Ian Keatley

As a 10, you get your confidence through

creating space, setting up tries, kicking well, and just feeling in control.

So that's where tennis can get their confidence from.

As I said, it can't do that.

You can't do that as a forward or as a physical back.

Like, sure, McCluskey, if you want to get his confidence back, you just carry the ball five, ten metres and you feel good about yourself.

You can't do that as a ten because the whole back line, the whole team won't get going if you just end up carrying straight into the...

into the Lions' teeth.

I think for Sam, and that's why you're so good for him on Friday, nearly everything seemed to come up trumps for him.

Even like I was watching him defensively, he was actually standing in the front line.

They weren't trying to hide him or anything like that.

The Bulls didn't try and exploit him.

But even just that run back, when the Bulls looked like they were going to score, for him to get down on the ball, come up with it, all those things just add to his confidence.

And I think if Sam didn't start the first test over in Australia, I think that would be a little knock to his confidence again.

I think he's put himself in the pole position to start there.

And that's when Sam was playing...

There was a few question marks about Sam and he played against France and then people were like, why is he playing against Italy?

You have to be very delicate with a young player.

You can't take him out, put him back in because they don't deal with adversity like a 28-year-old or 29-year-old.

And that's why Leinster and Ireland were quite delicate with him.