There’s an old Irish saying: If you’ve a reputation for getting up early in the morning, you can stay in bed all day. This now seems to be a cant – O’Gara is at it again – and it’s repugnant nonsense.

The pain for Ian Foster, his management team and squad of players is at a level this columnist, or few of our readers, can imagine, but I am about to have a go at anyway.

My sense that South Africa will retain their title didn’t sour the ambience.

When we talk about this being the greatest Irish team ever, then they have to be getting to a World Cup semi-final at least?

When Ireland faced the All Blacks in my time, we convinced ourselves that they had the same number of legs and arms as we had, that they were mortal and beatable.

Death and taxes they say. But as the Rugby World Cup moves towards its knockout phase, there are other certainties for every nation still standing

What may be under-appreciated is Jack Crowley's inner steel. He has accepted his challenges, his failings, his learnings. If Ireland are to win this World Cup, he is going to have a big role.

We haven’t been in touch much because it's professional sport and we are rivals. We’ve crossed swords in each of the last three campaigns, and we both want to win

As good as Ireland's phase game is, no-one will want to play France in the World Cup quarter-finals - and that means seeing off Tonga and South Africa on successive, and sore, weekends. 

Ireland and Andy Farrell have gone all in on Johnny Sexton. Past form does not count - you need current form very quickly at the World Cup. Being out of the competitive sphere for such a long time, all his automatics are gone