Italy v Ireland analysis:The Irish sporting public will look back at this season in five, 10 years and shake their heads. What's crucial is those same people don't reflect on the whole era with regret. That would be a real shame. The cycle of inconsistency needs to be broken. It is not a quality issue - God knows, they have the talent - but it remains a mental conundrum. A problem primarily for the management, or IRFU, to solve.
On two occasions during the Six Nations championship Ireland produced near-perfect performances: the English victory and then Saturday's display in Rome.
Still, they must be compared to France. Two soft second-half tries denied them the title of European champions. In contrast, see France's end-game excellence against Scotland and in Croke Park. Therein lies the difference in mental fortitude.
Bernard Laporte deserves tremendous credit as he leaves the post with a superb Six Nations record.
There are lessons to be learned from the pain of failure; to win a Grand Slam and progress to the World Cup semi-final this talented group of players need to attain full potential every time they take the field.
If we look at the positive snapshots of the past five months - Australia in November, England at Croke Park and Italy in Rome - the management and coaching staff deserve credit.
Equally, they must shoulder the blame for the team's shortcomings. High-performance sport is about setting and then achieving goals. Winning the 2007 Six Nations was the minimum requirement.
The England game showed three particular qualities: ruthlessness, precision and arrogance. Let us apply these traits to the whole campaign. Despite three quality performances, Ireland lacked ruthlessness this season. They should possess the arrogance to say we deserve to win a Grand Slam and World Cup. Be bold.
The IRFU must, in a non-emotional way, ask the toughest question of all: Why do such a talented group occasionally drop their standards by as much as 40 per cent?
For me, the responsibility stops with the coaching staff. Rather than alleviate pressure, they seem to create it, thus inhibiting performances. They need to create an environment that allows the players to perform. We have to assume the drop in performance is a down to a problem at management level.
So while taking credit for the good days they must stop denying the fault exists and attempt to address it.
Otherwise the back-to-back victories required to overcome France and Argentina in the World Cup pool stages cannot be achieved. Just one victory means New Zealand will be drawn in the quarter-finals.
As it stands, Ireland lack the consistency to produce two significant performances in succession, never mind the five required to win the World Cup.
The starting XV will not make it through the entire World Cup, but Eddie O'Sullivan has ardently refused to blood enough players to prepare for the worst-case scenario. Note the loss of Brian O'Driscoll against France.
The Pacific Islands fixture last November was the best opportunity to see how the three-quarter line might be readjusted in the captain's absence. A similar opportunity was missed to uncover replacements for John Hayes and Paul O'Connell.
After Saturday we don't require any more convincing that the Six Nations is the greatest rugby tournament on earth. After which come the World Cup, the Heineken Cup, the Tri Nations, the Magners League and, lastly, the Super 14.
The Six Nations has a rich history and produces incredible entertainment. Although it ended in failure for Ireland they should be aware of the effect their performance had on millions of people around the world. The only fault is the antiquated points-scoring system, which actually contributed to denying Ireland a first title in 22 years - the bonus system would have put them a point clear of France.
It is an honour to achieve the Triple Crown but the achievement is eroded by failing to win the competition outright.
Finally, I would like to note the plight of one of my former players, Trevor Brennan. Last week saw a massive penalty placed on Trevor for an inexcusable act that I would never defend. But as Shakespeare noted in Julius Caesar, "The evil men do lives after them. The good is oft interred with their bones."
I hope the rugby world doesn't simply remember his final act. For a decade Trevor Brennan was the most passionate man to wear the jerseys of Leinster, Toulouse and Ireland. I'll always cherish seeing Trevor doing press-ups in my kitchen in Greystones with my three children hysterically perched on his shoulders.
Always a fine physical specimen, he had to work hard on his basic skills. When we moved him into the second row - I know he blamed me for selecting Eric Miller over him at blindside - he would stay on after training to practise catching kick-offs above his head.
In 2001 we brought an inexperienced team to Stradey Park but remarkably took the lead in the 79th minute. The Llanelli restart was heading straight into touch until Trevor soared into the air to keep the ball in play with a textbook catch! We spent the four minutes of injury time defending our line before somehow surviving.
When I got back to the dressing-room I sat down beside him but before I could speak he said: "I know what you're going to say, boss, but it was a bloody good catch."
The ERC have sent a powerful message, through Trevor, to the rugby community.
For my own part, I'll always remember the generous man who made the remarkable journey from the outer reaches of Irish rugby and, by doing so, contributed enormously to the game by carving a path for others to follow.
