IRELAND coach Paul Earley says his team will pay the price if they take their foot off the pedal against Australia in Saturday night's one-off International Rules Test in Perth.

 

The Irish dominated the opening three quarters of their warm-up clash against a VFL representative side at Trevor Barker Beach Oval on Sunday, but were outscored in the final term.

Ireland was in complete control after leading 89-14 at the final change, however the VFL team hit back by winning the final term 13-11.

 

Although he rested some key players late in the match and was pleased with the overall performance, Earley admitted his side could not afford a similar lapse against Alastair Clarkson's Australian team at Patersons Stadium.

 

"That's something we have to work on. We probably took our foot off the pedal in the third quarter," Earley said.

 

"It was pretty, I suppose … easy at times in the second quarter and I think while we tried to keep the intensity up, we were rotating quite a bit as well.

 

"Once it (intensity) dropped in the third quarter we found it very difficult to lift it again.

 

"It's something we have to work on because the Australians will certainly play to the end, there's no doubt about that."

 

The match was played on a smaller pitch than the field that will be used this Saturday night, creating a more congested and physical battle.

 

Earley said it was "really worthwhile run" to get his players used to the Australian elements of the hybrid game.

 

While he was pleased with how Ireland's players coped with tackling, Earley said the VFL side's run and carry via chains of handballs was an effective weapon to burst through the Irish lines.

 

"I think we struggled at times with the movement of the Australians, the slick handpassing," said Earley, who played one game of AFL for Melbourne in 1984.

 

"We should have slowed that down a bit on occasions, but again that's something your top players can do very effectively.

 

"We don't necessarily do that as well in our game. So overall there's some positives for us and there's some things we have to work on next week."

 

A new rule introduced this year requires the ball to be kicked out over halfway after a wide (out of bounds), behind or over.

 

The rule suited the VFL players flying for marks and should benefit the national side – comprising only All-Australian players – with Earley declaring it would have a huge impact on the contest.

 

"It changes the whole dynamic of the game and it means contested possessions in the middle of the field are so important," Earley said.

 

"It suits the Australian team because that is their game.

 

"There's going to be a lot of breaking ball. It's then how quickly you can transition that from that midfield to attack – and do it with effectiveness – is going to determine I think the outcome next week."