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Following their previous disappointing performance against the Japanese team, the head coach challenged his Ireland team to improve their performance.

The team responded immediately.

The Irish side had struggled late against New Zealand and taken most of the match to find their rhythm versus their Asian opponents.

However, against Australia, they began powerfully, with Mack Hansen shining most prominently during a comprehensive triumph that represented Ireland's best performance of the season.

In his debut international start at full-back, Hansen scored a hat-trick, contested brilliantly for high balls and performed outstandingly against the country of his origin.

"Look, I've experienced a pretty difficult run with injuries really," the athlete stated.

"I longed for being in this team, I know there's considerable talk about me not exactly being raised here and I didn't grow up here, but I adore this team and this feels like family.

"Any time I have to play for the national team it's a privilege, if you don't put in a performance you may not receive that privilege again.

"My whole focus this period was to take the field and do what I could do."

Coach declared: 'Good athletes require no justifications'

Following 28 appearances on the flank, the player was entrusted the full-back role for the first time with several players unavailable.

For him, it was simply a case of picking up where he finished during the summer.

The experienced player had been in superb form before physical issues ended his dream of joining the international team.

After come back last month, he developed a lower body problem that made him unavailable for previous fixtures.

Farrell had suggested that the player was particularly motivated and these turned out to be not empty words as the former club player gave his coach a welcome team headache for upcoming matches.

"So my first reaction were, 'You need to play well in those different colored shoes!'," commented Farrell, alluding to Hansen's choice to wear mismatched boots.

"In fact I believed that was appropriate but it seems Hansen just did that himself regardless. So he's drawn attention to himself before he's even started.

"I told to him before the game, 'Excellent players don't need excuses, they can get on with it and just play naturally, you can get the man of the match if you choose,' and he responded, 'Yes, I agree.'

"So he's that type of performer, he prepares thoroughly, he's got a excellent attitude to get across his preparation and thus that's why he fitted straight into the team and he was capable to be himself due to that."

Hansen's performance also earned commendation from the rival coach, who stated he was the "standout Australian performer" on the night.

"In my view he was super, his experience showed to the front," commented the ex- national coach.

"Unfortunately, Hansen was probably the standout Australian player on the field. He's has a great skillset and he's such a strong contender."

When asked about what enables the player a good fit at full-back, Farrell added: "Showing up in the center of the pitch is something that he does from the flank anyway, but I suppose he's more in position for that more often.

"The player's aerial work was excellent, don't you think? I thought we didn't get bored of doing the right thing and that was placing the possession back on them to gain territory.

"Why that was the correct strategy to do is since it's the likes of Hansen who was securing the balls returned, and other players, so [it's] pretty pleasing."

Outside the star performer, there were numerous positives for the coach.

Sam Prendergast was outstanding on his comeback to the fly-half jersey, the set piece and line-out functioned effectively and another teammate did not look out of place in his first appearance in the forwards.

But possibly more pleasing for Farrell was the team bookending the match with two impressive periods.

The player's first two tries came in the first 11 minutes while additional teammates registered in the closing exchanges after the opposition had scored, ensuring the home side finished on a positive note.

"I thought we really let ourselves go and approached the match right from the beginning," stated Farrell.

"How we handled various aspects throughout the match, especially the opposition responding just before half-time and reorganizing ourselves and giving a performance like we achieved in the second half, I believed as far as field position and being across the majority of our strategy in that later period was truly pleasing."

The might of the Springboks are next up for the team, in what could be viewed as an informal decider to the previous season's tied multiple match contest on opposition territory.

The coach's team will require to attain another standard to beat the back-to-back title holders, but Saturday's defeat of the Australian team was a important advancement in the correct path after an uninspiring beginning to their fall campaign.