Brian O'Driscoll believes Joey Carbery put in a 'very solid' performance in Saturday's loss to France.
The Munster out-half made his first Six Nations start for Ireland in Paris, scoring nine points in the 30-24 defeat.
He was in the line-up due to a hamstring strain for team captain, Johnny Sexton, in the week leading into the match.
Assessing Carbery's display, O'Driscoll believes the 26-year-old acquitted himself well.
"I thought he was very, very solid," the former Irish captain told Joe Molloy on Tuesday's Off The Ball.
"Really impressed with his goal kicking, kicking from hand was pretty good, shot selection was good."
O'Driscoll, however, did identify one area in which he feels Carbery could improve.
"The only thing is just squaring up around the corner, he's still running across the field a small bit.
"If he could square up around the corner he'll fix more defenders."
Some have advanced the opinion that if Sexton had been available, Ireland may have edged the match in Paris.
It's not an opinion O'Driscoll subscribes to.
"I don't know if that's the case.
"The margin is tiny.
"It didn't feel like a 10 was going to make a difference in that game, it was a physical game.
"I can understand how one of your best players could maybe be that difference, that six-point differential, but I thought Joey was good enough."
With some uncharacteristic errors evident in the Irish performance, O'Driscoll says that many could be attributed to the sheer physicality of the contest.
"The timing of our runs cost us a couple of times because of our timing on that ruck and it's nearly that simplistic.
"Passing was a little bit off, knock-ons too. It just wasn't as fluid.
"It's human nature, when the contacts are bigger you're trying to prepare your body a bit earlier for that impact.
"You're trying to brace yourself.
"It's like the full-back that drops the ball, an easy catch because he's already thinking about what he's going to do with it."
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