We're staying about 20 minutes outside the city centre in Auckland and it was largely straight down to business because of the six day-turnaround between matches, following our arrival here from New Plymouth. We got through several meetings and were then given the evening off to go into the city.

Most of the squad decided to head in but I stayed behind with Redser (Eoin Reddan) and some of the medical team. I just couldn't face going out after the day's travel so instead it was T-shirt, comfy tracksuit bottoms, some food and an opportunity to get closer to finishing the book I have been reading, 'One Day'.

For a good while all I managed was a couple of pages before falling asleep but over the last three or four days I have taken a good chunk out of a book I've really got to enjoy. By this evening I reckon I'll be finished.

A friend, Joanne gave me the Pulitzer Prize-winning, 'Lonesome Dove', which will be a mere bagatelle (not!) to complete at 850 pages: I think I'll still be reading it during next season's Six Nations Championship!

I respect her taste in books so I'll be giving it a go but there's also the fact that it's our bagman, Paddy 'Rala' O'Reilly's favourite book. I think that, combined with the number of pages in the novel, has me mentally broken.

He's been telling me all about it and is quite excited that I'm about to embark on this wonderful reading journey. He also told me it was part of a trilogy, which may keep me going until the end of my career!

We're dying for Saturday's game. It can't come quickly enough. We owe ourselves a performance. In the build-up on the training pitch we've had all four seasons, huge wind, torrential rain and sunshine.

When you hear about events like the 9,000 people expected to turn up at the O2 in Dublin on Saturday morning, it reinforces just how much this game means to everyone - players, management and supporters.

Related Links -

Brian's blogs are on www.O2.ie/rugby.

Follow the Ireland team in New Zealand on www.twitter.com/irfurugby.