Sir, - Having read the opinions of both John O'Sullivan and Donal Spring on the match in Lens (The Irish Times, October 21st), I feel compelled to reply in favour of Mr Spring's view. I believe that Ireland's efforts to score the necessary try in the final quarter were doomed because of the way rugby is developed at grass roots in this country.
Flair should be encouraged. Kicking should be banned at schools and junior club level. Tip rugby and sevens rugby should be developed to a higher degree. Also, the All Ireland League should be reformed to encourage teams to score more tries and develop ball-in-hand rugby with the introduction of bonus points for the number of tries scored. I call on the IRFU to take bold steps and dramatically change the under-age rules to develop ball-in-hand rugby.
The Irish players and management did their best - that was obvious from their exhausted and shell-shocked demeanour at the end of last night's game. Getting rid of Warren Gatland isn't necessarily the right option. The IRFU must act now to ensure we become competitive again in five years' time. - Yours, etc.,
Eoghan Comerford, Bartramstown, Garristown, Co Dublin.