Dylan Hartley suspended over bite. (File pic: PA)

England hooker Dylan Hartley has been landed with an eight-week suspension for biting Stephen Ferris during Ireland’s loss to England on St Patrick’s Day.

Hartley will be available for the summer tour to South Africa but will only play for Northampton again this season if they reach the Aviva Premiership final on May 26.

The 26-year-old was punished by an independent Six Nations committee for biting the finger of flanker Stephen Ferris during the 30-9 RBS 6 Nations victory over Ireland on March 17.

It had been speculated that he would face a lengthy spell on the sidelines having served a 26-week ban for gouging in 2007.

But it is understood that due the length of time that has passed since the incident, the hearing decided a four-week reduction to eight weeks was appropriate.

“I am disappointed by the result and I will wait for the written judgment as to how the panel came to their conclusion,” Hartley said.

“I now have to put it behind me and focus on supporting Saints in training and off the field.”

The incident with Ferris occurred during the 28th minute of England’s comfortable win at Twickenham, which saw them secure second place in the Six Nations table after an encouraging campaign under interim coach Stuart Lancaster.

Television footage did not capture the bite, but Ferris and some of his team-mates complained to Welsh referee Nigel Owens in the immediate aftermath.

Star Irish flanker Sean O’Brien was embarrassed by Ireland’s 30-9 RBS 6 Nations hiding by England at Twickenham, but denies they are a team in decline.

The St Patrick’s Day celebrations were muted as the Irish slumped to the most demoralising defeat of Declan Kidney’s three-year reign.

Two victories and a draw represented their worst Six Nations since 2008, when a return of four points cost Kidney’s predecessor Eddie O’Sullivan his job. Desperately missing talismen Brian O’Driscoll and Paul O’Connell, they were smashed to pieces by an English side that obliterated their scrum.

A worrying period for Irish rugby will find little comfort in the looming three-Test summer series against New Zealand, but O’Brien refuses to accept fears that the squad’s best days have passed.

“That was pretty embarrassing and we’re not too pleased about it,” the European player of the year said.

“It’s a hard loss to take and that was the most disappointed I’ve been in an Ireland jersey.

“In this championship we’ve only beaten Italy and Scotland and that’s just not good enough for this group of players.

“We’re must take a long look at ourselves over the next couple of months until we come back together for the tour.

“But I wouldn’t agree that this is a team on the slide. We’ve shown what we can do at times and it’s just getting that consistency.

“If we play to our potential week-in, week-out, we’ll be a force to be reckoned with.”

Ireland’s misery extended beyond the result thanks to a relentless demolition job on their scrum that was painful to watch at times. The neck injury sustained in the opening set piece by tighthead Mike Ross, who soldiered on for half an hour before being substituted, was offered by Kidney as an explanation for England’s dominance.

The wreckage increased when Ross’ replacement Tom Court arrived, exposing a worrying lack of depth in a key position.

Referee Nigel Owens awarded a penalty try in the 59th minute after England had repeatedly battered the Irish scrum and Kidney will be praying that Ross is fit to face the All Blacks this summer.

“We got blown away and things led on from there really,” O’Brien said

“The scrum is a massive part of the game. They scrummed everything and went forward.

“I’ve never been involved in a game like that where the scrum has been so dominant for one side. It’s hard, especially as a back-row. “We didn’t drop our heads, you just have to try to battle and fight through it.”

Trailing 9-6 at the interval, Ireland remained in the hunt until their scrummaging problems spilt over into just about every department of their game in an abject second half.

Ben Youngs scampered over for England’s second try and rock-solid Owen Farrell kicked 20 points while the visitors imploded.

The result finally put an ill-fated championship blighted by poor officiating, a postponed game and injury problems out of its misery.

“This championship has been a little bit frustrating for us – we were beaten by two points by Wales and drew with France,” O’Brien said.

“Looking back at it, yesterday could potentially have been a Grand Slam decider if things had gone our way earlier in the tournament.

“But that’s besides the point because we were blown out of the water by England. It just wasn’t good enough.”

Rob Kearney insists Ireland will feed off their enduring rivalry with England when they clash in Saturday’s RBS 6 Nations showdown at Twickenham.

Irish full-back Rob Kearney

The Irish are determined to celebrate St Patrick’s Day by continuing their mastery of a fixture that has seen them win seven of the last eight championship meetings.

Kearney states the only motivation needed by Ireland, who will finish runners-up if they succeed on Saturday, is the knowledge they are facing the English.

“England is the one match we all love and it is the one, being Irish, you get excited for,” the 25-year-old said.

“The fact it’s on St Patrick’s Day just adds a little more spice to it.

“That huge rivalry we have with England will still be there in 50 years’ time.

“It’s something we have built into us as Irish people and it’s important to try to use that to our advantage this weekend.

“In the build-up to the game we won’t speak about the rivalry, but some things don’t need to be said.

“That’s not to say there’s not rivalry against all the other teams because there is, but there’s something about England fixtures that just spices things up.”

Ireland have also won on three of their previous four visits to Twickenham and Kearney insists their dominance of the fixture is purely because they are a superior team.

“If you are winning so many games against them it probably means you’re a better side,” the Lions and Leinster full-back said.

“I’d like to think that trend will continue on Saturday and that we remain the better side.

“England are probably outdoing themselves in this Six Nations in terms of the expectation levels they had coming into the competition.

“They have an inexperience side and an inexperienced coaching panel as well, but they’ve outdone themselves and that victory in France showed what they can offer.”

Ireland are the Six Nations’ most clinical side by some margin, fashioning 13 tries with Wales the next highest scorers on nine.

But frustratingly their title hopes, already battered by losing to the Welsh on the opening weekend, were extinguished with their stalemate against France.

“When I hear a stat like that, what jumps out at me is our discipline and defensive errors,” Kearney said.

“We know we lost the Welsh game because of a poor defensive display and France kicked more penalties than we did.”

The match can be seen live on ESPN from 3.45am AEDT on Sunday morning.

Rory Best will replace the injured Paul O'Connell as captain. (Pic: Niall Carson/PA)

ON TV: Ireland v Scotland, Aviva Stadium
ESPN 3.30am AEST

Rory Best is celebrating the realisation of a boyhood dream after being named Ireland captain for Saturday’s RBS 6 Nations clash with Scotland.

The Ulster hooker leads a team showing two injury-enforced changes following the agonising 17-17 draw with France, with lock Donnacha Ryan and scrum-half Eoin Reddan replacing Paul O’Connell and Conor Murray.

Best has been given the captaincy after O’Connell was ruled out of Ireland’s two remaining games against Scotland and England with a knee injury.

It is a role the 29-year-old has performed twice before against Canada and the United States during the 2009 summer tour, but his recognition for the Six Nations holds far greater personal significance.

Elder brother Simon also skippered Ireland twice – against Argentina in 2007 – before retiring a year later due to an irregular heartbeat.

And while Saturday will be a proud day for Best’s family, he will only be able to enjoy the occasion if wooden spoon contenders Scotland are dispatched at the Aviva Stadium.

“It’s a great honour to captain this side. It’s something you dream of doing,” said Best, who revealed he has made a full recovery from the rib injury sustained against France.

“As a family we travelled down to the old Lansdowne Road year after year. You always see the captain coming out first. It’s something you dream of.

“You never think you’ll get there, but then you start to play for Ulster and Ireland and then get leadership roles within that. At that point you dare to dream.

“It’s a fantastic honour for the family. Simon will be one of the first to congratulate me, he’s followed my career closely since he retired. He’s always been there to give me advice.

“It will be a nice day for the family, but it will only be a good for me if we go out and get a result.”

Ireland have now lost two Lions captains for the championship with Brian O’Driscoll already unavailable having undergone shoulder surgery.

Saturday will be the first time the Irish have entered a major Test without O’Driscoll or O’Connell since 2005 when Simon Easterby was skipper for heavy defeats by New Zealand and Australia.

“When you look back to 2005 when they were both missing, quite a few players who were inexperienced came in. A lot of pressure was thrown on Simon Easterby,” Best said.

“Now it’s different and that’s the advantage of Brian and Paul being around for so long, senior players beneath them have been under no pressure to develop.

“They’ve done things at their own pace and we’ve seen that with Jamie Heaslip captaining Leinster and myself at Ulster. Other voices have come through as well.”

Best will equal Keith Wood’s record as Ireland’s most capped hooker when he plays in his 58th Test on Saturday.

An influential member of the squad who has been in outstanding form since last summer, he was the automatic choice when O’Connell entered the treatment room.

“When I’ve captained Ulster I’ve tried to lead by example,” he said.

“A lot of it is leading by example. When you get to this level the boys don’t really need to be told what to do.

“They just need to see you’re doing it and they’ll wade in behind you. I hope to continue on from Paul in that regard.”

Keith Earls (groin), Donncha O’Callaghan (ankle), Sean O’Brien (foot) and Jonathan Sexton (foot) failed to train today and their fitness will be assessed throughout the week.

A knee injury has ruled Paul O'Connell out of the rest of the Six Nations. (File pic)

Ireland’s troubled RBS 6 Nations campaign has endured fresh torment after it was announced that captain Paul O’Connell will play no further part.

O’Connell will miss the remaining two matches against Scotland and England after suffering ligament damage to his left knee in yesterday’s 17-17 draw with France.

The inspirational 32-year-old, who has been in outstanding form, completed the match in Paris despite his injury and will be out for between three and four weeks.

And in a sickening double blow, scrum-half Conor Murray will also miss the rest of the tournament because of a knee injury.

Ireland have now lost two Lions captains in their ill-fated 2012 Six Nations campaign, with Brian O’Driscoll unavailable after undergoing shoulder surgery.

Ulster hooker Rory Best is the favourite to lead the Irish against Scotland at Lansdowne Road on Saturday, with the team named at Wednesday lunchtime.

“Paul O’Connell underwent a scan on his left knee after twisting it during the game,” read an Irish Rugby Football Union statement.

“The scan has shown that he has picked up an injury to his medial collateral ligament.

“The injury will also rule him out of the next two games with an expected three- to six-week recovery period.

“Conor Murray was replaced in the 59th minute after falling awkwardly on his right knee and a scan has revealed bone bruising in the joint.

“But while there has been no significant damage done to his ligaments, the injury does rule him out of contention for the remaining two games of the championship with a expected three- to four-week recovery period.”

Munster scrum-half Tomas O’Leary and Connacht forward Mike McCarthy have been called up as cover for the injuries.

Donnacha Ryan is in pole position to replace O’Connell at lock while Eoin Reddan will take Murray’s place.

Losing both players, but especially talismanic 85-cap veteran O’Connell, is the latest setback to a campaign haunted by misfortune.

On the opening weekend Wales triumphed at Lansdowne Road with a last-minute penalty that a disciplinary hearing subsequently admitted had been awarded in error.

Six days later their trip to Paris was rendered a waste of time when the frozen Stade de France pitch was deemed unplayable – 10 minutes before kick-off.

Though they subsequently hammered Italy 42-10, frustration levels continued to rise when the France fixture was rescheduled for yesterday rather than a day earlier, the option favoured by the Irish management.

Highly-valued forwards coach Gert Smal was then ruled out for the Six Nations due to an eye condition that prevented him from performing his duties.

Upon their return to Paris yesterday, Ireland endured an agonising draw after leading 17-6 at half-time as they sought only their second win in the French capital for four decades.

However, events this time were shaped by their own inability to finish France off rather than a blunder by an official, making the outcome even harder to accept.

Ireland were denied a precious victory in Paris when France staged a second-half fightback that concluded in a tense RBS 6 Nations stalemate.

At half-time that elusive first Irish triumph in the French capital since 2000, and only a second in four decades, appeared within grasp.

Two tries from Tommy Bowe, who has now crossed 24 times in 47 games including five times in this Six Nations, offered sight of a rare prize. The brilliant Bowe snatched an intercept score from Aurelien Rougerie’s loose pass before later completing a fine solo effort.

And with Jonathan Sexton kicking a penalty and two conversions Ireland established a 17-6 interval lead, but they were unable to score again.

Instead it was France who threatened, centre Wesley Fofana pouncing on a loose ball to touch down in the 51st minute and the boot of scrum-half Morgan Parra doing the rest.

The outcome ends the prospect of a Grand Slam decider between Wales and France on March 17, while Ireland’s title aspirations are now effectively over.

France were as poor in the first half as Ireland were magnificent, but a more aggressive Les Bleus emerged after the break, displaying greater urgency.

The rivals were originally scheduled to meet three weeks ago only for a frozen pitch to force referee Dave Pearson to postpone the contest 10 minutes before kick off.

And while the rearranged match was no classic, there was enough tension at the Stade de France to make it uncomfortable viewing for supporters.

Only a handful of Irish fans had managed to travel to Paris for a second time in three weeks, though the ground was full.

France, unbeaten until today, recalled full-back Clement Poitrenaud and flanker Julien Bonnaire following their narrow defeat over Scotland and the former was influential early on.

He showed nimble feet to break from his own 22 before play was held up as winger Vincent Clerc recovered from a fierce tackle by Cian Healy.

France were showing some dangerous touches in attack, but their attempts at offloading were repeatedly foiled by Ireland wrapping them up in the tackle.

Recent Irish attempts at storming the Stade de France have been undermined by a disastrous start, but today it was Les Bleus’ turn to implode in the opening quarter.

A ponderous attack from just outside the French 22 reached centre Rougerie, whose lazy floated pass intended for winger Julien Malzieu instead found the lurking Bowe.

The Ospreys winger made light work of the gallop home and when Sexton converted from beneath the posts, Ireland were 7-0 ahead. Morgan Parra and Sexton exchanged penalties before Bowe almost escaped with another intercept try, though this time the ball slipped from his fingertips. Ireland’s scrum was now in full retreat, allowing Parra to land a monster three points that reduced the deficit to four points.

Prop Cian Healy was lucky to escape a yellow card as he blocked Clerc from an outrageously offside position as France sought to escape down the right. Les Bleus’ sense of injustice intensified when Parra missed the penalty and then they slipped further behind as Bowe struck once again.

Swift hands and a mix-up in defence allowed him to break free and although it seemed as though he had blown a chance by failing to release Rob Kearney, his chip ahead bounced kindly and he dummied Poitrenaud to stroll over with Sexton converting.

The second half was ushered in by rain and it took Parra six minutes to land his third penalty, but Ireland were soon back on the front foot.

Winger Andrew Trimble had the ball knocked from his hand as he switched with Jamie Heaslip and a fine opportunity vanished. Irish hearts sank when France touched down in the 50th minute, initially profiting from good fortune during a loose passage of play.

The ball bounced into the arms of Fofana and the centre accelerated clear, out-running Kearney to dive over in the left corner. The momentum had clearly shifted, a fact underlined when Parra rifled over a long-range penalty to level the score.

Moments later scrum-half Conor Murray was replaced by Eoin Reddan after being stretchered off because of an injury to his right knee. Ireland then spent a sustained spell in the opposition half but failed to trouble the scoreboard, while Lionel Beauxis sent an ugly drop goal under the crossbar and then saw a second charged down.

France, camped in an ominous position, conceded a penalty with two minutes to go but then had one last throw of the dice only for Kearney to bundle Malzieu into touch.

Rob Kearney during a training session at Carton House, Co Kildare. (Pic: Niall Carson/PA)

Ireland full-back Rob Kearney has urged his team-mates to abandon any idea that only an extraordinary performance will be enough to topple France.

The Irish travel to Paris for their rescheduled RBS 6 Nations showdown at the Stade de France with a renewed sense of purpose following their victory over Italy.

Key to their hopes of enhancing their title aspirations is managing the anxiety induced by their dismal record in the French capital of just one win since 1972.

Kearney insists it is critical they do not become overwhelmed by the burden of past failures, instead adopting a more routine approach.

“I don’t think we need to do something special. That’s where we fall down sometimes when we play in France,” he said.

“We look at our record and it doesn’t fill us with confidence, so maybe we feel as though we have to try something different there.

“Where we have always fallen down in France is that we’ve had a very poor start, giving up a big lead 20-30 minutes into the game.

“When you’re playing a team of the calibre of France you can’t do that and expect to win.

“We always put together a well-rounded second-half performance, but more often than not it’s too late.

“This weekend it’s hugely important that we don’t give them that start.”

While the weather-enforced postponement of the original fixture on February 11 has caused significant disruption to both teams, Ireland may yet benefit.

Rather than face opposition that has been the scourge of their championship year after year on the back of a demoralising home defeat by Wales, they meet them emboldened by having put Italy to the sword 42-10.

They also head to Paris with a welcome eight-day turnaround between matches instead of the six-day break that placed strain on their last visit.

The weather should be far more hospitable with 13 degrees forecast for the afternoon kick-off rather than the minus seven that froze sections of the Stade de France pitch last time.

Kearney insists it will be an invigorated Ireland that departs Dublin this time.

“Naturally we’ll travel to Paris with a bit more confidence now that we have a win under our belts,” said the Lions full-back.

“We’re in a much better place than maybe we were two or three weeks ago.

“Tries win games and to score five of them against Italy is really pleasing.

“We’re starting to get more clinical in the green zone area of play.

“We were too guilty of playing too much in our own half, but it’s pleasing that when we did get into the right areas we took our opportunities.

“If we’re to beat France then we need to score tries and be clinical against them as well.”

Kearney trained fully today after his groin stiffened up against Italy and will be included in Ireland’s starting XV, named tomorrow lunchtime.

Prop Cian Healy (jaw), Sean O’Brien (ankle) Gordon D’Arcy (shoulder and foot) also picked up knocks at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday but are fit to face France.

Ferris will be available for the French game. (File pic)

Stephen Ferris will be available for Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations clash with France on Saturday after being cleared of tip-tackling Wales lock Ian Evans.

Ferris faced a hearing in London after being cited for the challenge on Evans in the final minute of last weekend’s 23-21 defeat at Lansdowne Road.

Following analysis of the video evidence and consideration of the explanation for the tackle, the three-man independent Six Nations disciplinary committee chose not to uphold the citing.

Ferris reacted to the decision on Twitter, saying: “Thank goodness that is all over. Happy man.”

The tackle resulted in referee Wayne Barnes issuing a yellow card and penalty, which Leigh Halfpenny landed to snatch victory for Wales.

It was widely felt that the tackle, in which Ferris picked up Evans by his right leg and dumped him on his side, warranted a penalty at worst.

Ireland were hopeful their destructive blindside flanker would escape any punishment and have been vindicated by the verdict of the hearing.

With Ferris in the clear, coach Declan Kidney has avoided an enforced reshuffle of his back row for tomorrow’s team announcement.

Ireland have prevailed just once in Paris since 1972 and Kidney will keep changes to a minimum, despite the disappointing start to the championship.

Keith Earls, who has rejoined the squad this week after his new-born baby daughter was discharged from hospital, is likely to start at outside centre as originally intended.

Fergus McFadden deputised in Earls’ absence, but failed to do enough to suggest he should keep the jersey.

Centre Gordon D’Arcy has been criticised for his performance against Wales, but the chances of Kidney dropping his backline’s most experienced player in Paris are remote.

Otherwise Ireland’s coach faces the same conundrum that presented itself pre-Wales – the identity of the half-backs.

The partnership of Jonathan Sexton and Conor Murray was far from assured at the Aviva Stadium on Sunday, so Ronan O’Gara and Eoin Reddan could be promoted to the starting line-up.

Determining selection may take longer than normal with Ireland one defeat away from an inglorious conclusion to their title aspirations.

Losing to Wales has piled the pressure on for Saturday night and Kidney knows they must topple France if they are to remain relevant.

The team was hurt by its performance in the opening round and tighthead prop Mike Ross insists they are determined to make amends.

“We’re pretty disappointed with the way Sunday’s game turned out,” he said.

“We’ve resolved this week to put right a lot of the things that went wrong. We need to step up and start delivering.

“Losing the way we did was hard to take, but in rugby you can’t dwell upon previous failure for too long because the next game arrives so quickly.

“We have an opportunity to rectify what went wrong and that’s something we’re keen to do.

“Paris can be bit of a bear-pit and we can’t afford to be off our game or we’ll face a hiding.

“Just like in the Heineken Cup, French teams seem to step it up 15-20% when they play at home.

“The Stade de France is a tough place to go and we’re under no illusion of what faces us. If we get it wrong, we’re in for a long evening.

“If we lose on Saturday then it’s fair to say the championship is gone.

“I can’t see a team losing two matches but winning the Six Nations. A clearer picture will emerge after this weekend.”

Ireland’s sense of grievance over the manner of their defeat will only have intensified after manager Michael Kearney revealed today’s hearing felt Ferris’ tackle did not justify the penalty that Halfpenny landed to win the game.

“We are delighted that Stephen has been totally exonerated of any wrongdoing by the disciplinary panel and that he is now available for selection against France,” Kearney said.

“While we understand and fully support the stance to stamp out dangerous tackles in the game to make it safe at all levels, the disciplinary panel itself felt that the decision to award a penalty was incorrect and we also felt that it was a fair and legitimate tackle by Stephen.

“He is a hard and fair player and I think that his previous disciplinary record supports why we felt so strongly about his defence.

“The focus now for Stephen and the rest of the squad is to prepare for the game against France this weekend.”

Gordan Darcy tries to stop Wales' Jonathan Davies scoring a try during Ireland's RBS 6 Nations defeat in Dublin. (Pic: Julien Behal/PA)

Ireland 21
Wales 23

Wales boss Warren Gatland admitted his team “got out of jail” after they claimed a dramatic RBS 6 Nations victory over shell-shocked Ireland at the Aviva Stadium.

The visitors triumphed 23-21, courtesy of Leigh Halfpenny’s 80th-minute penalty, which was awarded by English referee Wayne Barnes when Irish flanker Stephen Ferris tip-tackled Ian Evans.

Ferris received a yellow card, as did Wales lock Bradley Davies earlier in the game, although Davies’ tackle on Donacha Ryan was far more serious and looks certain to see him cited and banned.

Wales outscored Ireland 3-2 on tries, and then Halfpenny came up trumps under colossal pressure to send his team on the march towards a possible Six Nations title and Grand Slam.

But Gatland said: “We were reasonably lucky. I thought we were only at about 70 per cent today.

“But to come here and be under pressure and to come back with 14 men shows great character.

“The displeasing thing was a bit of a lack of discipline with the yellow card. We got out of jail, but we’ve won our first game of the tournament away from home.

“We were down at half-time in the World Cup against Samoa, but we kept our patience and finished on top of them. That is what Test match rugby is all about – taking your opportunities.”

Gatland felt Davies was lucky to only get a yellow card, and admitted he fears the worst in terms of a citing.

Wales are already without the services of injured locks Luke Charteris and Alun-Wyn Jones, so any period of suspension for Davies could hit second-row resources hard.

“We’ve got to plan, potentially, for him being cited,” Gatland added.

“I’ve seen a replay, and I won’t deny it wasn’t fantastic. Potentially, we have got to prepare for the worst.

“When you go behind with 15 minutes to go and you have a yellow card, you don’t have a lot of time to get back into the game.

“But this win has given us massive confidence, and we are dangerous when we are playing with belief and confidence. We know there is a lot of improvement in our game.”

Gatland hailed a “world-class” performance by wing George North, who scored one of Wales’ three tries, while he had sympathy for fly-half Rhys Priestland, who missed two easy penalty kicks.

“We shouldn’t have put so much pressure on Rhys with the kicks. He has been out (injured) for a few weeks. It is such a confidence role, but I thought he was excellent in the second half.”

Halfpenny took over kicking duties from Priestland, and he admitted his last-gasp strike as “the hardest kick I’ve had to take in all my life”.

He said: “As soon as it went over the emotion came. Having to deal with the miss against France in the World Cup semi-final, putting that over makes it all worthwhile.”

As for the game itself, Halfpenny added on BBC1: “It was end to end stuff, an exciting game. It was a tough test and all credit to Ireland, they really gave us a tough game.

“The score was back and forth, and I’m just really pleased to get the result for the rest of the campaign.”

Wales captain Sam Warburton, meanwhile, could know in the next 24 hours whether or not he has a realistic chance of being fit for next Sunday’s home game against Scotland.

Warburton went off at half-time nursing a dead leg, and he said: “I will go back and have treatment tonight and tomorrow, and the physios will make the call.

“The game reminded me a bit of the World Cup semi-final (Warburton was sent off). It’s horrible being sat on the bench not being able to influence the game, but I am chuffed to bits.

“I think there is a lot more to come from this team.”

Ireland captain Paul O’Connell believes his team only had themselves to blame after seeing their Six Nations Grand Slam and Triple Crown hopes shredded on the tournament’s opening weekend.

The hosts led 21-15 when Tommy Bowe scored 12 minutes from time – a score that followed hooker Rory Best’s earlier touchdown – but North’s late effort after two Jonathan Davies tries gave Wales a dramatic victory.

“We gave Wales a lot of ball earlier in the game that we shouldn’t have done,” O’Connell said.

“We put ourselves in a position to win the game, and we conceded eight points in the last five minutes.

“We also conceded a lot of momentum in the first-half and gave them a lot of belief. We struggled to get into the game in the first half, and you can’t give a team that length of time with ball in hand.

“Defensively, we will have some work to do. We conceded a lot of ground and yardage at times, but when we attacked, we played with intensity.”

Asked about the late penalty award following Ferris’ tackle, O’Connell added: “Stephen hasn’t said a lot.

“I was right beside it, and I didn’t think there was a problem straightaway, but I haven’t seen it on video. I don’t think that was the winning and losing of the game.”

Ireland now have just a six-day turnaround before facing Six Nations title favourites France in Paris, and O’Connell said: “We have plenty of experience in the group, and we will recover to the best of our ability.

“We need to be patient and trust our defence.”

Ireland coach Declan Kidney said: “Three teams have had their Grand Slams ended this weekend, and three teams are still in. That is the nature of it, but there is a championship still to be won.

“We will take a good look at what we can solve ourselves. We gave Wales some easy field position, and they made inroads.

“We had to defend for 60 per cent-plus of the game, and if you do that then you are going to ask for trouble. There are different aspects of the game I know we can improve on.

“They managed to put the ball wide on us, and we need to scan a bit better than we have been doing. It is just a case now of getting ready for the next match in six days’ time.”