"It was difficult out there" - Ronan Kelleher: Ireland back to defensive 'drawing board' after collapse against All Blacks

Ireland were faced with an uphill battle after just two minutes of action, as back row Tadhg Beirne was issued with his marching orders following a collision with Beauden Barrett. Initially a yellow card offence before being upgraded to a red by the off-field review, Beirne can now take some consolation in knowing that he has not sustained a ban, as a result of the arguably 'harsh' decision.

Even whilst undermanned to 14-men, Ireland struck for the first try of the match and even took a 10-7 lead into half-time out in the Windy City. However, the action would unfold against Ireland as the All Blacks grabbed a foothold in Illinois, with three unanswered scores from Tamatai Williams, Wallace Sititi and Cam Roigard taking the match out of sight for Andy Farrell's side. Reflecting upon a disastrous last 20 minutes, Ireland replacement hooker is adamant that such a latter-stage collapse will not happen again.

"It was obviously particularly disappointing. I came off the bench, I was part of that. It was difficult out there, we just didn’t get our dead stops, we didn’t manage to do what we said we were going to do which was to get two-man shots, slow up their break-down with dominant collisions and we just didn’t manage to do that. Then obviously once they got a bit of momentum on us they managed to keep the foot on the throat and we just couldn’t wrestle that momentum back."

For the most part of the contest at Soldier Field, Ireland held their own in an undermanned performance. After Beirne was sent off after just two minutes on the clock, Farrell's men rallied back with each player giving that extra yard to make up the space. However, the efforts weren't sustainable as Kelleher backed his teammates for emptying the tank.

"I think the lads managed that red card period really well. I think there was also a lot of stop-starts in that first half of the game. So, I think the lads managed that unbelievably well. I think in that last 20 minutes, it did feel like there was a lot of ball and play time. They [New Zealand] were playing a lot with penalty advantage, which made it even more tough for us, because we were defending for large periods of time.

"Then they kicked to the corner, and then it was just there, putting pressure on us. So, I'm not sure if the red card had much of a factor in that last few minutes, just because I thought the lads navigated that period really well. I thought they defended really well in that first half."

The contact area was a definite region of Ireland's opening Autumn match that will be reviewed and improved ahead of week two. Ireland host Japan in the second round of the series, with Kelleher insistent that Ireland will reinforce their defensive resolve and bring the Brave Blossoms to a 'dead stop' at the gain-line with dominant double tackles - a technique that was not often witnessed against the All Blacks.

"They have some good, powerful ball carriers in their side. I think we're very focused on getting the wrap, and getting the finish on the tackle on the likes of the [Ardie] Savea's the [Wallace] Sititi's and stuff like that. They are powerful, so they managed to get over the gain-line a lot, so I think it just came back to, we have to get our wrap and we have to get our finish in the tackle each time. We can't let them lead the easy metres and stuff like that."

As apposed to dwelling upon the defeat, Kelleher revealed how Andy Farrell wasted no time in getting his players back fit and fired-up with three Autumn Series matches left to go. Ireland take on Japan, Australia and close out their campaign against South Africa, with plenty left to prove as this November series will go a long way in determining the world rankings, ahead of December's 2027 Rugby World Cup draw.

"I think ultimately we have to take the learnings from the game. Obviously we weren’t good enough in a large part of it, particularly defensively so its back to the drawing board really. It’s up to each player individually just to make sure they’re doing the bit of extras, doing whatever needs to be done to make sure we put our defensive plan in place in the game. And I suppose that’s what we’ll be looking to do this weekend."

"We have to take the learnings. It was a massive opportunity for us to get better. As a result, we knew we were way off where we needed to be, and we just have to take the learnings from that game and make sure we improve from here on in."