Ireland back-rower Caelan Doris actively avoids the media hype surrounding him and feels his own high standards are sufficient pressure going into his first World Cup.
Doris is tipped to shine on the biggest stage in France, having been one of his country’s leading performers of the Andy Farrell era.
The 25-year-old has ranked highly on a series of recent lists of rugby’s top players, while Ireland great Brian O’Driscoll is among his many admirers.
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Doris believes he has room for significant further development and referenced comments from former Ireland number eight Jamie Heaslip as he bids to remain grounded.
“I remember hearing Heaslip saying something like ‘If you get inflated, you get deflated’,” said Doris, who made his Test debut in the first match of Farrell’s reign in the 2020 Six Nations.
“Probably my first year or two, I didn’t seek stuff out but I did see more than I do now. I try not to look at anything.
“I try not to have anything like that in my head or any other people’s expectations, I think my own are enough.
“There’s still plenty of room for improvement but I’m moving in the right direction.”
Doris has been a key cog in Ireland’s rise to the top of the Test rankings with a string of man-of-the-match displays.
He has now lined up in all three positions across the back row following his two-try outing at openside flanker in last month’s warm-up win over Italy.
Ireland were far below their free-flowing best in dispatching the Azzurri, England and Samoa in August.
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Yet Doris insists the Six Nations champions are brimming with confidence ahead of Saturday’s World Cup opener against Romania in Bordeaux.
“There’s massive belief in the group going into the first game,” he said.
“Pre-season can be a bit of a funny time.
“It’s not an excuse but you’re not always primed for the games as you might be other ones: different combinations, playing in slightly different positions, things like that.
“We’re very aware that we haven’t played our best stuff. I definitely think we can put in better performances going forward.”
While Doris’ career has been on an upward trajectory, he has suffered frustration at club level with Leinster following successive European Champions Cup final losses to La Rochelle.
He has proven himself the man for the big occasion with standout displays in Ireland’s statement wins across the past two years and is determined to do so again in the coming weeks.
“I love playing in these bigger games,” he said. “I feel, particularly with Leinster when it comes to finals, I haven’t played my best.
“I’m excited by the challenge of trying to deliver on the biggest stage and put out some of my best performances. Definitely looking forward to getting stuck in.”
Australia 'fell off a cliff' in biggest-ever Test defeat
Australia suffered their biggest-ever Test defeat on Saturday, as Argentina came from behind to win 67-27 in the Rugby Championship.
And Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt said his team simply "fell off a cliff" after taking a 17-point lead.
Having snapped an eight-game winless run in the Rugby Championship with their last-gasp victory over Argentina last week, Australia were looking to keep the momentum going.
And they looked well set to do just that as tries from Carlo Tizzano and Andrew Kellaway propelled them into a 20-3 lead.
But Mateo Carreras and Julian Montoya, who was playing for Argentina for the 100th time, dragged Argentina back into it and paved the way for Australia's capitulation after the break.
Juan Martin Gonzalez, Joaquin Oviedo, Juan Cruz Mallia and Lucio Cinti all crossed for the Pumas in the second half, with Santiago Carreras' conversion condemning Australia to their record defeat.
"To lead a Test match 20-3 and get run down in the manner which we did is really disappointing," said Schmidt.
"We cannot let a game get away from us like it did and fall off a cliff.
"We lost connection in our defensive line. We were forever chasing them.
"We didn't put enough pressure on at the breakdown, so they were operating off a lightning-quick ball, and it's just too difficult to keep chasing a team on a hot day when they’ve got the ball and going forward."
Australia's previous record Test defeat had come against South Africa in 1997.
Matters do not get any easier for the Wallabies, who now face two matches against Schmidt's native New Zealand as they aim to avoid finishing bottom of the pile.
Second-place Argentina, meanwhile, will tussle it out with Rugby Championship leaders South Africa.
Kolisi 'had to prove himself' in landmark South Africa triumph
South Africa captain Siya Kolisi said he had to prove himself after being given the chance to lead the Springboks out in their Rugby Championship win over New Zealand.
Kolisi's early try after the break sparked the hosts' revival after they went in at half-time 9-3 down before roaring to an 18-12 victory in Cape Town.
It was the fourth successive win by the Springboks over the All Blacks, as they maintained their perfect record in this year's Rugby Championship.
Kolisi described the encounter as South Africa's most important game since they won the World Cup final against the same opponents in Paris last year.
"The coach gave me the chance when I said I was okay so I couldn’t go half-hearted. Nobody is going to celebrate you if you don’t go flat out," said Kolisi.
"We didn’t start the way we wanted to and the coach was quite honest with us [at half-time]. At the start of the second half we did what we wanted.
"This game was really big for us."
The triumph marked the first time since 1949 that South Africa have won four straight Tests against New Zealand.
However, head coach Rassie Erasmus was muted despite achieving the most successful streak against South Africa's arch-rivals in the professional era.
"It was nice, but they have had big scores against us and six times in a row they have beaten us," he said.
"It's nothing to brag about because they have done worse to us. But it was special."
South Africa 18-12 New Zealand: Springboks close in on Rugby Championship glory
South Africa continued their dominance in this year's Rugby Championship as they clinched an 18-12 victory over New Zealand in Cape Town on Saturday.
Having trailed by six points heading into the break, the hosts rallied to record a fourth consecutive win over the All Blacks and lift the Freedom Cup for the first time in 15 years.
New Zealand started brightly, with their dominance rewarded by the boot of Damian McKenzie after Jasper Wiese had been sent to the sin bin.
McKenzie converted his second penalty just before the half-hour mark as the Springboks saw some uncharacteristic errors punished.
Handre Pollard's penalty failed to change the sway of momentum, with McKenzie's third conversion of the half giving the All Blacks the advantage at the break.
But an immediate response transpired after the interval as Siya Kolisi burst over the tryline, with Pollard's conversion handing the Springboks the lead for the first time.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu extended South Africa's advantage, but McKenzie's fourth and final penalty of the encounter closed the gap once again.
However, the hosts sealed the win when Malcolm Marx powered over for a try six minutes from time to see the Springboks close in on the title.
Data Debrief: Cape Town comforts
This is the first time since 1949 that South Africa have won four straight Tests against their great rivals New Zealand.
They have also now won four straight Tests in Cape Town, and that is despite trailing at half-time in three of those four matches.
New Zealand, meanwhile, have lost three of their last four Tests, having only suffered one defeat across their previous nine matches.
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