CIAN HEALY emits a small groan as he ducks under a rope to make his way into the mixed zone. After a bruising, physical encounter, an impromptu limbo dance is the last thing his aching muscles require.

Victory helps to mitigate the aches and pains but the 22-year-old isn’t willing to downgrade the wear and tear with false bravado. Ireland were forced to make nearly twice as many tackles as their opponents and that statistic underlines the physical toll that must be paid. He’s tired but content.

“They (the Welsh) are all bruisers and there are so many big hits being put in but I really like those games; getting beaten up a bit, but you’re involved the whole time and you get to play a bit. We said (beforehand) about the importance of upping the ante, going harder and working fully for the 80 minutes.

“When you’re really pushing yourself that much, in the last few minutes you can be pretty worn out and bumps can come easy enough. We did what we wanted to do and got through it.”

One particularly satisfying aspect on a personal level is tied into a pivotal moment in the match. Four minutes after the interval and trailing 16-6, Wales are awarded a scrum, six metres from the Irish line. Ireland are penalised and the visitors opt for another scrum. It collapses and is reset and this time the home eight are aggressive through the hit and shunt their opponents off the ball.

The significance of the moment is best represented by the roar of approbation from the crowd. Healy smiles when recalling the moment. “It was do or die at that stage. They had me off the ground in one (scrum) before that so I had to dig in.

“It was about concentration and getting the timing right. The lads did that and we managed to turn the ball over and get out of the red zone. It was a big moment psychologically for us. We couldn’t really sit on our line and get bumped over. There is a bit of pride in our scrum. We don’t want to be put back on anything. I enjoyed it. There were one or two tough scrums, moments when we were under pressure but we dealt with it well and came back nicely.”

Ireland’s marauding defensive wrecking ball, flanker Stephen Ferris offered a more technical overview of that particular set-piece. “We kept getting beaten on the hits. Every time the referee said engage we seemed to be going back. We had a quiet word (with ourselves) and got it right. John (Hayes) got ahead of the hit on his opposite man and we all just piled in after that: John did really well to get us up.”

There were other aspects to the performance that were equally pleasing not least the fact the home side denied Wales a try.

The Welsh had proved in the tournament to date they were capable of shredding every defence they had encountered when the mood took them. Ireland refused to accommodate that notion, a fact that appealed to the Ulster flanker, who made several trademark hits and cleared out at rucks with a thunderous intensity.

He admitted: “It was a badge of honour not to concede a try. Wales had a few opportunities but the defence fronted up well. We were really, really proud of ourselves after the game for not letting them in because they are a dangerous side and they do like to throw the ball around. We didn’t let their key men into the game.

“We knew up front we could get at their lineout and cause problems for their set-piece. They didn’t get much ball from their lineout and all they did was crash it up in midfield, try to go wide and back wide again. We had looked at it (the way Wales play) all week and knew what was coming. We were confident if we got a few good opportunities we would take them.”

On the debit side one area upon which Ireland will focus in training is the tackle area, where they fell foul of referee Craig Joubert’s interpretation. This match was the first time there was a pronounced change in emphasis at the breakdown, something of which the Irish were only appraised during the week.

Healy admitted he found it difficult to curb his instincts. “I had a bit of trouble getting used to it but like any rule change it will take time. I’m sure we will be working on it during the week. It’s quite tough to know when you have let go and has he (the referee) noticed that you have let go. You have to chance it.”

Next week the Scots travel to Croke Park, Irish rugby’s final match at the stadium. There’s a Triple Crown at stake but for Healy what’s more important is to leave a positive legacy. “We have to do it justice. It has been a big thing for the Irish rugby team to be let play in Croke Park. To be able to pay that off with a good win would be nice.”