O'Driscoll proud of Irish victory

Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll bristled at Australia’s claim his side won today’s Test at Lansdowne Road because of the conditions – and declared: “We played all the rugby”.

The Triple Crown holders emerged convincing 21-6 winners – with tries from Denis Hickie and Geordan Murphy, while the boot of Ronan O’Gara did the rest in appalling weather.

Wallaby boss John Connolly felt the deteriorating conditions were responsible for the result, but O’Driscoll pointed out his side were at their best when playing into the wind.

He said: “We’re not responsible for the rain. The conditions were more reasonable in the first half. But there was still a strong wind, and we still managed to play all the rugby.

“We showed good skill levels and took the ball through phases. Tactically we were strong; there is no denying that.

“But we were comfortable victors in the first half and we’ll take a lot of confidence from that, because Australia are a smart side.

“We were brimming with confidence. At half-time we were the ones with the chests puffed out.”

Hard man Ulster back row Neil Best was one of the main factors behind Ireland’s ascendancy up front, and O’Driscoll hailed his man-of-the-match display.

He said: “Today’s conditions really suited Besty’s style. He’s a seriously tough customer.

“When you see Lote Tuqiri struggling to get off the ground after he’s been hit by him, that shows the impact he makes. He’s an incredibly fit guy.

“He’s a massively improved player, and today was a big performance from him.”