SEAN MORAN ON GEALIC GAMES: The one nagging doubt that has constantly beset the International Rules project is the uncertainty over the intention of either side. This has nothing to do with with the bona fides of players when they take the field for a match, nor is it a reflection on the governing bodies, the GAA and AFL, both of whom are genuinely interested in the promotional value of the international outlet.

The uncertainty centres on how far either side is prepared to go to accommodate the Test series and how many other concerns outrank it in the minds of players and administrators. That, after all, was the death knell of the Railway Cup.

Only in one year was there a sense that both countries were grappling with the International Rules game at full tilt. That was in 1998, when the series was resumed after eight years. It was also the only year in which the sides won a Test each. The quality of the teams involved wasn't remarkably higher than in the interim but there were probably more of the top Australian players than in any year since.

As against that, the bigger (than became usual) contingent of big ruckmen put the visitors at a disadvantage in terms of the different skills demanded by the game.

Since then the series has been comprehensively dominated by the visiting team and the last two series have ended in a whitewash. Two years ago matters weren't helped by the administrative chaos in Ireland, which saw an All-Ireland final replayed the day before the first Test and a number of club fixtures interfering with the ability of several players to commit to the series.

This was particularly unfortunate because the Australians, stung by two years of failure, put together their strongest challenge to date - only to come up against Ireland's most feeble effort of the five years (we can include with certainty this year's preparations).

Not only did the fiasco of 2000 lead to two extremely lop-sided Tests, but it also convinced the Australians that they had cracked the whole international game. Coach Dermott Brereton explained afterwards that with their superior fitness as professionals the Australians should be able to negate Ireland's greater skill with the ball.

"It will be very healthy for Ireland to get a loss like this because I believe you become the competition you're playing. If they were to win this series, they could almost become complacent that skills could do it for them.

"Skills didn't do it for them this time and their fitness needs to come up, and until a coach gets hold of a Gaelic team and revolutionises it and they run through an entire match without a drop-off in the execution of skills because of the fatigue factor, they're going to stay where they are which is pretty good. But once every two years or three years, now that the Australians have learned how to play this, they'll probably roll them."

Maybe this led to complacency last year on Australia's part but for one reason or another the pendulum swung and it was Ireland's skill that negated their opponents' physical and fitness advantages for a whitewash every bit as comprehensive as the one administered the year before.

Another difficulty that has become apparent is that because of two different cycles the home side has always had a new manager whereas the visitors were led by a coach with a year's experience. This hampered Ireland and Australia in the past two years but is unlikely to have an impact this time as new Ireland coach John O'Keeffe has been a selector since 1998 and probably knows the international game better than anyone either here or in Australia.

BUT these considerations are only marginal if International Rules loses its appeal in either country. So far there's nothing to suggest such a stage has been reached in Ireland. Public interest is strong with between 40,000 and 50,000 expected for the Tests. If anything the GAA has consistently learned from experience. This year there is a determined attempt to recreate the ambience of a touring team by gathering the players together in City West from the Thursday before each Test.

Interference from club schedules has been cut back - although this might be more by accident than design given the strict deadlines for the completion of county championships.

In any event the GAA is essentially powerless in the face of county boards' disinclination to alter their schedules just as the latter are powerless not to alter them when key players are on the other side of the world when the series is held in Australia.

But how strong is the international project in Australia? The drop in attendances last year might have been attributable to bad weather and its consequent impact on the traditional walk-up crowds in Melbourne and Adelaide. But maybe the appeal of the matches has waned.

Before departure Australia manager Garry Lyon was stung into defending the international project against the claim that high-profile withdrawals - both from the All-Australian selection on which the panel is based and from the initially selected travelling party - had dented the credibility of his panel.

"This is not a Mickey Mouse side that goes out there," Lyon said. "We know that there are challenges for us. We know that this is not the All-Australian side that was picked, that's always been a challenge for us. We'll get over that. We've got 27 blokes who are absolutely committed to it all, that's the most important thing.

"If you have a look at the best-and-fairest placings at the clubs this year and have a look at our squad, you'll find that we've picked the best players in each side. The players care about representing their country and they take pride in it and are genuinely excited about it and they're working their buns off to go over there and get a result for us."

Over the years Australia's best players have tended to give the international game a series or two before bowing out. This is understandable for professionals whose close season is disrupted by the series and also in a game, Australian Rules, which is one of the most physically demanding in the world. There are always plenty of injuries requiring attention at the end of any given season.

Even some Ireland players have decided to depart gracefully after giving up to four years to the game. Declan O'Keeffe, Anthony Tohill and Peter Canavan have made major contributions but have called it a day.

Nonetheless injury again deprives Australia of two of the country's best International Rules footballers, Nathan Buckley and James Hird. And arguably the most influential AFL player of the past two seasons, Michael Voss, has yet to play the international game. We'll know in a few days the sort of threat posed by this year's team but it's safe to say the project could really do with two good, competitive Tests.