When Caelan Doris spoke on Friday about wanting rugby at the Aviva Stadium to sound a bit more like it did for the soccer team on Thursday night, they weren't empty words.
Obviously, the shock value of that Irish win against Portugal is hard to replicate in the smaller rugby pond, particularly when Ireland are one of the bigger fish, but there was a hum to the atmosphere at the Aviva on Saturday night that had been missing for a little while.
It helped that Ireland finally delivered a big performance, their best display since the second round of the Six Nations away to Scotland at Murrayfield.
Ireland were favourites to win against Australia, but even with a dominant record in this fixture across the last 15 years, the 27-point, 46-19 win emphatic.
For context, Irelands previous biggest win against the Wallabies was 15 points, which they achieved at Ballymore on their 1979 tour, and again at Lansdowne Road in 2006.
Even though Ireland had won each of their last four meetings with Australia in Dublin, all four of those were by a margin of exactly three points each.
With that in mind, it was perhaps understandable that the adrenaline was still high when Cian Prendergast spoke to the media afterwards.
"I was chatting to one of the lads, I think it's probably the closest thing to heroin you can get when you get a win in the Aviva like that, it's just an unbelievable feeling," he said.
The Connacht captain was naturally buzzing after his biggest in an Ireland shirt, playing 24 minutes off the bench as he helped Ireland turn a 22-14 lead into a 46-19 victory.
The 25-year-old has had to be patient in his international career.
A versatile back row, who can also play second row, Prendergast made his Ireland debut three years ago against Fiji but has found gametime limited behind the likes of Caelan Doris, Jack Conan, Josh van der Flier, as well as Peter O’Mahony up until this season.
Saturday was his seventh time playing for Ireland, although he should really have nine appearances; twice in 2025 he was selected in an Ireland matchday squad, only to be ruled out on the day due to illness.
"My girlfriend Roisin laughs at me all the time. She's like, 'You couldn't have picked a worse position for competition’, because everywhere you go there are back rowers who are ready to compete with you all the time, they are ready to push you for your place, ready to keep you out of the team.
"It's just about when you get an opportunity being yourself, backing yourself and going all out to take it.
"It's definitely my favourite [cap] so far, I think all the time when you are in camp and you see these big games, evening kick-off, you just want to be part of it. It's just amazing to be part of it."
Making the win extra sweet was being able to do it all alongside his brother, Sam (above), who started at out-half, and produced his best performance of the season.
"I couldn't be prouder of Sam, he's unbelievable. You see how he deals with the game tonight, he takes everything in his stride," Cian said of his younger brother.
"That's been his personality since we were toddlers playing football and rugby in the kitchen. It's amazing to see him take that kind of joy and freedom to rugby and then just to get to play with him and chat to him on the field and to get passed the ball from him is cool.
"It's really cool to spend the moments with our family afterwards. It's something I don't think I'll ever be able to replicate."
The Prendergasts are part of a growing band of brothers in Irish rugby, with the McCarthys the latest sibling act playing under Andy Farrell.
Loosehead prop Paddy McCarthy has played all three games for Ireland in this window, following in the footsteps of his brother Joe.
A foot injury for Joe means that the pair haven’t worn the green jersey together in a game yet, but after making his first start in last night’s win, Paddy (below) is hoping that day will come soon.
"We're great friends, he's my best friend," he said.
"I can't believe I was playing Australia today. I went over to Australia [to watch Joe for the Lions] and I remember watching the first Test and having a pint, just like in a Lions jersey, watching it.
"I can't believe playing a guy like James O'Connor, all those guys. There's some great players in the Australian team so it's kind of surreal, to be honest. It was cool."
Just like Joe, Paddy’s rise to an Ireland jersey has been sharp.
The 22-year-old has only played 10 games for Leinster, four of which came this season, but has looked assured in the early stages of his Test career.
He was brought on the summer tour of Georgia and Portugal but didn’t earn a cap, and he says that experience has kept him on an even keel, taking things in his stride.
"I kind of just got on with it to be honest. I accepted that I hadn't played a lot of rugby going into that camp, so to be in it was great.
"The main thing I always focus on, and my parents always tell me, my Dad would tell me to stay fit, stay healthy, train hard and everything will take care of itself.
"I wasn't sure if I'd be playing for Ireland or not [this month]. I know when the squad came out, I thought I was in the A squad.
"I was like, ‘I’ll just take what I get and play as much as possible’. But I was happy out.
"I was very happy that the coaches, Fogs [John Fogarty], Pauly [Paul O’Connell] and Faz [Andy Farrell], put a lot of confidence in me when I came in, more than I expected.
"I didn't think I would get a start in this window because in the summer, I didn't even play in the Ireland squad. So to actually get a start and being told I was going well, in the scrums and things like that, it was nice," he added.
