On a day when everything went wrong...

EVEN the shirts were a problem for Ireland at the Aviva Stadium.

Declan Kidney’s team took to the field in special commemorative green jerseys to mark the return of international rugby to theLansdowne Road venue but the shirts supplied by Puma were not up to the job.

Just 10 minutes into the game against world champions South Africa, Ireland number eight Jamie Heaslip’s jersey appeared to develop holes and shortly after the front row of Cian Healy, Rory Best and Tony Buckley all shed their jerseys and reverted to the regular matchday kit.

Last month, when the IRFU announced the team would bewearing one-off jersey, anaccompanying press release said PUMA had “produced a kit thatfeatures a traditional look and‘cotton’ feel, while using ultra-modern fabrics and construction techniques which give the kit the strong and lightweight highperformance demanded bytoday’s players.”

Healy’s post-match analysis gave a different impression.

“They just got pulled off,” theIreland prop said. “They wereripping from under the armpits. That was the problem.”

A PUMA spokesperson last night said the company aretaking this very seriously. The jersey was a once off to commemorate the historic return of Irish rugby to the Aviva Stadium. “Even if there weren’t any problems this jersey was not set to feature again during the autumn internationals. The team will be reverting to wearing the tried and trusted jersey they used during the Six Nations campaign.”