What we have is a really exciting game and we need to develop that. Sure everything's not right but we are on the right road.

I won't say I was surprised when the plug was pulled after last year, but that's because I didn't know what to expect. I've been coaching for many years, but to coach my country, I was on the biggest learning curve of all time, I never knew what was around the next corner. I think I was brought in as an experienced coach to see where the game was at and I was nothing but encouraged. Obviously some things need to change but people forget that this is a new game. You can imagine where rugby and soccer were at at this stage of their existence.

I know what the thinking was in Ireland after it all and truth be told when we came back here the media pushed our guys forward as the aggressors. I don't think that was the case, I think it was a little from both sides but that's not important. No matter what, you need to sit down afterwards, talk about things and move on. We have never talked and if the series is to return I genuinely believe that is the most important thing.

Rules can be tinkered with but too often we are missing the entire point. In my two years as coach I have met three Irish men. Fly in, play, don't talk and then leave. We are kidding ourselves and that comes from both sides. Sport is about competing and winning but there has to be more.

We have had the Olympics here recently, at the minute the World Swimming Championships are on here in Melbourne. All these athletes are extremely competitive but outside of that they enjoy the experience and each others' company. We need to be better hosts. Ireland need to be better hosts. We all need to sit down and have dinner and get on with each other before we compete. Otherwise we will naturally see the animosity that was there in Croke Park the last time we met. Things were on ice ever since the incident with young [Chris] Johnson and they were left that way. We are two smart, intelligent countries that have been around for a long time in the world of sport and things could have been done differently after that.

And if that happens then look what we have in place.

For us to come over and play in front of a capacity crowd in Galway was amazing. Then to come up to Dublin and get 84,000, that's incredible. If there were 100,000 seats there it would have been filled.

People don't realise how difficult it is to do that anywhere in the world yet we've done it and that means there is something with huge potential in place. We've also got to look at the players. I know people say it's professional and amateur but I never picked an All Australian team, we had a lot of young guys, and I did that for a number of reasons. One was to give these kids a chance to see the world and represent their country while playing something very close to the sport they love. It was the same for Ireland and I don't think it's fair to cancel the series and take that chance away.

Ireland have won games easily and so have Australia but there has to be common sense and a realisation that it happens that way in every sport. You can't be coming out and celebrating after you win and then thinking the sport should be cancelled when you lose. There are enough reasons to keep it going and things should be better between Ireland and Australia. I think both countries have the people in place that can get things back on track and get the game moving in the right direction again. We know what we want but we are not quite there.

Soon we can be and both sides should sit down and negotiate what International Rules should be for the next 10 and 20 years. That's a real good way to look at it and a way to move forward.

Kevin Sheedy is coach of the Essendon Bombers and took charge of the Australian International Rules team for the past two years In conversation with Ewan MacKenna