The No.8 was given his marching orders in New Plymouth for kneeing All Black captain Richie McCaw in a ruck, and was banned for five weeks after admitting the offence at a disciplinary hearing.

The 26-year-old subsequently missed defeats to New Zealand Maori and Australia, but feels he has learnt a valuable lesson following the fierce press backlash.

"When I got to the hotel for the hearing there were loads of TV cameras and photographers - it was like a murder trial or something," he said.

"I know the media are intense in New Zealand when it comes to rugby, but bloody hell.

"Frustration got the better of me, maybe I didn't ruck responsibly, and I suffered the consequences.

"It's not something I'm proud of, and being the only Ireland player to be sent off in professional rugby is not a great record, but I'm a big boy and I've learnt a lot. It's a life lesson.

"I'd never go into any game with the objective to hurt someone. It's not Tiddlywinks out there; I play the game hard and respect players who play hard, Richie being one of them, but I'd never want to hurt another player."