Keith Wood may have never been in the quarter-finals of the World Cup before, but the talismanic leader knows exactly what to do over the next three days if Ireland are to beat France in Sunday's showdown.
"I need to make certain we have the belief to go out and win the game," said the Irish skipper. "We have to have the view we can win. If, for one minute some of the players don't think we are going to win, it becomes quite a struggle.
"Do you want to spend four years after the game saying `If only'?
"There can't be an 'if only' - and that is my job."
Instilling belief in the squad should not be a difficult task for Wood, given Ireland's recent form and their impressive record against the French. Eddie O'Sullivan's side booked a place in the last eight with a one-point victory over Argentina, and turned in an impressive display against Australia only to go down 17-16 in a dramatic finale last weekend.
That left Ireland with a tie against a side they have beaten three times in their last four meetings. But then, this is the quarter-finals and France are renowned for peaking in the late stages of the World Cup, as New Zealand found to their cost four years ago.
The French coach Bernard Laporte said this week that having his squad together for the last two months has allowed them to raise their game to "a different level" to their Six Nations fare.
"France have a history at the World Cup. They perform here every time," said Wood. "We need to be unbelievably accurate with the way we play at the weekend. We need our spirit, we need our guys to do everything for their team-mates, their friends that are on the field with them.
"Nothing takes away from how big this game is, one of the biggest we will have for the next four years. I haven't been in this situation before, in the quarter-finals of the World Cup. I haven't been in the semi-finals either and I won't be here in four years' time.
"There is also a view that the kitchen sink will be thrown at this one. We are not holding anything back."
Not that Wood knows any other way to play the game, as he displayed against the Australians with an irrepressible performance that helped turn the tables and fire Ireland back into the contest. Although Ireland fell narrowly short, both Wood and O'Sullivan believe the squad will emerge stronger from the experience.
"Sometimes you learn more about a team in defeat," said Wood.
While France breezed through their pool without anything more than a half-hour hiccup against Fiji and Japan, Ireland's passage to the quarter-finals was the hardest of any team in the competition. And O'Sullivan is confident Ireland will have an advantage this weekend because of it.
"Being in the Pool of Death has cost me a few hours' sleep in the last few months, but at the same time I knew if we could come through that very difficult pool and out the far side we would have a pretty good gauge of our worth," he said. "I am not sure many other teams in the quarter-finals are as clear in their mind of where they are."