Emmet Moloney writes for the 'Farmers Journal' and is a former sports columnist with 'The Kerryman'.

Have we ever known a weekend like it? As the dust settles on an amazing victory, Emmet Moloney looks back on an historic few days for Irish sport...

It’s impossible to pass our Grand Slam heroes by this week. By the time you all read this, the win will be five days old, but the taste of victory is still fresh. That will linger for some time, and why shouldn’t it? A special evening for Irish rugby fans everywhere, and a big night for the country.

A friend of mine runs a pub in Ennis, and he assured me that last Saturday night was his best since he took over the lease a couple of years ago. That’s a measure of what this meant. The country needed it, and Declan Kidney and his men delivered on so many levels.
But the one that matters the most is the cerebral level. When it comes to the space between the ears, our coach is in a league of his own. His handling of the last eight weeks has been a lesson in cuteness. Managers everywhere should take note.

Kidney must be human, yet he does not seem to be interested in getting or taking any credit for his and his team’s achievements. His modestly is quite unusual in the modern sporting arena, where the media tries to build up the men behind teams as some kind of all-knowing supermen. Kidney bucks the trend, and good luck to him.

So what comes next? Well, for a lot of the Irish team, there will be a summer trip to South Africa. All of the pack are in the running for seats on the plane, with a few obvious certainties. The captaincy is now Brian O’Driscoll’s to refuse. His complete rejuvenation may be Kidney’s most remarkable accomplishment, although Drico had much to do with it himself. He is easily Ireland’s best ever rugby player, and last Saturday put the appropriate cherry on top.

But this season is far from over. In a fortnight’s time, Leinster and Munster play Heineken Cup quarter-finals, and if form holds, the all-Ireland rugby finals could happen in Croke Park. Munster against Leinster for the bragging rights in a Grand Slam year.

This match-up didn’t look likely, given Leinster’s appalling away form, but O’Driscoll and D’Arcy now have a new lease of life. And don’t forget Shane Horgan and Malcolm O’Kelly, international ever-presents for the last five years – they missed out last Saturday, and must be straining at the leash to prove they are not over the hill. Munster versus Leinster in Croke Park is now a real possibility. The confidence surging through our rugby troops will make it happen. Paul O’Connell versus Brian O’Driscoll – for the captaincy of the Lions. With Tommy Bowe signing the national anthem before the start!

Okay, I might be getting slightly carried away. The Grand Slam was a wonderful event for the entire country. That day in Croke Park, if it comes off, will be a wonderful event for Munster people!

Before our media naturally loses the run of itself when it comes to what this team can achieve, let’s remember that England and France must be played away from home in 2010. In two years’ time, though, we should be ready to win it again. Roll on 2011. Kidney’s calm and stoic acceptance of the victory was also a classy moment. Name-checking Eddie O’Sullivan and Niall O’Donovan, the totems of the previous management regime, was a decent thing to do. O’Sullivan did bring many of that team to international rugby and won a couple of Triple Crowns in doing so. We are told that the two men don’t like each other, but Deccy still remembered Eddie in his first post-match interview. This guy should be leading the country.

In a nutshell, there is one reason why we won the Grand Slam: control. Declan Kidney is always in control. His team play rugby that way. The thin line between confidence and arrogance is rarely threatened in a Kidney team. Witness the reaction to Gatland’s clumsy attempts to draw out the Irish coach. He was ignored, and we did our talking on the field, where it matters.

Forget the missed kick at the end. It was two tries to none, and we played all of the rugby. There has rarely been a game that finished so tightly on the scoreboard, despite the fact that one team was clearly superior to the other. Wales, the defending Grand Slam champions, failed to cross our line in their own stadium.

That was the answer to Warren Gatland. And despite Gatland’s impressive rugby coaching CV, it is not hard to see why the IRFU dispensed with his services a bit earlier than most expected. Warren, I suspect, still doesn’t “get” the Irish.

All of Declan Kidney’s biggest days have come in Cardiff. In the same stadium. It’s uncanny. What a pity the next World Cup final isn’t on there. So what is next for the quiet genius from Cork? We have now ticked the Grand Slam box, the Heineken Cup box, assured our seeded ranking for the next World Cup and are now up to fourth in the world. What can else Kidney do? How can he top this?

The All Blacks is the answer. Ireland have never beaten the All Blacks, and Kidney will be the man to do it. That’s all we’re missing from our CV, and we now get at least one chance a year to do it. That’s next for Deccy. I wouldn’t be surprised if that plan is already in motion. He will be adjusting the team as he goes on. No-one is safe from the Kidney scalpel, because buried underneath his soft veneer lurks a ruthless coach.

Peter Stringer, dropped from Munster by Kidney last year and demoted to Irish third choice by Eddie during the World Cup, epitomises the Irish spirit. Under Kidney, Stringer has bravely fought his way back into the side. It was his crisp pass to O’Gara that allowed Ronan that extra split second to compose and slot the winning drop goal. More than anyone, Peter Stringer typifies the qualities of this Irish team and those of Declan Kidney.

Appearances can be deceptive. Stringer is the heart and soul of that team, first choice or not. Kidney set him the ultimate challenge by dropping him from the Munster side, and yet has facilitated his return to the Irish side. O’Leary may be fractionally ahead of Strings, but the gap is closing. And last Saturday it was Strings who closed out the game. To call his tackle on Mike Phillips crucial doesn’t do it justice. Fitting indeed. Every kid in Ireland will be playing rugby in their back gardens now. And who could blame them? (GAA: get your skates on!)

To catch Emmet's latest column, get 'The Farmers' Journal' every Thursday...