Andy Farrell believes in-form World Cup hopefuls Ireland were previously plagued by an “inferiority complex”.

Test rugby’s top-ranked nation will bid to make history against New Zealand in Paris on Saturday evening by becoming the first Irish team to progress to the semi-finals of the competition.

Head coach Farrell was assistant to Joe Schmidt when Ireland went into the 2019 tournament as the sport’s number one country only to suffer a humiliating last-eight stuffing at the hands of the formidable All Blacks.

The Englishman, who has masterminded 17 successive wins, feels Ireland are becoming better at handling the pressure of having a target on their back and must continue to do so in order to emulate the sustained success of the Kiwis.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Irish Rugby (@irishrugby)

“I suppose an inferiority complex is what’s happened in the past as far as getting to world number one and thinking that we’re going to fall off a cliff because this shouldn’t be happening to Ireland,” said Farrell.

“But what we’ve learnt to do is throw ourselves into big challenges and try to meet them head on and embrace that.

“We don’t want to be second best, we want to be first best. But we also realise what comes with that, that people are always chasing you hard down.

“You’ve seen with the All Blacks over the last 20 years – that’s why they’re so respected because it’s very hard to stay at the top.

“The guys that are the favourites are the ones I’ve always looked at throughout my career and envied really because of how hard it is to do that.

“That’s the place we want to be because if you’re serious about getting better and being the team that you want to be, that’s the world that you’ve got to live in.”

While New Zealand are three-time world champions, Ireland have repeatedly fallen at the quarter-final hurdle.

The Six Nations champions were full of optimism going into the same stage four years ago before crashing out 46-14 to the All Blacks in Tokyo.

Farrell has committed time and effort to improving the mental resilience of his players and says they must remember Ireland are a “bloody good team” if they suffer performance anxiety this weekend at Stade de France.

“It’s another big game in front of us,” said the 48-year-old, who led his side to a historic tour success in New Zealand last summer.

“At this stage, it’s all about preparation and recovery and making sure there’s an ownership of the plan that you’re going to try and apply on the opposition at the weekend.

“We immerse ourselves with that and that’s the only way it should be. Of course things start to creep in, but we’ve tools and experience to combat all that.

“The main part is to remember that we’re a bloody good team that play together and, when we do that, you’re not on your own, so you can get away from those type of thoughts.”

Keith Earls insists in-form Ireland have eradicated habits instilled by Joe Schmidt ahead of a reunion with their former head coach in Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand.

Schmidt led the Irish into the previous two World Cups, both of which ended with disappointing last-eight exits, before joining the All Blacks’ coaching team last summer.

The 58-year-old’s largely positive six-year tenure culminated in a 46-14 hammering at the hands of the Kiwis at the 2019 tournament in Japan before he was succeeded by his assistant Andy Farrell.

Schmidt is now plotting the downfall of his former employers after switching sides, with Ireland seeking to make history in Paris by stretching their winning run to 18 matches to reach a maiden semi-final.

New Zealand boss Ian Foster publicly outlined plans to tap into Schmidt’s extensive knowledge of the opposition, but Munster wing Earls dismissed the merits of doing so.

“I don’t think Joe would know anything about this squad,” said the 36-year-old. “We’re a completely different squad.

“He probably knows things about individuals but, again, we’ve all changed our habits under this coaching staff and we genuinely don’t use any of the habits that Joe taught us.

“Look, he might have a thing on a couple of individuals, but we’re certainly not the same team that played under Joe.”

Schmidt was due to join the set-up of his native New Zealand following last summer’s three-match home series against Ireland, but he was rushed in early after Covid-19 sidelined Foster and some of his staff.

The All Blacks won the first Test but lost the next two as Ireland launched their current winning streak with a historic tour triumph.

Veteran Earls believes that landmark achievement gave Ireland greater belief, which was enhanced further by this year’s Six Nations Grand Slam success.

Yet he concedes they would be foolish to underestimate the three-time world champions, who have scored 240 points and 36 tries across thrashings of Namibia, Italy and Uruguay following an opening-night defeat to hosts France.

“This tournament is a different animal,” said Earls.

“I know we have beaten New Zealand a few times in the last few years, but they have obviously taught us one or two lessons in between that and beaten us by more than one score.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Irish Rugby (@irishrugby)

“We’re under no illusion as to what is coming at the weekend.

“People speak about New Zealand the last year or two that they’ve dipped in performances, but what we’ve seen in this World Cup, they’re starting to come back with a roar.

“After the French game it’s obviously ignited some spark in them. They’re starting to hit their stride again.

“We’re certainly not undermining New Zealand, you would be very silly to do that.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup)

“I have no doubt they will be highly emotional and looking for revenge and bring everything they have.”

Earls hopes to be available to add to his 101 caps after sitting out last weekend’s victory over Scotland due to a hamstring niggle.

He also missed Ireland’s landmark first win over the All Blacks in 2016 in Chicago through suspension, a result, masterminded by Schmidt, which he credits for helping to improve Ireland’s self-image.

“As Irish people, we can lack a lot of confidence and be a small bit too humble at times,” he said.

“We’ve done an awful lot of work on ourselves to believe that we can play a certain brand of rugby that can make us compete with anyone in the world.”

Andy Farrell insists a World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand is “as tough as it gets” after “little old Ireland” topped Pool B thanks to a six-try demolition of Scotland.

The rampant Six Nations champions emphatically underlined their status as Test rugby’s top-ranked side by banishing any lingering doubts of an early exit with a crushing 36-14 success which eliminated the Scots.

Ireland will return to Paris next Saturday for a showdown with the All Blacks seeking to make history by progressing beyond the last eight of the tournament for the first time.

Head coach Farrell led his side to a landmark series success in New Zealand last summer and is braced for another major test following statement Stade de France victories over reigning champions South Africa and Scotland.

“New Zealand are a fantastic side, and for little old Ireland to be talked about in the same bracket as the All Blacks shows how far we’ve come as a rugby-playing nation,” he said.

“The respect we’ve got for New Zealand is through the roof.

“The form they’ve got at this moment in time is top drawer and I’m sure that they will be relishing this fixture to try and put a few things right. It’s tough, it’s as tough as it gets.

“Two weeks ago (against South Africa), it was a tough game and this one was knock-out type rugby so it gets a whole lot tougher next week against the All Blacks and hopefully they will need to be at their best to beat us as well.”

James Lowe’s early try settled any Irish nerves in Saint-Denis before Hugo Keenan crossed either side of a score from the recalled Iain Henderson to quickly take the game away from shell-shocked Scotland.

Dan Sheehan and Garry Ringrose added to the opposition’s embarrassment, prior to consolation tries from Scottish pair Ewan Ashman and Ali Price.

Farrell must wait to discover the true cost of a feisty affair in the French capital, with wings Mack Hansen and Lowe and replacement lock James Ryan each sustaining injuries.

“Obviously, we’ll see how they pull up in the morning but Mack went off with a HIA (head injury assessment) and when he came back on he felt his calf straight away, so we got him off,” said Farrell.

“James Ryan has a bit of a knock on his wrist that we have to assess more, so we’ll see how he is now.

“James Lowe got a bang in the eye, his eye shut and he couldn’t really see much. His vision was coming back towards the end of the game, which is good.

“Then, a few more bangs and bruises that we’ll need to assess tomorrow.”

Ireland once again performed a celebratory lap of honour in front of tens of thousands of jubilant Irish supporters.

Farrell savoured another special occasion, while wishing he could simultaneously enjoy the “bonkers” scenes back home.

“My wife and me two girls were there, that’s why I was singing to them,” he said.

“I think it’s amazing, the songs at the end of the game, I love all that.

“We got a bit of stick, didn’t we, for walking around against South Africa, but we walk round and thank the fans after every game.

“It’s the least we can do when they turn up in their thousands like they’ve done.

“We play for them, we talk about it every week. I talked about it before the game today in the dressing room, it means more than what people think, 100 per cent.

“I know that France is buzzing with Irish people, but I believe it’s bonkers back home. We’re torn a bit, enjoying it with the fans back home or stay here? We’ll stay here for now!”

Gregor Townsend admitted Ireland were simply too good for his Scotland team to handle as their World Cup dream ended with a chastening 36-14 defeat by the world’s top-ranked side in Paris on Saturday night.

After losing their opening match to South Africa, the Scots had to win with a bonus point or by denying the Irish a losing bonus in order to qualify for the quarter-finals.

Their hopes were dented by the concession of a try after just over a minute and the game was effectively over by half-time as the Irish ran in another three scores before the break to lead 26-0.

Scotland rallied slightly to win the second half 14-10, but there was a sense of dejection at full-time as they departed the tournament at the first hurdle at a time when they are ranked fifth in the world.

“It’s a very disappointing result, we have gone out of the World Cup against the highest-ranked side in the world, and they were well ahead at half-time,” rued head coach Townsend.

“We played the number two side in the world in the opening game and it was a close game.

“In isolation, this is a really disappointing defeat against a very good side and one we believed we had the ability to beat.

“They were the better team tonight, they were excellent and it’s probably the best I have seen them play.

“It’s probably where we and they are in terms of the rankings and why now they are the favourites for the World Cup.”

Townsend did not feel James Lowe’s early try set the tone as Scotland went on to enjoy a spell of pressure thereafter, albeit without reward, before Ireland turned the screw in the lead-up to half-time.

“The early try wasn’t a factor as we managed in that first 20 minutes to put some good rugby together, but we didn’t put any points on the board,” said Townsend.

“The tries before half-time we could have defended better, but I have to give credit to Ireland as they executed very well and the game went away from us.

“In the second half, I was really proud of the effort and the intent to not allow the score to become a bigger one. We came back and showed who we were in attack.

“The game had gotten away from us, so we focused on winning back respect. To get two tries against such a top team, we’ll take a little bit out of that.

“We’re very disappointed with the result and the first-half performance, but credit to Ireland, who were very, very good.”

While the fact they were placed in a group alongside the world’s top-ranked side and the defending world champions counts as some mitigation for Scotland’s early exit, Townsend acknowledged his team were not at their best over the course of the tournament.

“We certainly have to do better, and the responsibility is mine,” he said. “We believed we could get out of this pool, and we still believed that after losing to South Africa with the response the players showed in training and the games they played (against Tonga and Romania), gave us an opportunity tonight, which we didn’t take.

“Ireland are a better team than us on tonight’s performance, and they’ve won 17 games in a row so they’ve clearly been the better team over the last couple of years. Now, if we can get on the journey they have been on the last few years then great – but it is easy saying that, it is another thing doing it.

“You become a better team through defeats as well as victories, and we’ve got to make sure that this defeat makes us a better team for the Six Nations coming up and the next World Cup, although at this point the Six Nations is much more relevant.”

Ireland centre Robbie Henshaw is expected to be unavailable until at least the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup due to a hamstring injury.

The Leinster centre sustained the issue in training this week, ruling him out of Saturday evening’s pivotal Pool B clash with Scotland in Paris.

Ireland will monitor Henshaw’s fitness for the time being but head coach Andy Farrell is weighing up his options and could eventually make a change to his 33-man squad.

“He pulled up with a hamstring unfortunately at the end of the session on Tuesday and the diagnosis with hamstrings, they want to see how things settle down,” said Farrell.

“It probably takes about five days for that type of thing to happen but it looks like it could be a minimum of a couple of weeks at this stage.”

Asked if Henshaw will remain in France, Farrell replied: “Obviously, we’ll assess that as we go.

“Certainly he’ll be around rehabbing and we’ll see how the weekend goes with other injuries, etc, and assess how Robbie’s going along the way also.”

Ulster’s Stuart McCloskey has taken Henshaw’s place among the replacements for this weekend’s Stade de France showdown, while hooker Dan Sheehan and lock Iain Henderson have been selected ahead of benched pair Ronan Kelleher and James Ryan.

Vice-captain Ryan suffered a wrist injury in Ireland’s 13-8 success over South Africa a fortnight ago.

Farrell insists the Leinster second row is fully fit and has trained well, including coming close to flattening captain Johnny Sexton on more than one occasion.

“He’s fit,” Farrell said of Ryan.

“He had a bit of a niggle on a wrist but that’s fine and he trained the house down, actually trained the best I’ve seen him train in a good amount of years yesterday.

“He actually nearly took Johnny’s head off three or four times so he’s fit and raring to go, there’s no doubt.”

Ireland will progress to the knockout stages with a win or draw, while a defeat will leave them reliant on Scotland’s margin of victory and bonus points gained.

Farrell suggested the recalled Henderson, who came off the bench in the victories over Romania, Tonga and the Springboks, could be handy in calculating the permutations.

“We want to win,” said Farrell. “It’s a massive game. It’s so important to us and certainly obviously to them.

“But to the travelling fans and the people back home it’s a huge game.

“We have Iain Henderson in our group who is good at maths, so we’re across everything as far as that’s concerned.

“But the easiest way is to make sure that we perform well and deserve to win the game outright.”

Skipper Sexton will start for the fourth successive match following his return from injury and suspension at the beginning of the tournament, while flanker Peter O’Mahony will win his 100th Ireland cap.

“It is a knockout game,” said 38-year-old fly-half Sexton.

“We’ve viewed it as a last 16, we’ve spoken about it and that’s why it’s important we got our preparation right.

“We need to go out and get our performance right now.”

Ireland centre Robbie Henshaw has emerged as an injury doubt ahead of Saturday’s crucial Rugby World Cup showdown with Scotland in Paris.

The 30-year-old is struggling with a “niggle” and will be assessed ahead of head coach Andy Farrell naming his matchday 23 on Thursday afternoon.

Henshaw suffered a fitness setback at the start of the tournament when he was a late withdrawal from Ireland’s bench for the 82-8 win over Romania.

He subsequently came on as a replacement in the 59-16 success over Tonga and the 13-8 victory against reigning champions South Africa.

Ireland forwards coach Paul O’Connell said: “Everyone came through training, but Robbie has a bit of a niggle and we’re finding out about that today.

“I’m sure there will be some information on that tomorrow.”

Henshaw has been providing back-up for in-form midfield duo Bundee Aki and Garry Ringrose.

Leinster team-mate Jimmy O’Brien, Ulster centre Stuart McCloskey and Munster veteran Keith Earls are among the options to take his place in Farrell’s squad to face the Scots, if he is ruled out.

Ireland prop Finlay Bealham is determined to “make the minutes count” as he prepares for a crucial showdown with Scotland following a frustrating start to his maiden Rugby World Cup.

Australia-born Bealham made his first meaningful contribution of the competition by coming off the bench to help secure a statement 13-8 victory over defending champions South Africa in round three.

He had been left out of the matchday 23 for his country’s opener against Romania and was then forced off by a head knock just 10 minutes into a second-half cameo the following week against Tonga.

Bealham, who showed his quality with some fine performances in this year’s Six Nations Grand Slam triumph, has won most of his 34 Test caps as a replacement and is understudy to first-choice tighthead Tadhg Furlong.

But the 31-year-old is ready and raring to go when called upon as Andy Farrell’s men attempt to avoid a shock early exit at the hands of the Scots.

“From a mindset point of view, when I’m on the bench, I don’t care how many minutes I play,” said Bealham.

“It’s ‘make the minutes count’. I try my best to do that.

“Personally it was a frustrating start to the campaign but some of that stuff was out of my control.

“When I got my chance, I just tried to come on and make a positive impact. It was incredible to get that experience.

“I’m looking forward to the Scotland game.

“Obviously there’s no team been named yet and it’s just about focusing on what I can control, fixing up things from the South Africa game and then bringing my game on top of that.”

Three successive Pool B wins have put the world’s top-ranked nation on the cusp of the quarter-finals.

Yet Ireland’s progression is far from assured going into Saturday evening’s pivotal Paris appointment.

Bealham turns 32 next Monday and will celebrate his birthday either preparing for a last-eight clash with France, New Zealand or Italy, or reflecting on elimination.

The Connacht player is eager to extend the “surreal” experience of playing on the world’s biggest stage and continue representing his late Irish grandmother, whom he thinks about when singing Ireland’s Call.

“I moved over originally when I was 18, 19 years of age having a dream of playing professional rugby and I moved over because the dream seemed a bit harder where I was in Australia,” said Canberra-born Bealham.

“I had that Irish heritage through my mum’s side of the family.

“I was really tight with my nana at the time. She used to ring me every day when I was in Galway and I remember one time I forgot to bring my phone to training and she ended up calling me like 70 times, it was something crazy, you wouldn’t believe it.

“I suppose to represent my nana, who I was always close with growing up, representing all them, would I have thought I’d be here a good few years later at a World Cup? It’s pretty surreal.

“Every time I get to wear the jersey, every time I sing the anthem, I always think of my family and everyone who sacrificed for me to get to where I’m at.”

Andy Farrell believes the rest of the world expects Ireland to lose to South Africa and insists the mouthwatering Paris showdown is not a “do-or-die” fixture.

Test rugby’s top-ranked nation face a stern examination of their World Cup credentials as they prepare to put their 15-match winning run on the line against the formidable reigning champions in Pool B’s headline clash.

The physical Springboks have made a statement of intent by naming an imposing seven-one split of forwards and backs on the bench.

Ireland head coach Farrell talked down the significance of that tactical decision and urged his players to focus on their own performance in their bid to defy the bookmakers and their doubters at Stade de France.

“It doesn’t really bother me at all,” the Englishman said of South Africa’s so-called ‘Bomb Squad’. “It’s just about us.

“We have to be good, we have to play really well to beat the world champions.

“And rightly so because they’re in good form and, barring us and our team, our management and the Irish people all over the world, I think everyone else thinks that they’re the favourites and they’re going to win this game.

“I can see why because of the form that they’ve showed in the last couple of games but we don’t think like that. We’re ready for a tough battle and it will take it’s own course, I’m sure.

“It’s not a must-win. It’s not a do-or-die type of game but it’s pretty important to both teams, let’s put it that way.”

Ireland have the chance to qualify for the quarter-finals with a game to spare following crushing bonus-point victories over Romania and Tonga.

Farrell’s men have won 27 of their last 29 Test matches, including beating the Springboks 19-16 in Dublin last autumn.

Yet one of the two defeats during the remarkable run of form came in Paris – a 30-24 loss to France in last year’s Six Nations.

“Our journey’s had all sorts and it prepares you for games like this,” continued Farrell. “I suppose we’ll learn a bit more after this one as well.

“There will be over 30,000 Irish supporters there in a stadium we know well and we want to get back there and get back to winning ways there.

“It’s a challenge that we’re ready for, looking forward to, and it’s coming soon.”

Scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park replaces Conor Murray in the only change to Ireland’s starting XV, while first-choice hooker Dan Sheehan is in line for his World Cup debut after being named on the bench following a foot injury.

Captain Johnny Sexton wants to reward the travelling fans with another statement win after thousands of green jerseys flooded Bordeaux and Nantes on the previous two weekends.

“I don’t think I’ve played a game here where we’ll have the majority of the support,” said the 38-year-old, who will partner the returning Gibson-Park.

“The support we get for World Cups in particular, it’s incredible.

“Last week in the stadium there was just green everywhere, the week before the same, and I’m sure it will be the same again.

“So it’s hats off to the people that put their hand in their pocket and come over.

“It means a lot to us and we hope we give them something to cheer about.

“We’re going to have to be in top form to get a result.”

Ireland must be adaptable and prepared to grind out an “ugly” win against reigning world champions South Africa, according to defence coach Simon Easterby.

Andy Farrell’s men head to Paris for the standout fixture in Pool B seeking to secure a spot in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals with a fixture to spare.

Ireland have won 27 of their last 29 Tests after beginning the tournament with thumping bonus-point victories over Romania and Tonga and have often entertained during that remarkable run of results.

The world’s top-ranked nation will once again look to deliver their easy-on-the-eye style on Saturday evening at Stade de France.

Yet Easterby accepts that may not be possible for the full 80 minutes against a physical Springboks side sporting an intimidating seven-one split of forwards and backs among their replacements.

“We know that when we play well and we play a certain way that we’re going to be difficult to play against and difficult to beat,” he said.

“We’ll be looking to implement a lot of the stuff that you’ll have seen over the last couple of years in what we do on Saturday as we have tried to do in the Tonga and Romania games.

“We haven’t had to win ugly maybe too many times.

“It would be great if we could throw the ball around and score plenty of tries, but we know that we have to do things in the moment and make sure we’re adaptable and that might mean playing certain ways in certain parts of the game.”

Springboks head coach Jacques Nienaber made a statement of intent on Tuesday afternoon when announcing a stacked bench containing just one back, scrum-half Cobus Reinach.

Easterby admits the bold selection is a talking point, but does not change Ireland’s approach.

“Every team has a particular strategy and it’s up to them to believe that that strategy is the right thing for each game,” he said.

“Obviously, they believe that’s the way they need to set themselves to beat us on Saturday, just like we’ll be playing the way we want to beat South Africa.

“Listen, it’s a talking point. I don’t think it changes anything for us, to be honest.

“What will determine it in the end is hindsight, which will allow everyone to say it was the right or wrong thing to do. It’s their strategy and not something that we can control.”

Every member of Ireland’s 33-man squad has trained this week at their base in Tours.

Hooker Dan Sheehan (foot) and prop Finlay Bealham (head injury assessment) are in contention to feature against the Springboks.

But number eight Jack Conan (foot) may have to wait until the Scotland game on October 7 for his first outing since August 5.

“Everyone trained really well today,” said Easterby. “Probably Jack’s the only one that’s slightly behind in terms of being able to get himself right for this weekend.

“He’s done incredibly well, as have the medics, conditioners to get him up to speed.

“He’s actually probably on track from where we thought he’d be, so he’s done really well, happy with his progress.

“Finlay and Dan both trained really well today, so they’re back in the mix.”

Tadhg Beirne believes he and Ireland are still some way from hitting top form at the Rugby World Cup as they bid to avoid being scalped by Tonga.

The towering Munster forward is “gunning” to retain his starting spot for Saturday’s Pool B clash following a two-try turn in last weekend’s 82-8 thrashing of Romania.

Head coach Andy Farrell may opt to rotate his team in Nantes ahead of a crunch Paris showdown against reigning champions South Africa.

But British and Irish Lion Beirne – one of four players to claim a double in Ireland’s curtain raiser in Bordeaux – is eager to continue as he seeks to hit greater heights.

“Every player here wants to play,” said the 31-year-old.

“It comes around once every four years, you never know if you’re going to be fit for one, you never know if you’re going to be selected for one, and then if you get here all you want to do is put on the Irish jersey and go out and represent the country.

“I’m gunning to play again for sure. I still feel like I’ve a way to go to get to my best. I’m certainly trying to improve all the time.”

Tonga – ranked 15th in the world – are preparing for their opening match in France after the tournament schedule handed them a fixture-free opening weekend.

Beirne, who is normally deployed in Ireland’s second row but lined up at blindside flanker against Romania, is braced for a bruising encounter.

“I think physicality is going to be top of their agenda,” he said.

“They’re going to come and try and have a scalp off us for sure. They’re a serious side when you look at the team on paper. I’ve no doubt that they’re going to have a go at us.

“Physically, we certainly need to continue to step it up. From warm-up (matches) into Romania, we’ve slowly been building it but we’re nowhere near where we feel like we can be.”

Despite temperatures exceeding 20 degrees Celsius, Beirne turned up for media duties in Tours wearing a suit, shirt and tie as punishment for being slightly late to a team meeting.

He joked there may be a “French Revolution” in the Ireland squad due to the strict regime run by camp enforcers James Ryan, Jack Conan and Dave Kilcoyne.

“There’s a bit of a dictatorship going on at the moment,” Beirne explained. “We have three lads that call themselves the sheriffs, they’re in charge of any misdemeanours or any fines that need to be taking place.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Irish Rugby (@irishrugby)

“Unfortunately, I turned up a couple of seconds late for a meeting and they decided to fine me.

“There’s a wheel of fortune back in the camp and they have all different punishments on it, so it could land on whatever.

“The reason it’s a dictatorship is because they’re claiming they’re above the law, so there could be a French Revolution yet.

“The power’s definitely going to their heads, particularly Dave Kilcoyne. He’s enjoying it a bit too much for people’s liking.”

Head coach Andy Farrell expects Ireland to be “a hell of a lot slicker” in their Rugby World Cup opener following some disjointed warm-up displays.

The world’s top-ranked nation are among the pre-tournament favourites and launch their campaign on Saturday afternoon against Pool B minnows Romania in Bordeaux.

In-form Ireland arrived in France on a 13-match winning run but having failed to fully convince during last month’s disjointed victories over Italy, England and Samoa.

Farrell is untroubled by those patchy performances – produced by largely experimental line-ups – and has backed his players to deliver when it really matters.

“It’s certainly not a concern because obviously (they were) three warm-up games with different personnel and everyone is at different stages in the pre-season,” he said.

“It’s all galvanised to one point and this is it: the start of the competition.

“The performance should be one that’s a hell of a lot slicker, let’s put it that way.

“Understanding what it’s all about and getting down to business is where we’re at at this stage. We’re looking forward to getting going.”

Farrell has named a strong starting XV for the curtain raiser, albeit world player of the year Josh van der Flier begins on the bench, while wing Mack Hansen has the weekend off, despite being available.

Fly-half Johnny Sexton is back from a three-match ban to captain Ireland, while rookie lock Joe McCarthy is among the six starting World Cup debutants.

Farrell’s 33-man squad contains a total of 18 players who have never played on the biggest stage.

The Englishman feels there are benefits to that scenario but also suggested some of the newcomers need to avoid distractions better than they did around the recent Samoa game in Bayonne, when Ireland were based in nearby Biarritz.

“It’s an advantage because of the youthfulness and the quality of those players is top drawer,” he said.

“But they also need to understand what it is that they’re coming into.

“The reason we went there (to Biarritz) is that there’s a lot of distraction that goes on, certainly when you’re in a hotel that’s on the beach.

“Some people handled that brilliantly, some people didn’t. Learning from those experiences is pretty important because you don’t get second chances after this in World Cups.

“You have to wait four more years – if you’re lucky enough.”

Unfancied Romania are ranked 19th in the world. Farrell is braced for a physical assignment amid temperatures forecast to reach around 35 degrees Celsius.

“For anyone that’s watched them, it’s pretty clear and obvious that they’re a determined group,” said Farrell.

“I think by their own recollection they would say that their point of difference is their power, their aggression, their set-piece.

“They love mauling, they love the scrummaging part of the game. They’re very direct in the forwards and pretty nippy and dangerous within the backs as well.

“We’ve scouted them well but, at the same time, more of the concentration this week has been on ourselves.”

Andy Farrell believes Ireland must remain calm and “roll with the punches” to realise their potential at the Rugby World Cup.

Former dual code international Farrell is preparing for his first global tournament as head coach having previously been involved as a player and an assistant coach.

Six Nations champions Ireland have topped the world rankings for more than a year and arrived in France on Thursday among the favourites to go all the way.

Englishman Farrell has welcomed setbacks during his tenure to challenge his players and prevent them becoming fazed on the biggest stage.

“The key learnings are the scenarios that we’ve tried to put ourselves through in the last few years,” the 48-year-old said of his previous World Cup experiences in both rugby union and rugby league.

“You hear me say constantly ‘best laid plans and all that’, it’s 100 per cent that at a World Cup.

“The ones that get flustered with all that because they’re not ready for all different types of permutations are the ones that lose the plot.

“The key to progressing in a competition like this is staying calm, keeping your feet under you and making sure that you just roll with the punches and be the best version of yourself no matter what happens and have no-excuse mentality.

“We’ve tried to put ourselves in those type of positions before and we know what’s coming through.”

Ireland have been placed in the tougher half of the draw and begin their campaign next Saturday against Romania in Bordeaux.

Farrell’s men then face Tonga, reigning champions South Africa and Scotland in Pool B, with hosts France or New Zealand likely opponents should they progress to the quarter-finals.

Asked if this is the most competitive and open World Cup, Farrell said: “I think everyone loves to say that anyway.

“Everyone wants it to be like that because there’s so many good teams that can beat each other on any given day.

“The pressures of the competition within itself, the history of all that shows that it is going to be a wide-open competition. So one step at a time. Let’s see if we can build some momentum.”

Farrell assisted Joe Schmidt at the 2019 World Cup before stepping up to become Ireland boss following a quarter-final exit against the All Blacks.

The opening year of his reign, amid the coronavirus pandemic, brought mixed results but his side have won 25 of 27 Tests dating back to round three of the 2021 Six Nations.

“I’m not surprised,” Farrell said of the progress. “If you’re talking four years ago then we probably didn’t know the total plan as in what we’ve been through and what we’re going through.

“The process has always been for the here and now, and the medium term, and the long term.

“A lot tend to go from cycle to cycle and chop a few and carry on.

“I think the right way, for me anyway, is to grow and develop competition as we go and then when we get to something like this (World Cup) watch and learn and let’s pick accordingly on what’s right on the team.”

Ireland head coach Andy Farrell insists there is “no point turning up” to the Rugby World Cup in France without ambitions of claiming the ultimate prize.

Farrell has already helped his side scale new heights, having masterminded last summer’s unprecedented tour success in New Zealand.

Ireland rose to the top of the world rankings on the back of that historic triumph and have remained there ever since thanks in part to an autumn win over world champions South Africa and a Six Nations grand slam.

Yet they have never progressed beyond the quarter-final stage of the sport’s premier competition and, despite prolonged impressive form and an eye-catching brand of rugby, face a tough task to snap that statistic.

Ireland must negotiate arguably the tournament’s trickiest group – containing the Springboks and Scotland – and will then likely need to defeat either hosts France or the All Blacks in Paris in order to secure a maiden last-four berth.

Farrell regularly champions a no-excuses mentality and has urged his players to have unwavering belief as they bid to lift the Webb Ellis Cup at Stade de France on October 28.

Asked if Ireland are targeting the trophy, he replied: “Why wouldn’t we?

“There’s an attitude within the group that we chase every day to make sure we’re better as a team, better as individuals.

“But what we’ve done in the past adds to a little bit of belief, how we are pushing to get better.

“We’ll be judged in the coming weeks but the confidence that we hope to have going into a World Cup has to be rock solid.

“There’s no point turning up for a World Cup if we don’t believe we can win it.”

Ireland have beaten each of their major rivals since Farrell succeeded Joe Schmidt after the 2019 World Cup in Japan.

They launch their campaign against rank outsiders Romania in Bordeaux on September 9 before taking on Tonga in Nantes a week later.

Paris showdowns with South Africa and Scotland will then provide far sterner tests as Pool B reaches its climax.

Ireland travel to the tournament on a 13-match winning streak, with away defeats to New Zealand and France the only blemishes during a remarkable run of 25 victories from 27 Tests stretching back to February 2021.

Farrell, who was assistant to Schmidt between 2016 and 2019, is striving for perfection and has an unrelenting desire for improvement.

“We have to keep evolving as a team,” said the 48-year-old Englishman. “I’m not saying we’re tinkering with things all the time but we have to keep evolving.

“And I know that this is a broken record but it’s the truth: no part of our game is anywhere near good enough.

“It’s not and nor will it be really, ever. We’re all striving for perfection, we’re all striving to reach our potential.

“It’s being able to roll with the punches and be at your best with whatever a Test match throws at you. Every single area of our game isn’t where it could be, isn’t where it needs to be.”

Conor Murray acknowledges Ireland’s record-breaking winning run and impressive achievements under Andy Farrell will count for very little at the Rugby World Cup.

Ireland travel to France as Six Nations Grand Slam champions and having topped the world rankings for more than a year on the back of their historic tour triumph in New Zealand.

Farrell’s men made it 13 consecutive victories with Saturday evening’s 17-13 success over Samoa in Bayonne – bettering the 12-game winning streak enjoyed under Joe Schmidt across 2017 and 2018.

Defeat in the first Test against the All Blacks in July 2022 was Ireland’s last loss and just one of two suffered in their previous 27 outings.

Scrum-half Murray is preparing for his fourth World Cup and knows the tournament is a “different animal”.

“We’re in a pretty good place, given where we have been over the last two years and what we have achieved,” he said.

“We never get carried away with ourselves. We know going into every game that we have to respect the opposition.

“It (form) going into a World Cup doesn’t count for much. You have to bring your best rugby when you get to the tournament, when the competition kicks off for real.

“But we know how good the team can be. We also know how hard we have to work to get to that level and be there every week.

“The summer series was good and people got hit outs and we feel match fit now, but it’s a different animal by the time the World Cup comes around.

“We know where we can go as a group, the confidence is really high.”

Murray claimed a crucial try as Ireland stuttered past Samoa on a soggy evening in south-west France, with the vast majority of a vocal sold-out crowd supporting their opponents.

The 34-year-old believes the experience will be beneficial moving forward, with hosts France a potential quarter-final opponent, if Ireland successfully negotiate a group containing reigning world champions South Africa, Scotland, Tonga and Romania.

“Along that road we’re going to have games when things don’t go perfectly and we have to find a way,” he said.

“The World Cup could be like that and probably will be like that, it won’t go perfectly.

“There’s going to be nights like this (Samoa), the atmosphere was really hostile, in a good way, but we’re going to have to deal with that kind of thing as well.

“We know how much pressure there’s going to be, how the atmospheres are going to be.”

Ireland received a timely reminder of the dangers of South Africa after their Pool B rivals emphatically dispatched New Zealand 35-7 on Friday evening.

Murray previously worked with Springboks head coach Jacques Nienaber and his assistant Felix Jones at Munster.

“We know what they’re like,” he said of South Africa.

“You could say New Zealand were poor but I thought South Africa put them under so much pressure it made them make mistakes.

“A lot of us have been coached by Jacques and Felix and we know what’s coming. Well, we think we know what’s coming, Jacques is always going to pull something out of nothing and something you didn’t expect.

“We’ve been watching South Africa and everyone else for a long time. I’m sure they will feel really good about where they’re at because that was a really good New Zealand side and they made them look not so good.”

Andy Farrell is anxiously awaiting injury news on Cian Healy ahead of naming his World Cup squad after the veteran prop hobbled off during Ireland’s underwhelming 17-13 success over Samoa.

Loosehead Healy had to be helped from the field by medics in rain-soaked Bayonne, having suffered a calf issue which left him in obvious distress.

Head coach Farrell is poised to announce his final 33-man selection for the upcoming tournament in France on Sunday afternoon in Dublin.

Second-half tries from Conor Murray and Rob Herring saw Ireland scrape a record 13th straight win after Samoa threatened an upset at Stade Jean Dauge by battling back to lead following Jimmy O’Brien’s maiden Test score.

“Well, you saw what I saw – he pulled up sharpish, didn’t he, and then struggled to walk off,” Farrell said of Healy.

“It’s his calf so there’s something going on there but rather than guess we have to take a picture and see how it goes.”

Asked if he is hopeful Healy will be available to go to the World Cup, Farrell added: “I don’t know, I wouldn’t know.

“We’ll get him back to Dublin and get him scanned and we’ll know soon enough.”

Healy departed just 21 minutes into his 125th Test outing to add to Ireland’s front-row concerns.

Fellow loosehead Dave Kilcoyne and hookers Dan Sheehan and Ronan Kelleher are already undergoing treatment for ongoing injury issues, although the trio are expected to be available in the coming weeks.

Keith Earls pulled out ahead of the game due to a niggle, while his replacement Jacob Stockdale felt a hamstring problem.

Opening try-scorer O’Brien (clavicle) and centre Robbie Henshaw (shin and ankle) were also feeling the effects of a physical encounter in south-west France.

Farrell, who was generally upbeat on those issues, praised his players for not panicking as they avoided an upset to maintain momentum.

“Delighted to get the win,” he said. “It was a proper Test match, wasn’t it? I said during the week that it would be good if it rained to find out about ourselves.

“It was difficult conditions and things weren’t always going to go your way, especially against a good side like that. They’re going to shock a few teams.

“In the end, I was pleased with our mentality – as in no panic, finding a way.

“Test matches are tough to win in conditions like that and we managed to find a way again. I’m pleased really.”

Duncan Paia’aua’s fine breakaway try and eight points from the boot of Lima Sopoaga had Samoa in front until 17 minutes from time.