We're the best - Wood: Keith Wood said yesterday the present Irish squad is the best he has played with. The captain said that while not passing judgement on players with whom he had not played, "in my time with Ireland this is the best team that we have had".

Wood said the most important thing entering World Cup 2003 was attitude.

"We want to win all our games - we have set our targets high and the most important thing is our own self belief," he said.

As for the captaincy, Wood declared the role was often overrated, and not a matter of "all seeing, all knowing and all doing".

"One of my flaws when I was first captain was thinking that you needed every single aspect to be done and that is not the case. . . the biggest key to captaincy is delegation and enough of players have stood up and said if need be they could, would and have captained Ireland.

"Brian O'Driscoll was a top example of that . . . Anthony Foley is another who knows the game intimately and is well able to make the pertinent point at the right time.

"You have to rely on all these and other players, not just in playing and training, but around the hotel - everyone has a role to play. If you are reliant on one person it's a flawed system."

Army shooter foiled

The Irish squad travelled into Sydney yesterday from their seaside retreat at Terrigal, almost two hours drive away, and after a brisk training session at the Headquarters of the Australian army, they moved downtown to lunch with 600 local business and social luminaries.

Victoria Barracks was the unusual setting for a hard 90 minutes' training, and as inquisitive soldiers watched the Irish in action, a measure of the security in force was when an Irish official asked one soldier to put his camera away.

Then the squad went downtown, alongside the famous Opera House, to the plush Four Seasons Hotel, where the IRFU and the Lansdowne Club combined in a sell-out corporate lunch staged to officially welcome the Irish party to Australia.

Krige blitzes Johnson

Springbok captain Corne Krige has described his English counterpart Martin Johnson as "dirty", upping the war of words ahead of the Pool C clash against England in Perth on October 18.

In an interview in the Cape Times newspaper, Krige said: "Martin Johnson is one of the dirtiest captains in world rugby. He is a good player and he gets his team behind him. For that you have to respect him."

Krige was singled out for foul play after last November's test against England at Twickenham, which the home side won 53-3.

Video evidence supplied by a state-of-the-art camera system showed Krige indulging in various acts of skulduggery. "I have never played like I did at Twickenham since then," Krige said. "I said sorry to the people I needed to."

The Springboks play their first match against Uruguay in Perth next Saturday.

England's opening game comes against Georgia a day later. The Georgians will be without captain Ilia Zedginidze and flanker Irakli Gundishvili.

Prop powerhouse

Romania, Ireland's first World Cup opponents, may be unlikely to outmuscle any of the major teams at the World Cup but they do boast a Balkan strongman to anchor their pack.

Prop Marcel Socaciu, 31, is the oldest player in the Romanian squad and also the biggest, weighing in at a hefty 112 kg (248 pounds).

He spent nine years as a weightlifter, winning a bronze medal at the 1997 Balkan Games, before making his international rugby debut in 2000.

"In weightlifting you need to have most of your strength through your back and upper legs," said Socaciu, who plays his club rugby for Rovigo in Italy.

"This is the same for rugby. Already having that strength there has helped me a lot. It has also taught me the dedication needed to play sport at the top level."

Romania are in Pool A with Ireland, defending champions Australia, Argentina and Namibia. They play Ireland in Gosford, north of Sydney, next Saturday.

Nice Tri, Federico

Veteran Argentine hooker Federico Mendez has called for the Pumas to be let into the Tri-Nations cage.

The 31-year-old former Northampton front row is expected to be part of the Argentina side that will attempt to overturn Australia next Friday when the tournament gets underway.

"I think Argentina should be invited into the Tri-Nations just as Italy were let into the old Five Nations competition in Europe. Not only would it help us as a team and a developing nation, it would also benefit the game overall."

French hit by injuries

France forwards Sylvain Marconnet and Olivier Brouzet have been ruled out of the team's opening Pool B match against Fiji, team manager Joe Maso told reporters yesterday.

Prop Marconnet has been troubled by a thigh injury that has failed to respond to treatment and forced him to miss yesterday's training session in Brisbane.

Lock Brouzet did practise but is unavailable for the Fiji match next Saturday because of a shoulder problem. Both players should be fit for France's second match, against Japan, the following week.

Back-up outhalf Gerald Merceron also skipped the training session but there was better news for utility back Xavier Garbajosa, who has been cleared to play against Fiji after a recent scare.

France have slipped down the pecking order of tournament favourites after a poor showing in this year's Six Nations but coach Bernard Laporte is confident they can produce something special.

"I will never stifle inspiration," he said. "The inspiration is like the icing on the cake. Everything else is the foundation, the basic ingredients. Two years ago we played good rugby with confidence in the team and every individual player.This year we haven't got to that level yet, but we come here full of confidence."