For the Irish squad the 1999 World Cup is over before it really begins. We all knew that we were going to get to Lens and that we would meet our first genuine test there as we were always unlikely to beat Australia.

We have failed that test. In these days of public relations the message from the Irish camp was to go "where no Irish team had gone before in the World Cup". They have achieved that distinction, but it is not quite what they had in mind.

The focus has always been on the quarter-final, which will take place in Lansdowne Road on Sunday. The presumption was that we (having beaten any third-best qualifier) would be playing in that game. We knew before last evening that the Argentineans had identified Lens as the best route to the quarter-finals and their calculations have been proven correct.

The game opened brightly from an Irish point of view. We were sharp, alert and prepared to take the game to the opposition.

David Humphreys was kicking his penalties better than he had ever done before. The forwards had the upper hand in most departments.

But the Argentineans always seemed to hang in there. As a result of their doggedness, the place-kicking of Quesada, and our propensity for relaxing after we scored, they managed to stay in touch.

Throughout the first half, despite having the majority of possession, we never looked like scoring a try. The only occasion on which we breached their defence was when Kevin Maggs went clear only to be called back for a forward pass.

At half-time the game was all to play for. I suspect that both coaches instructed their teams to accelerate the play in the second half. Both teams certainly seemed intent on doing so from the kick-off. We got off to the perfect restart to go into a 12-point lead at which stage we needed to press home our advantage.

However, the greater movement, which had now come into the game due to both teams stepping up the tempo, suited the Argentineans far more than ourselves. We tired and they grew increasingly more confident.

Suddenly they became the attackers and we had to defend, which we did not do as effectively as required. Defenders tire far more quickly than attackers. They chipped away at the margin and suddenly at the end of a phase of play, in which they had looked more dangerous than either side had managed to do until then, they scored the crucial try. Quesada magnificently converted from a very difficult angle.

After that we were always chasing our tail. They knew that a good defence would be sufficient to hold us out. You don't need any great plan against a team whose only offering, when it comes to the crucial dying moments of a match, is a 14-man lineout. Is this the sum total of what we can produce from playing rugby for over 100 years?

The players made a valiant effort to save the game and they could easily have done so. It is arguable whether or not we would have deserved it. I always thought that this game was going to come down to the last quarter and aside from our final salvo the Argentineans dominated that period.

The French will be delighted that Argentina won. They will not present anything like the opposition we would have given France at Lansdowne Road. In fact, I felt more confident about beating France than winning last night.

Where do we go from here? Hopefully to recognising the reality of our standing in world rugby. For far too long, protected by our membership of the International Board, we convinced ourselves that we were among the superior rugby playing nations.

We even had the arrogance to not award caps when playing against teams who were not members of the International Board. We should hang our heads in shame at the arrogance and stupidity of such a stance.

Our protected position has ultimately been our downfall. We have never developed our play to a level that would allow us to be always competitive. Instead we have allowed the rare good performance to cover over the inadequacies.

Last night, when the chips were down, the Argentineans showed themselves to be better at the fundamentals of rugby than ourselves. Although the players involved in the match will come in for a lot of criticism, I don't actually blame them. Neither do I blame the management.

They are all products of the people who have run the game in this country. Ultimate, responsibility stops at the top. However, as always, those at the top will direct the responsibility downwards towards the management and players.

Maybe it is time for the IRFU to hold an annual conference at which all the clubs in Ireland will be represented and have a genuine airing of views. Other sports do it, why can't rugby?

Warren Gatland will obviously come under a lot of pressure now. He is no better or worse as a coach than he was when selected to do the job. He has given it his best shot. What worked so well for Connacht has not worked for Ireland. Then again the requirements were never the same.