In the immediate aftermath of Ireland's final World Cup warm-up match against Wales, Alan Quinlan took exception with Warren Gatland's "bitter" post-match remarks.
On what was the final run-out for Irish captain Rory Best and head coach Joe Schmidt in Dublin's Aviva Stadium, Quinlan, speaking on Monday's OTB AM, criticised the Wales head coach for his inappropriate comments regarding Ireland's playing style.
"Ireland went back to what they are traditionally good at," stated Gatland in his post-match remarks, "they just played phase, after phase after phase, see if they can get a penalty chance, kick the ball down the field and then try and squeeze you in your 22."
Something of a backhanded compliment, the New Zealander's remarks were regarded as needlessly disparaging by the former Munster man.
"What expansive rugby did they play? Where were they effective? They got one try in the game from an interception," proclaimed Quinlan.
"What does Warren Gatland expect Ireland to do? Throw the ball around the place and show their hand before the World Cup? He was never going to do that either.
"I like Gatty, but that stuff irritated me after the game. It was condescending and insulting."
Crediting aspects of Welsh play throughout, Gatland's attempts to project an alternative image of his side were not lost on Quinlan.
"Wales won a Grand Slam in the Six Nations just gone by," he noted, "[and] Ireland scored 14 tries and Wales scored 10.
"He's talking about ambition. Winning a Grand Slam while scoring 10 tries - no bonus point in five games. What's he talking about? What way does he play?
"His team are stopping teams from playing, they're competing incredibly aggressively around the breakdown, putting massive pressure on teams."
With no love lost between Gatland and Irish rugby, Quinlan identified the head coach's past link with Ireland as being instrumental to the formation of his attitude.
"I don't know why he needs to say that stuff after a game," said Quinlan, "I was more disappointed with that than any of the stuff he's said before.
"It was bitter, and there is a bitterness there in Warren Gatland about what happened to him a long time ago when he got shafted here.
"It would have been nice if he'd come out and given more credit to Joe Schmidt for what he's achieved, and Rory Best in his last game there, but what he was saying is absolute bullshit."
Armed with all the necessary facts to back up his argument, you can watch Alan Quinlan's full response to the weekend's match here.
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