Ponting had said before the game that he was considering using the Super Eights match to give some of his lesser-used players some time at the crease and with the ball in hand but said a desire to maintain a high run-rate had been his aim.

The Australia captain won the toss and fielded, his side bowling the Irish out for just 91 before knocking of the total inside 13 overs.

"We wanted to look after our run-rate in this game if we could. The best way to be in control of that is to bowl first and hopefully bowl teams out cheaply and get the runs quickly," said Ponting.

"That was in the back of my mind in the morning but I hadn't mentioned it to the guys during the week because I didn't want us going into the game taking things a bit lightly -- that was the main reason I bowled this morning," he said.

"We bowled really well with the new ball and used the bounce that was there. We've got what we wanted out of this game, I don't think we really needed anyone to have a glorified net session as such. Our top order batting has been good throughout the tournament.

"I said before that I wanted Hussey and Symonds to get some time in the middle but we didn't really think we would bowl them out for 90. I thought they might have got 150 or something like that and so those guys would have had more time out there. But everything is on track, we are going well."

LITTLE NERVOUS

Ponting said that the Irish may have been overawed by coming up against the world champions.

"I think the Irish boys would have been a little bit nervous about the game today playing against Australia, probably playing against some people who they have sat back and watched on television over the years.

"It can become a bit daunting that situation but when you have got McGrath and Tait bowling at their best on a new wicket with the new ball it is always going to be difficult -- that could have happened to any team today, that we knocked the top order over," he said.

Ponting defended the Irish from the view that their dismal display had devalued the competition.

"They won their way here and did what they had to do to get to this stage and won more games than other teams. Sure India and Pakistan might have put up more of a fight, more of a game today but they had their chance to be here and weren't good enough," he said.