Paul O’Connell: ‘It's great to be in the thick of the competition’

"The coach journey into the stadium was fantastic with all the Irish supporters in the streets and the players loved the atmosphere."

By Grainne McGuinness and Shaun Cronin

Ireland captain Paul O’Connell said the squad were overjoyed to get their World Cup campaign underway and paid tribute to the fans who made the trip to Cardiff to support them yesterday.