Seánie O’Brien seemed calm. Standing between Lieutenants Payne and Henshaw, of the newly formed officer class, he more hummed than belted out the anthems. No tears, no raw emotion, just clear focus. Even a friendly smile for Michael D.

After the haka, tracksuit gets removed, the buzz-cut covered with black helmet. Still calm.

Disaster, seemingly, followed Beauden Barrett putting the kick-off down his gullet. CJ Stander hoists him but the possessed Kieran Read leaps as high unhelped to slap ball down for Anton Lienert-Brown. O'Brien lands badly, grabbing the back of his head ("Make sure you jump straight," Jaco Peyper warns Read moments later – no sanction). The medic arrives as the All Black wave crashes into Ireland's defence. The Tullow flanker is calm no more. He fends off the medic just before the young Wexford prop hauls down Julian Savea.

Tadhg Furlong was reared on Seánie. Another fella arriving into the Dublin 4 bubble from rural obscurity – not of the schools clique, not at all, they formed an essential double act to combat the wrath of New Zealand’s farming sons.

“As a country lad, I always looked up to Seánie coming up through the ranks,” said Furlong. “To play with him is really good, to follow in the trenches behind him.”

Furlong hauls down Savea, O'Brien rips back possession. Not 40 seconds played. The All Blacks keeping coming. Liam Squire and O'Brien begin their private war. Seánie almost rips ball clean from his man-marker. New Zealand are inches shy now. Read carries over the line but O'Brien holds him up. Barrett's magical boot finds Malakai Fekitoa and it is 5-0. Then 7-0.

Sixth minute: Jamie Heaslip (2009 version) dips in and away from Joe Moody and Read before offloading to O'Brien. Fifteen-metre race to the line, Barrett's pace and brilliant tackle gets underneath him as Rory Best drives them both over the white wash. Scrum. O'Brien is disgusted with Jaco Peyper. Three instead of seven points.

Head clash

This time Seánie takes the restart despite Read's rush. Robbie Henshaw carries into Sam Cane's shoulder. Penalty instantly blown for a high tackle. Peyper and TMO Jon Mason (Wales) study the replay and see a "head clash" as Henshaw is carted away. "He tried to take his head off," says an Irish player. Replays support as much. No head clash. No Henshaw. Joe Schmidt looks apoplectic. (Michael Cheika on the coaches Whatsapp group: "Welcome to my world, mate.")

Cane lasts four minutes, crumpling in agony after tackling Rob Kearney and trying to force a turnover. His ankle got stuck when legally removed by O'Brien and Heaslip. Dane Coles uses that incident as an excuse for coming offside and smashing Conor Murray with his shoulder. Penalty, nothing else, as Rory Best excoriates Peyper about players not rolling away. Sexton kicks to touch. Squire leaves the lineout when he spies O'Brien out in midfield. They both know what's coming. Bash.

Furlong keeps up his end: Owen Franks gets shrugged off, Brodie Retallick and Read are both put on their back-sides. The stadium volume replies with an insane roar.

Henshaw gone, Cane gone, Aaron Smith sin-binned, Sexton hamstrung. Only 16 minutes played. Pandemonium as Seánie rumbles within five metres of the try line again. Stopped.

CJ Stander barges past Malakai Fekitoa only to be concussed by Dagg’s shoulder to his head. No arms. Play on. O’Brien realises he must go the full 80 minutes as Josh van der Flier arrives to play the game of his life.

“We knew if I came on for any backrow I’d go to six for scrums and Seánie’d stay in his position,” van der Flier explained. “Played with him against Montpellier, trained a lot with him obviously. I really enjoy playing with him as you get a lot of energy off him when he makes his turnovers, big hits, big carries.”

Steal another ball

Twenty-fifth minute: O’Brien arrows out of the line and belts into Lienert-Brown, who spins into van der Flier. O’Brien recovers to cleanly steal another ball.

The boys who looked up to Seánie from their academy days are wearing green alongside him now. Furlong's one-handed take at the back of the lineout almost results in an offload to send Garry Ringrose away. Penalty count: Ireland 1-7 New Zealand. Score: 6-14. Cheating pays.

Thirty-fourth minute: Zebo carries into black-clad bodies. O’Brien gets over him, taking hammering punishment from Ardie Savea and Fekitoa, but he refuses to budge and secures possession.

“He was our best player, I thought,” van der Flier added. “The world-class players can bounce back. He was world class today.”

Forty-sixth minute: the Heaslip try that will never be. O’Brien breaks the gainline. Ardie Savea steals ball off Jack McGrath. Conor Murray slaps it out of Coles’s grip. Heaslip pounces just as Coles smacks the back of Murray’s head. No sanction. New Zealand scrum.

Forty-eighth minute: After Fekitoa is yellow-carded for a swinging forearm into Zebo’s chin, O’Brien fumbles with a clear run to the line after Devin Toner’s clever dummy driving maul.

The next five minutes we see angry Seánie: big carry, bigger carry, pops the ball from Coles’s grasp as the All Blacks promise a try, powers past Barrett for a five-metre gain.

Despite the eight-month break after tearing his hamstring in Paris, the midlands man refused to fade.

Sixty-eighth minute: another clean turnover. Openside play of Richie McCaw standard. Four minutes later, with no run up, he carries upright into Brodie Retallick and Savea. Gets smashed. Gets up.

O’Brien is back, ideally for longer than the time he was gone.