Frankie Sheahan will be providing analysis on RTÉ television and you can also shape the agenda by following him on twitter and contributing to the #rterugby tag.
We got his views on a some of the key issues ahead of the start of the Rugby World Cup on Friday.
1) Are you concerned about Ireland's lacklustre form in the warm-up games?
I was very disappointed with the losses to France and England at the Aviva but not so the previous two matches. However, I cannot fault the effort levels of the players. I believe they are trying their best. Some areas of concern for me would be the consistent selection of out of form players and the reluctance and speed of our substitution policy during matches.
2) How big is the gap between the Northern and Southern Hemisphere teams right now?
If you judged the Australia v New Zealand Tri-Nations game against the Ireland v England game, you would have to say that it is substantial. However, I would argue that they are very different styles of play and a wet wintry day in New Zealand for example could see the likes of England rattling one of the big three.
3) How will Ireland fare in the Pool - can they beat Australia?
Ireland can certainly beat Australia and have a better record against them then they have against France in recent years. The underdog tag certainly favours Ireland. We will reach the quarter finals at a minimum.
4) What about Italy? Should we be scared……!?
Scared is probably the wrong word but we certainly need to be at our best. I believe if Ireland approach that game the right way mentally, they could win convincingly. But if they are not at their best, it could be a dog fight. Italy will struggle though because they are having a serious crisis at 10 and we all know how important an outhalf is...!
Pick a few stars from around the competition for us to watch out for.....
Manu Tuilagi from England, Will Genia and Radike Samo from Australia, Sonny Bill Williams from New Zealand and Tommy Bowe, Ireland.
5) And make your call - the competition winner?
I can’t look beyond New Zealand to win here even though Australia are typically peaking at the right time. South Africa are trying to be too clever and I believe will have an early exit. I believe Ireland could make the semis and England are going to cause some upsets.
I can't wait, bring it on!!!
Twitter: #rwcrugby
Former Munster and Ireland hooker Frankie Sheahan is MD of Front Row, a sports consultancy, speaker sourcing and management company. He blogs at FrontRow.ie and tweets at @frankiesheahan. Frankie will contribute regularly to the #rterugby tag on twitter.
