Donal Lenihan: Ireland's failure to cope with All Blacks pressure will irk Andy Farrell most

Ireland's inability to deal with the All Blacks pressure manifested itself in some very poor handling errors and a lack of discipline that continued throughout the game.

WORK-ONS: Ireland head coach Andy Farrell before the Aviva clash. Pic: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

How quickly the narrative changes. Up to this point, 2024 had been a very good year for Irish rugby. Yes, there was the shock 23-22 defeat to England at Twickenham, which cost Ireland a Grand Slam, but the team recovered sufficiently to deliver another Six Nation’s Championship the following week.

The two-Test tour to the home of the world champion Springboks was always going to pose a demanding climax to an already exhausting season that encompassed a World Cup and a 13-month period of continuous action at the coalface. In the circumstances, there was no disgrace in losing the opening test 27-20 in Pretoria.