WILL CARLING's departure through injury just prior to half time did more damage to Irish hopes of victory than to his own side. No disrespect to the English captain, who had played very well up until then, but it did allow Dean Richards to change the English game plan from being very open to a tight mauling game which the Leicester number eight controls so well.

It was clear that England had decided upon an expansive game and were determined to persevere even though Ireland were proving a lot harder to crack than expected. That all changed with the departure of the English captain.

Ireland were certainly worth their three point lead at ha time and would not have bee flattered by a wider margin. The management had certainly done their homework as evidenced by the identification of the English weakness in the middle of the lineout, the improved defence - especially in midfield - and the improved rucking.

Jeremy Davidson was the outstanding Irish forward and can, therefore, be added to Humphreys, Costello and Mason as excellent prospects for the future to emerge this year. Allen Clarke's throwing in must have contributed to the excellent lineout performance in the two games in which he has played.

David Humphreys was outstanding again in everything that he did. Niall Hogan deserves great credit for his courage and leadership and he will be aware that he must improve his kicking and passing. There is nothing wrong with these that coaching and practice cannot put right.

Accepting that the English dominated the game territorially in the second half we still had our chances. However, we wasted them by lack of control and uncertainty.

After the Scottish and French games we needed to improve in all departments. We have improved a lot, but we must develop into a greater attacking power from all areas.

I have always thought that decision making is easy when you don't have the ball. It is using your possession well, however sparse it may be, that is one of the great secrets of the game.

Had we possessed the ability on Saturday to turn one or two of our rare chances into a try the result could, obviously, have been different.

We found it very difficult to get out of our own 22 in the second half. Against sides like England who are likely to win their own lineout, it is not sufficient to kick hard earned possession back into touch not far from where it has been won. Although the risk is greater we must be prepared to move the ball to allow the outside backs to kick or run as the situation presents itself.

It has been a season of mixed emotions for Irish rugby. By their performances in the last two matches the players have rescued a situation which had gone from optimism to gloom and restored it to optimism again. The future of the Irish team is probably more dependent on what happens off the field than on it in the immediate future because of all the changes that are taking place.

All of the Irish team can hold their heads up after this performance. The tackling was brave, courageous and effective and as, required by the modern game, it involved the front five as much as anybody else on the pitch.

However, this must be the standard defence in future. Teams built from limited resources like ours must get their defence right as a priority and develop the rest of their game from there. In my opinion that is precisely where we are at this moment in time.

Anybody who has watched All Ireland League and Interprovincial matches knows what improvements are needed at those levels and have to be achieved in order to improve the Irish side. Defences have dominated and nobody denies that more emphasis must be put on attack, continuity and an overall more positive approach.

Having watched both matches on Saturday, I am left wondering what changes professionalism will make to the laws of the game. At present they are too numerous and complicated, leading to the referees having many different interpretations, too many things to watch and, overall, too much influence on the proceedings.

I suspect professionalism will demand simplification to allow greater understanding, particularly if the game seeks to attract a wider audience (and greater revenue).

England winning the championship and Triple Crown is probably more indicative of the gulf between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres than anything else. They will have to find a balance between the tight game and the running game that still eludes them.

Irish rugby isn't faced with the same dilemma. We are unlikely to have an enormous pack of forwards regularly, if ever, of the size that England produces but, then again, neither do some others such as Scotland, New Zealand or Australia from all of whom we can learn a lot.