Ireland are in a good place after two Rugby World Cup wins from two, according to centre Darren Cave.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport at the squad's training base in Guildord, Cave said that they coulndn't ask for any more than what they have got at present.
“Things haven’t been perfect. But I think if you had said at the start that we would have scored 13 tries, and won both games with bonus points, we would have been reasonably pleased," said Cave.
“I think everybody has been on the field bar Robbie Henshaw. We’ve got a lot of players who have done well. Training has been good and I think we’re in a good place.”
But Cave was also keen to point out that the Ireland squad feel they have more gears to crank into as the tournament progresses, saying: “I think there is a lot more to come. We always knew the business end of the group would start this week.
"Obviously we know Italy very well, playing against a lot of their players in the Pro12 week to week and numerous tussles in the Six Nations over the last number of years.
“I think there is definitely at least another gear in the group.”
If Italy lose on Sunday, with a defeat to France already chalked down round one, they will be eliminated and that makes them a very dangerous beast for Ireland to face, with Cave highlighting Sergio Parisse, Michele Campagnaro and Leonardo Sarto as the danger men for the Azzurri.
“It’s essentially a knock-out game for Italy, and not too far of it for us. They will obviously have Sergio Parisse back in the mix and even if they don’t they have some massive threats," said Cave.
“Michele Campagnaro has done really well for them the last couple of weeks.
“Leonardo Sarto is another who at club and international level has caused Irish teams a few problems.”
The Ireland support has been superb in the UK since the start of the tournament and Cave revealed what a boost it gives the squad.
Cave said: “The support is phenomenal. I don’t think anybody had played at Wembley before. It’s something I will remember for ever – almost 90,000 and mostly Irish. And I think it shows how nuts we all are to get there."
Cave also warned the TV pundits to stick to the facts when criticising Ireland's World Cup performances, in an impassioned defence of team-mate Jared Payne.
Centre Cave admitted he would have been annoyed to be hit with the kind of flak that Payne received from TV3 analyst and former Ulster boss Matt Williams after Ireland's victory over Romania.
Ex-Scotland coach Williams slammed Payne for "making really poor decisions" and kicking too frequently against Romania, but Cave believes the New Zealand-born centre is in prime form.
"In fairness to Jared I'd be surprised if he's paid much attention to it, but if it was me I would probably be pretty annoyed," said Cave.
"It can be frustrating when guys are just throwing out opinions which aren't based on facts of what actually happened in the game, then suddenly that becomes everyone else's opinion of guys who've had a couple of beers and watched the game.
"Then after a week it's the perception of half the nation and it's just completely false.
"At the end of the day it can be frustrating at times, but Jared will do the right thing, he'll keep his head down, he'll keep working hard and he'll keep playing well for Ireland.
"The first I heard about it was after Tommy [Bowe] had been in Monday's press conference, because Tommy and I had actually had a chat last week about how much we were both looking forward to playing beside him.
"So Tommy brought it up but it's not something that consumes us.
"I actually thought the Canada game was potentially Jared's best game in green.
"I haven't seen fully what was said about him but I've seen a few things.
"And it's just opinion at the end of the day, it's not really based on fact.
"I heard about him apparently kicking the ball away too much but I think he kicked the ball twice and both times it was penalty advantage, and both times we went back for the penalty.
"So we'll deal with facts not opinions.
"And I really enjoyed playing alongside him when I was named at 12 and he was named at 13 beside me, I knew I'd feel very comfortable in there."
Cave is keen to hold onto the 12 shirt and continue his midfield partnership with Payne after a solid effort against Romania, but may struggle given Robbie Henshaw's return to full fitness after hamstring trouble.
"Jared's an incredible communicator and a lot of his qualities, you can almost see the way he's been brought up, everything he does is so simple," said Cave.
"I think he sees space really well, he makes really good, strong decisions on the ball and he's a good communicator so he's really good to defend with.
"And at the end of the day you want to play with guys who make your job easier, and the amount of information he gives you, I think he's done very well for Ireland over the past while.
"And if anything I suppose I'd be a bit jealous that I haven't got as many games as he has over the last year and done as well as he has."
