O'Connell and a number of his teammates were making their first appearance since the World Cup in New Zealand and as a result, the 32-year-old lock was lining up with a number of unfamiliar faces.
And O'Connell was quick to stress the importance of smooth integration.
"I enjoyed the game against Aironi," he said. "Our scrum was excellent against Aironi.
"On nights like that a strong scrum is of massive importance.
"All things considered I think it was a good performance. We really need to start building relationships with each other again, and getting used to playing with each other.]
"I've rarely if ever played with Peter (O'Mahony), obviously never played with BJ (Botha). That was Will Chambers' first game with the senior side.
"And there are a lot of combinations there that are new.
"So we really need to get to know each other quickly. To get all the guys off the bench and finish the game in their half pummelling them was good for us."
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