O’Connor defends ‘undercooked’ Drico

Leinster coach Matt O’Connor has come to the defence of what he termed an “undercooked” Brian O’Driscoll and Irish team in the wake of disappointing individual and collective displays against the Wallabies last week.

O’Driscoll’s less-than-stellar form this past two weeks has inevitably stoked debate in some circles as to the wisdom or otherwise of his decision to play one more campaign before finally hanging up the boots.

The Leinster centre entered the Guinness Series window with just 73 minutes under his belt, against Cardiff last month, due to injury and has not featured prominently aside from a handful of standout moments against Samoa.

“Of course he’s undercooked,” said O’Connor of his clubman.

“That’s his third game for the year. He’s still finding his feet. It wasn’t a great night for him. He didn’t get too many opportunities but that wasn’t his doing.

“That was just the way the game went. Every game Brian plays is a huge positive for us. If we get him back off the back of this week with three Tests under his belt moving into the Heineken Cup, that is a good place for us.”

O’Driscoll has consistently made the point throughout his career that he requires three to four games under his belt before returning to his best and the hope is that both he and the squad find a groove this week with the All Blacks in town.

The 17-point defeat by Australia showcased an Ireland side whose basic skill levels were considerably below that of the tourists, but O’Connor, an Australian, refused to believe that gulf in class is a constant one.

“The results in Heineken Cup and test rugby over the last couple of years would say that, no, they’re not. Those guys have played five, six, seven games together and the combinations were very, very good on Saturday.

“They played really well. They probably haven’t played that well against a quality side for a while. I wouldn’t read too much into that. The conditions were perfect and those conditions probably suited the Aussies a little bit better.”

O’Connor’s relative optimism is almost a lone voice in a shrill wind this week as a nation fronts up to the unenviable task of turning their fortunes around against an All Blacks side seeking to end the calendar year with an unbeaten record.

“England put them under a bit of pressure physically.

“They defended very well and put the Kiwis under pressure when they had the ball. If Ireland can do the same, who knows?”

Meanwhile, O’Connor confirmed that Leinster are on the brink of announcing the signing of a new hooker, sourced from the southern hemisphere, to cover for Richardt Strauss who is recuperating from heart surgery for the rest of the season. However Strauss trained with the squad yesterday as they prepare for a Rabodirect Pro 12 date with Benetton Treviso on Sunday.