IRELAND'S performance in the first International Rules test has been attacked in the local press as humiliating, but defender Leighton Glynn said it would spur them on in Saturday night's second Test.

Glynn said the group, who trained together at Croke Park on Thursday night, had handled the intense analysis well after last week's seven-point loss.

"We know we didn't play as well as we could but in all fairness it was our first time playing together," he said.

"We had trained together and played a few trial matches but it was going to take a while for us to get into our stride.

"Unfortunately it took until the last five or six minutes to get going and hopefully we can get it right from the start this Saturday night."

The game was also labelled as lacking physical intensity and low on excitement.

Glynn's teammate Finian Hanley, who is vice-captain to Steven McDonnell, said the standard of the game would improve this week after both teams and the umpires had time to reflect on their performances.

"If you control the rules that are there, it will be hard hitting and fair," he said. "It seems we've gone from one extreme to another extreme. It was very tame.

"I also felt some of the decisions from the referees ... in our game we're used to hard hitting and in the Australian game they're used to hard hitting.

"There were some high challenges they called for, which put a stop-start effect to the game which didn't help it as a spectacle, I know from people at the game who said it wasn't very lively.

"Hopefully they've changed the style a small bit for the weekend."

The Irish have five players - Tadhg Kennelly, Marty Clarke, Colm Begley, Tommy Walsh and Brendan Murphy - that have experience from being on an AFL club list.

Hanley said the input of those players had been invaluable in the lead up to the second test.

He also reacted positively to the news International Rules is set to continue with Ireland to tour Australia in 2011 after a few years where the series' future was in doubt owing to excessive violence.

"It's a really good series and it's a really good game. The Australians love travelling and they love when we go over and play them as well," he said.

Get behind the 2010 International Rules Series with Jennifer Witham’s complete coverage from Limerick and Dublin. Join the conversation on Twitter: use #IR2010 in your tweets.