Paul O'Connell has called on the more experienced Ireland squad members to lead by example when they take to the field against Georgia next Saturday, after admitting he is baffled by the loss of form that culminated in an uninspiring win over Namibia in their opening World Cup game in Bordeaux.

The vice-captain says the squad are growing increasingly frustrated with their dramatic lapse in standards that was evident, not only last night, but against Italy and Scotland in pre-tournament warm-up games.

A 32-17 victory over Namibia secured a win and a bonus point to top Pool D at this early stage, but the error-strewn display has left the Irish camp and fans shell-shocked.

Ireland now bear little resemblance to the side that so comprehensively outclassed England and Italy in the Six Nations.

In the summer tour a second string side lost both Tests to Argentina, before the elite saw their World Cup preparations marred by defeat to Scotland and a controversial injury-time victory over Italy.

The horror show against Namibia, the lowest ranked team in the tournament, saw their form plummet to fresh depths and has clouded their hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals.

"We need to improve when we play Georgia on Saturday, there's no doubt about it," O'Connell said today. "It was a strange kind of atmosphere in the team after the Namibia game.

"We don't want to miss out on a great opportunity like the World Cup.

"We have a pool of very good players and everyone has seen the way we can play in the Six Nations - and we're getting a bit disappointed that we're not reproducing our best.

"A few of the more experienced guys need to start performing better and start leading the team a bit more."

Undoubtedly, there is a need for players to stand up and be counted against Georgia, but such is the experience in Eddie O'Sullivan's squad that a step up is needed by everyone.

Five of yesterday's line-up boast over 70 caps each, while the most inexperienced player in terms of appearances, Rory Best, earned his 14th cap against Namibia.

Nevertheless, Ireland made an astonishing 39 turnovers and O'Connell knows they cannot afford a repeat performance against major Pool D rivals France and Argentina.

"It was very disappointing performance. We played very badly and made basic mistakes," said the Lions lock. "We have to get them out of our game because that was one of our worst performances since I've been involved.

"It was mistake after mistake after mistake. We haven't made that many mistakes in years. The only similar game I can think of was against France two years ago.

"Until we start doing the simple things right we won't improve. There are no excuses.

"We don't have to worry about France and Argentina at the moment because we're playing so badly ourselves."