Coach Declan Kidney was forced to field an inexperienced line-up due to injuries and Jamie Heaslip's suspension and they struggled to breakthrough the home defence.

But O'Driscoll was pleased with their response from the 66-28 hammering by New Zealand and is convinced the experience gained by the likes of debutant Chris Henry will stand them in good stead.

"This tour has been a big learning curve for a lot of team," said O'Driscoll.

"We have had a number of players earning their first caps and it was all good experience - they will take a lot out of it.

"We haven't managed any victories on this tour and of course that is what you are judged on.

"We wanted to put a bit of pride back into our defensive game as we let ourselves down against New Zealand.

"Although we had a couple of lapses against Australia, we were fairly solid."