Quinlan happy at sixes and sevens

DISCIPLINE. A 10-letter word that is never far from the mind of Alan Quinlan, the man who has been given the huge task of filling Ireland’s number seven jersey against Argentina in tomorrow’s crunch World Cup tie in the Adelaide Oval.

Eddie O’Sullivan obviously believes the problems Quinlan has had in this crucial area in the past are now behind and this as much as anything else prompted him to prefer Quinny to Keith Gleeson, the only recognised out and out open-side flanker in the party, for this huge game.

The concession of penalties blighted Quinlan's contribution on a few occasions, whether for Shannon in the AIL, Munster in Europe or Ireland on the international stage. He admits to a fiery temperament and there’s nothing wrong with that provided it is kept firmly under control. People he respects and advisors in high places have worked on the situation and Quinlan has clearly emerged a better and wiser forward from it all.