Irish head coach Joe Schmidt has revealed that several players struggled with a "bug" in the week build-up to Saturday's disappointing defeat against Wales.
Ireland failed to turn up at a rain-soaked Principality Stadium and were comprehensively beaten by Grand Slam champions Wales. It is a result that caps a disappointing tournament for Ireland, but one that Joe Schmidt felt was compounded by an issue in the Irish camp during the week.
Speaking at his post-match press conference, the Irish coach said, "we had a couple of guys who were struggling, who had a bug. They were isolated and you lose a bit of that continuity."
He went on to explain that the six-day turnaround also did not help.
The six-day turnaround is also a little bit complicated. The first two or three days of the week are recovery. Got a good hit-out on Thursday really. Is it as much preparation as you'd like? It's not but at the same time that's the nature of the draw.
In the end, it is a tournament finished with two losses. It leaves more questions than answers for Ireland, with a World Cup looming later this year.
