IRELAND V ENGLAND REACTION:THERE WAS a familiar theme running through Irish post-match observations at Twickenham. It is hard to quantify the confidence required for teams to perform to their potential but there's no doubting the Irish players view it as a central issue in their 33-10 defeat to England.

Hesitancy, errors and turnovers are all by-products of a performance haunted by the spectre of disappointments past. Those looking to trace a line back to the World Cup won't find support from Ireland's new captain; Ronan O'Gara - promoted in the absence of the injured Brian O'Driscoll - rejected the notion of post-France blues.

"There was a huge break after the World Cup. We all were playing club rugby, and then we came into the Six Nations full of optimism and I think it had been going well, against Scotland especially. That was a new start for us, but the defeat to Wales was disappointing and then today.

"We have to believe more in ourselves as players. Confidence is a key ingredient in a sportsman, especially at this level, and I think when you are confident as a team and as players you play instinctively.

"We were second guessing and doubting each other and you see me dropping a ball 10 yards from the line near the last play of the game. That shouldn't happen, but it's probably a result of looking outside me and when a team is full of confidence and flow, the talk is there.

"We had a great start; the boys were buzzing. We came here to express ourselves, and that's exactly what we did for maybe 10, 15 minutes. Then we sat back a bit and let them come at us and see what they had, and then we struggled to get forward momentum.

"At half-time it was still game on and we felt it was a huge opportunity to win, but the big thing is that we're low on confidence as a team . . . and that seems to be affecting us."

O'Gara insists it is the players who must take responsibility and overcome the mental issues.

"Players have to look inside themselves. It's hugely disappointing. We just have to have a little bit more pride in our performance. We're well capable of playing well - we've shown that in the past - but we have to start delivering on a consistent basis.

"That's the frustrating thing. There's huge ambition within the team and we're very frustrated at the minute. Now that it's the end of the championship we have to reassess and see where we're going from here."

While O'Gara spoke his eyes were periodically drawn to a television set showing the Wales-France match and it wasn't difficult to decipher his expression. He was looking at a Welsh team win a second Grand Slam in three years, something that merely accentuates the current Irish discomfort.

There is no great disparity in talent between the two countries but the Welsh have managed to maximise their potential to realise the ultimate imprimatur of excellence with two Six Nations Championship titles, two Grand Slams; Triple Crowns simply do not carry the same lustre.

Sitting alongside O'Gara was Ireland's head coach, Eddie O'Sullivan, who once again had to initially explain another flawed Irish performance before the enquiries took on a more personal tone. It was very much a firefighting exercise, but for the coach it was akin to brandishing a blanket in hopes of single-handedly extinguishing the Great Fire of London.

He spoke about the disappointment of the loss, supported the young players who had come into the backline, bemoaned turnovers, highlighted the fine line between winning and losing, noted how matches could be decided on small margins before being redirected to the matter of clarifying his personal circumstances.

"My own position is that at this moment in time I'm not making any decisions about anything. What we always do after every tournament, I'll meet with the IRFU and we'll discuss the bigger picture.

"After that we'll know what we're going forward with, but until then there's not much point in doing anything."

The sentiments were understandable but there seems nothing he can do or say at this point that will enhance his prospects of retaining his current position. The IRFU's version of the three wise men will meet, possibly tomorrow week, and only then will O'Sullivan's fate be known.

The coach pointed out he had always enjoyed the backing of the union. But the real question was whether he still enjoyed the backing of the IRFU: it's about present not past tense.

"I've always had the support of the IRFU," he said. "In fairness to the IRFU, the one thing I can say is that as long as I've been in this job, they've given me 110 per cent support in everything I've done.

"I was never compromised in any way. I was always given 100 per cent support in how we've built the team and how we've built everything around it. They've been very good in that respect and I wouldn't have a bad word said against them."