SEÁN MORANtalks to Meath defender Kevin Reilly, who believes Ireland are better prepared this time – both in giving and taking the tackle

WHITTEN OVAL in the west Melbourne suburb of Footscray has seen better days – in a couple of senses. On the weather front, the morning is wet and the scenes could be from a club ground at home in winter.

In the more general meaning of the phrase, the ground, home of the Western Bulldogs, is now a modern training facility, having seen its last AFL match in 1997 before the club shifted its matches to one of the big stadia in the city – it now plays its home fixtures in what is currently Etihad – but formerly Docklands/ Colonial/Telstradome – Stadium, the venue with the constantly shifting naming rights.

The same year the desire to shed the image from the dowdy old suburb was also manifest in the change of name from Footscray, the name under which the club won major honours in the early years of the last century, to the more anodyne Western Bulldogs.

Yesterday, Ireland conducted a fairly intense training session. Bill, the team’s bus driver, has seen a few Irish teams down the years and reckons this year’s are hitting harder in practice than he remembers their predecessors.

Kieran McGeeney’s repetitive drills put the players through their paces in the one aspect of the international game the Irish find hardest to master.

Kevin Reilly is following in a distinguished tradition of Meath internationals. The late Peter McDermott, who did so much

to foster the international connection between the GAA and the Australian game, passed away only recently, but more specifically Reilly is heir to the defensive contribution made by such predecessors as Mick Lyons, Robbie O’Malley and Darren Fay.

Although full back with the county, the Navan O’Mahony’s man has generally played centre back for Ireland in the half-back line described in 2008 by Australia coach Mick Malthouse as the most important element in Ireland winning that year’s series.

“It was important to get the intensity up and keep it high all the way to the first Test,” he said after yesterday’s session.

“Intensity will be a massive issue for us on Friday night. We’re going to have to match the Australians all the way on that front while also playing to our own strengths. It was important for us all to get a run today . . . there’s plenty of time for recovery over the next few days.

“Last year was very disappointing in the sense we only really played for two quarters. We have that at the back of our minds – we’re going to have play for a lot more than that this time if we’re to be in contention for the series.”

As a defender he pinpoints the difficulty of containing Australia’s forwards in the series 12 months ago. “Last year they came forward in waves and we didn’t really deal with that as well as we could have. That will be a big issue this time.

“Another area we need to improve on is scoring – if we don’t put the points on the board, we’re not going to win. We’d be given out to in Gaelic football if we kicked as many wides. We seemed to be content with the “behinds” and we just can’t afford to be.”

Unsurprisingly, especially for a back, he is preoccupied by the tackle – both in the execution of it and being on the receiving end.

“The tackle that’s used in this game is alien to Gaelic footballers. That would be the biggest aspect we have to work on, both in making and taking tackles.

“You’re going to have to live with being tackled and pinned down. In previous years we kind of retaliated a bit because we felt it was unfair. Maybe it was just at the back of our heads that we sort of felt that this shouldn’t be happening.

“But we have a lot of work done with Kieran (McGeeney), both in giving and taking the tackle so I don’t think it will be an issue this year.”

The probationary status of the series after the excesses of 2005-06 has led to an occasionally tentative approach from both countries, apparently conscious of the consequences of things getting out of hand again.

“Last year was very open,” says Reilly. “Far less tackles got in than in previous years. From a spectator’s point of view, they want to see a bit of the physical. Okay, it can’t be allowed get out of hand again but we have to get the balance right. There’s no harm in it being a physical game, once it’s within the rules.

“Both teams stood off each other a bit too much last year. Again just for the intensity, I think we should up it a small bit. We were probably afraid a bit (to get involved) because there was a clampdown after what happened a few years ago. We’ll have to wait until Friday night to see how it works out.”