This time 12 months ago we were all giddy with excitement about the Lions tour to New Zealand, an event that promised to be the highlight of the globe's sporting year, if we were to believe everything we were told.

But of course we know now that, on the field at least, it was a huge let-down and as a world event, the Ashes series wiped its eye as the summer wore on, which is why we don't believe in hype and build-up and expectation anymore. All of which makes this Ireland tour to New Zealand and Australia so refreshing.

It's been so far hidden from the public eye in recent weeks that even the participants must have been wondering if it was actually going to happen at all. There's hardly been a rugby column inch to spare over the past month what with Munster hogging them all, and with the soccer World Cup getting an unprecedented build-up despite Ireland's absence from the fray, and the GAA season getting into full substitute controversy mode once again, there's only one thing that can save this tour from being a mere footnote in the Irish sporting summer. That's a test victory. It's as easy as that.

But while it may take a victory to grab the headlines and shove the others down the page a little, winning is far from the be-all and end-all on this three-test tour. Right now we're at an interesting little juncture in the rugby calendar where every team has at least one eye on the World Cup and although Eddie O'Sullivan stated this week that the tournament is at the back of his mind at present, it can't be too long until it floats to the front. So while other countries have different goals this summer, Ireland's primary aims are pretty simple; to continue the development of their ballin-hand game, and to sort out playing options in a couple of key areas.

First, to Ireland's way of playing the game. O'Sullivan received heavy criticism from these quarters back in November, and at times during the Six Nations, for the predictability of Ireland's play during those respective periods and while steps have obviously been taken to hold onto the ball a little bit more over the past six months, the plan now must surely be to find something constructive to do with the pig's bladder once they get a hold of it.

They don't need to reinvent the wheel of world rugby in doing so, but it would be helpful if they did manage to take some steps towards carving a gameplan that suits both the off-the-cuff running skills of Brian O'Driscoll, Gordon D'Arcy, Geordan Murphy and Denis Hickie, with the ball carrying ability of the likes of Denis Leamy, David Wallace and Paul O'Connell.

Remember too that Ronan O'Gara has proved in the past couple of months that he's equally adept at standing flat as he is at dropping into the pocket, and that Peter Stringer is in the form of his life. There's more than enough raw material for O'Sullivan to work with.

The tour should also aid him in deciding which building blocks he wants to work with. Barring injuries, a lot of areas are already set in stone . . . the front row, second row, half-backs and centres for example . . . but the make-up of the back row and the back three is still up for discussion, as well as the shadow men in a number of crucial positions. If Ireland are to expand their game and keep the ball alive, Keith Gleeson is the ideal man for the number seven jersey, but that would mean dropping David Wallace or switching him to six, or even eight.

A back row of Wallace, Leamy and Gleeson has a nice look to it but O'Sullivan has always liked an extra lineout option in his back row so Alan Quinlan could be a prominent man over the next couple of weeks. As for the back three, Hickie could come back into the equation on the left wing for Andrew Trimble, giving the team a better balance, but Murphy could switch to that spot with Girvan Dempsey, in superb form this season, reverting to full-back. At this moment in time it would seem that the only World Cup certainty in this area is Shane Horgan, try scorer supreme, on the right wing. In both areas, though, at least O'Sullivan has a number of viable options to fiddle with to his heart's content.

Which isn't exactly true when it comes to backing up Ireland's three key positions, tight-head prop, scrum-half and out-half. Peter Bracken gets a belated chance to make his claim as John Hayes's deputy thanks to an injury to Simon Best, while Isaac Boss, the feisty little scrumhalf from Waikato, needs to prove himself as a viable replacement to Stringer should the Munster player pick up a knock or two over time. As for the out-half slot, this represents a big tour for Jeremy Staunton. The Wasps number 10 has certainly brought his game on a couple of steps this season and it would be fascinating to see how he copes with starting an international game at outhalf, or at the very least, playing a significant portion of one from the bench. It's important that O'Gara has somebody breathing down his neck.

In saying all that, however, arguably the most crucial part of this tour is that O'Sullivan doesn't get result hungry. Sure, it would be a great boost to record Ireland's firstever test victory in New Zealand (or their third in Australia for that matter) but if it's done by going back to basics, kicking the corners and adding a bit of bite and bullock, it will essentially be worthless once the following days' papers have been read.

O'Sullivan has gone on record as saying that he sacrificed moving Ireland's game forward back in 2004 because he felt Ireland could win a Grand Slam by playing the percentage game, and to do that again with just 16 months to go before the World Cup would be highly negligible.

This tour has to be about the bigger picture, about trying options in different positions and attempting to mould a gameplan that best suits the talents of the players at his disposal.

But, or course, a test victory isn't out of the equation even if O'Sullivan does take a few risks and tries a few things out. History has shown that Ireland always perform pretty strongly on their first test on foreign soil, particularly in New Zealand (11-3 defeat in 1973, 24-21 in 1992, 15-6 in 2002), and although the 'under-strength' All Blacks side they'll face is arguably stronger than the outfit that thrashed them back in November at Lansdowne Road, they're still capable of winning that game at the Waikato Stadium.

From there, fatigue is going to be a factor at Eden Park in the second test, and the game against Australia in Perth a week later, but as we've said, this tour should to be about tinkering and tailoring, not pure results.

It's time for a little foresight.

TOUR DATES

FIRST TEST NEW ZEALAND v IRELAND Saturday, Hamilton, 8.30am (Irish) Referee S Dickinson (Aus) Live, Sky Sports 2, 8am SECOND TEST NEW ZEALAND v IRELAND Saturday, 17 June Auckland, 8.30am (Irish) Referee J Kaplan (SA) Live, Sky Sports 2, 8am AUSTRALIA v IRELAND Saturday 24 June Perth, 11am (Irish) Referee K Deaker (NZ) Live, Sky Sports, 10.30am