IT MAY have been Peter Stringer’s opposite number, Samoa’s Kahn Fotualii, who claimed the man-of-the-match award, but Irish players and management were effusive in their praise of their scrum-half in the aftermath of their Test win.

AT the final whistle on Saturday, the Samoan players, whom we know to be deeply religious, gathered in a huddle, sank to their knees and said a collective prayer of thanks for their Aviva Stadium performance.