O'Keeffe has no beef with Aussies right to rule

Irish reaction/Tom Humphries: The Irish dressing-room had the sombre air that comes when you mix disappointment with the act of leaving your guts on the turf outside.

What words that were being exchanged were travelling as whispers. What handshakes there were came with condolences. Serious men. This had been a serious business.

John O'Keeffe first.

Kevin Heffernan tells a story about a time in Australia long ago when he took an Irish team down there for one of the early compromise games. The Irish played a warm-up which they lost amidst scenes of chaos and confusion. Out-thought and out-muscled. The game being played seemed more foreign than anyone had imagined.

That night and the next day Heffernan sat down and page by page, play by play, he drew out the game and looked at the pages until he could establish the patterns the Australians adhered to and devise one of his own.

Ever since, the series has been a sort of masters degree for our best football thinkers.

Johnno got the short straw this year, in that some big men were missing and that the home team never achieves the cohesion of the visitors but he pulled through with massive credit for his contribution to a game that is still evolving.

"There were certain frustrations amongst players but the late tackle was sorted today. In the conditions today we had a very disciplined game, apart from one crazy incident. Very sportsmanlike all through.

"I felt last week we had a few unnecessary skirmishes that weren't good for the game. Gary Lyon and myself worked on it. There is no future in that sort of carry on. We went out to play football today. I think it augurs well for the future.

"It's hard to understand but no team has emerged as dominant. It's pretty even overall. You don't want one team, because of their rules, dominating the other. The game has found its niche, I think."

For Kieran McGeeney it was another Sunday afternoon in Croke Park. Not liking October's instalments as well as he liked September's he has grown to appreciate the game more with every exposure to it. He chafed at not having hauled down a win yesterday.

"I thought things went well enough. There were a hard few decisions that went against us but I don't want to be complaining, we had enough chances to win it anyway.

"We knew from the last time they liked the third quarter; they consider it the championship quarter, so we said we'd raise our game for them. We thought we did but things didn't bounce for us.

"I think for the first time in two games there was a call for over-carrying. It so happens, one call in two games. Fair play to them, they done their work, they beat us. Everyone put in a good effort. We thought we'd raised our game. Disappointing to lose."

Stripped of the heroics that went into creating it, was an aggregate cushion of 12 points ever going to be enough in the last quarter?

"I thought we'd have a shout. We missed a few chances that we worked hard for. Darragh Ó Sé had a good game at full back and Anthony Lynch and Graham Canty really rose to it and when we threw in the speed of O'Hara we were capable of running at them. It was a great goal by them but we had a few chances near the end."

Seamus Moynihan has had better days in this precinct too. He reflected on a job almost done.

"We clawed our way back. I was told afterwards that if it was a draw we would have held onto the series so it's disappointing in that way. That's reality though. We have to get back and look for next year at the areas where we've made mistakes.

"There were a lot of young players there today. I thought they did very well - Graham Canty, Dessie Dolan and Paddy Christie coming in today. They played very well.

"A lot of first-year guys will be much wiser next year. "

Anthony Lynch of Cork was still absorbing it. The defeat was still written on his face.

"We came so close. They were on about this third quarter all week and I feel we took it to them. They came back well enough, obviously, at the end it was so close.

"It would be different if they beat us by 10 points. We have to take it. That's what it's all about. At least we got some enjoyment from it being so close. They got two three-pointers after the six-pointer but we weathered that storm. It was hard to get possession in the conditions. Kicking was affected too."

Cormac McAnallen is growing up with this game: yesterday he scored the goal which ignited the touchpaper on the Irish third-quarter performance. Not that he's bragging.

"I just stuck out my toe and got it into the back of the net. Nicer to think it would set us up. It didn't.

"It's such a game of pressing, you need clean possession. In Gaelic against the wind if things are tight, you just hoof it out. In this game it needs to be measured and straight. The Aussies pushed up very well. It's not so easy to get the ball out of defence.

"I felt though we were playing decently when they scored their goal but then they got two scores over the bar too. That was hard to come back from."

Twelve months until it all comes around again. Distance learning, module by module.