Gerry Thornley, writing in The Irish Times, believes that Ireland must build on the few positives from their recent southern hemisphere tour.
"When Ireland bridged a 61-year gap to win the Grand Slam just over a year ago, they did so with a brand of rugby that was clever, pragmatic and saw Irish rugby reach its holy grail. Of the six teams competing in the Six Nations, Ireland kicked the ball the most, and passed the least. They made a virtue of rolling with the punches for long stretches and then stealthily making the most of their forays upfield. It delivered in spades.
"After years of relative underachievement for team Ireland, marked by Triple Crowns and a continuing succession of World Cup failures, that campaign ensured a golden generation would not retire with an empty feeling of underachievement.
"Even so, the feeling also lurked then that this rugby probably wouldn’t be ambitious enough to make an impact at the World Cup and that the Slam might be the peak for a vintage crop. Little about the intervening 15 months or so have dispelled either view, while perhaps there’s also been evidence of second season syndrome."
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