As one of the Northern Hemisphere's best sides, Ireland had a lot of promise going into 2011, especially with the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand lingering on the horizon.

With a formidable front row, a world class loose forward trio, an ever-reliable kicker in Ronan O'Gara and one of the best players to ever grace the game full stop in Brian O'Driscoll, the weight of expectation on Ireland's shoulders was palpable.

Try as they might, however, Ireland's hard work was not enough to live up to the hope of its two nations. Sports Mole dissects a year in Irish rugby.

Six Nations

After finishing runners up to France in 2010, Ireland were looking to repeat their Grand Slam-winning year of 2009 as they prepared for 2011's tournament.

After a mixed bag of results in their autumn series, Ireland kicked off their Six Nations campaign against Italy in Rome. In a match that wowed observers, Italy came within inches of a shock upset before a late Ronan O'Gara drop goal sealed a 13-11 Irish victory.

Ireland then hosted France in the second ever Test to be played at their brand new Aviva Stadium. A nail-biting close encounter ended in a 25-22 win for Les Bleus.

Another narrow result followed when they beat Scotland 21-18 at Murrayfield before a controversial loss to Wales in Cardiff in which replays showed that the winning try from Mike Phillips came from an illegal throw-in.

Though the championship was out of their grasp by the time of the final weekend, their match against England at the Aviva gave the Irish a chance to spoil England's party. Though the title was pretty much already in English hands, they needed a win in Dublin to claim their first Grand Slam since 2003. The opportunity was too grand to pass up and Ireland duly put in a thrilling display of rugby to secure a 24-8 victory and send England's open-top victory parade bus reversing back into the garage.

Summer

Finishing third in the Six Nations meant that Ireland had a lot of work to do with the World Cup creeping up on them.

Their warm-up matches, however, were less than impressive. Ireland started with a loss to Scotland, followed by an away loss and a home win against France and a home defeat to England.

Rugby World Cup

If Ireland's performance in the summer Tests was unconvincing, their World Cup opener against USA had many critics lamenting their tournament chances, even though they won the match by 12 points.

Then, the following week, Ireland were being hailed as possible contenders for the title after a 15-6 drubbing of Australia.

The Irish built on this shock victory with wins over Russia and Italy, going into the knockout stages with momentum as Pool C victors.

Their position at the top of their group meant that Ireland would meet an equally driven Wales in the quarter-finals. Despite a hard-fought display, Ireland could only muster one try to Wales's three for a 22-10 defeat. Ireland were going home.

So, it was an inconsistent year for Ireland. From beating Six Nations champions England and Southern Hemisphere giants Australia, to defeat by Scotland and close encounters with the likes of Italy and USA, the Irish just couldn't settle into their stride in 2011.