Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan has warned that Australia will be lurking in the World Cup's so-called 'Group of Death' like a "wounded animal" - and his players must be ready to deal with the backlash.
The Irish squad arrived to a fanfare welcome in Sydney and immediately drove north to Gosford where they will begin preparations for two monumental World Cup clashes.
After the luxury of building their way into the tournament with matches against Romania and Namibia, Ireland must battle it out with physical Argentinians and bruised Australians.
All three are ranked in the world's top seven but only two can qualify and it promises to be a thrilling battle.
The crunch clash could turn out to be the November 1st showdown with Australia in Melbourne, and that makes O'Sullivan nervous.
"Australia are a dangerous team at the moment. They had a season that was below par for them and it was a bit of a disappointment," he said.
"But I think Australia are like a wounded animal. They've got something to prove and that makes them a dangerous team - I'd rather play them when they are in form."
Australia beat the Irish in Perth earlier this year to avenge November's loss in Dublin but have since lost four of their last five Tests.
The second half of the Argentina squad also arrived in town ready for the tournament's opening clash against the Wallabies on October 10th.
The South Americans reached the quarter-finals in 1999 and in Gonzalo Quesada boasted the tournament's leading points scorer.
"It's the group of death - there's no about it, it's the toughest group in the tournament and the key is to get out of that group if you want to do anything," said O'Sullivan.