Reality bites but Paulie’s influence can still be ‘unreal’

’I wondered if we would have won if Paulie had been on the field. I know the same thought crossed other players’ minds. As captain he would have been barking at us, making sure fellas didn’t take the soft option.’

For those who know and have soldiered alongside Paul O’Connell, there’s a word they’ve noticed that the man is especially fond of using.

While there’s no better man to challenge you, there’s no better man to encourage you either and salute your effort and performance as “unreal”.