Ireland point the finger at umpires

It's an Australian reporter who makes the point in the press conference room after the first Test. The winning team has been denouncing the umpires whereas the losers are stoic and unconcerned. It's true.

Ireland's growing dissatisfaction climaxes when the players forget that a lineball has to be taken despite the end-of-match siren sounding. As a result, a point is knocked off their winning total - not to be sniffed at when the series could be decided on aggregate.

"I was cross with him," says Ireland manager Brian McEniff of umpire Brett Allen, "because if you take the first Test last year Larry Reilly's goal was disallowed after the hooter sounded. I wouldn't be happy with a lot of the decisions but I think you all know that."

His captain Anthony Tohill, having done as much as anyone to bring about the famous win, is almost sensationally blunt about his feelings for Mr Allen. Has he a comment on the umpire? "No. That's all I want to say on it. I think it was fairly evident. Certainly the impartiality of one of the umpires would need to be looked at. That's all I'm going to say." His countyman Seβn Martin Lockhart has also had a phenomenal game despite a gash over his eye that required stitching. He too is miffed at the refereeing. "It's part of the game. They hit us, we hit them. I think it lifted my game. Any time you get a slap you want to play on. The boy met me full on with the shoulder and elbow. Came from the blindside. You'd get a red card for that in Gaelic you know and the boy didn't even get sin-binned or nothing."

But enter Australian coach Garry Lyon, cheerful in the face of a feeling that the match was there for the taking. "It's a hard game to referee because there's a few variables. You get a bit frustrated but I'm not one to whinge much about umpires. There's not much you can do about them. You're playing a game where two umpires are refereeing two games a year. If you think they're going to get it right all the time you're kidding yourself."

But there are more upbeat stories. Like Brendan Devenney. His selection raised a few eyebrows. Some patronage by the manager? A Donegal catch? Fortified by the player's 14-points top score, McEniff takes the issue head on. "I'd be very pleased as a fellow Donegalman that Brendan has showed his colours. Some might have questioned my picking of him as a fellow Donegalman but be that as it may he's quite a good player and I think there's more in him."