed to get in a few variations in the second half that will stand us in good stead.

“We know Australia will be stronger when we meet them in the last game of the season in Brisbane next June. They’ll have a few lads back they were missing today. But the fact is we just tried those things in the last week in training and that some of them came to fruition today.”