Alison Miller believes the Women's World Cup offers the Ireland team a completely different experience from the Six Nations and is hoping the team can avail of the increased time together as a group.

The hosts will get their campaign underway on Wednesday (7pm, live on RTÉ 2 and 2fm) when they face Australia at the UCD Bowl, with head coach Tom Tierney plotting their path out of a competitive Group C.

Ireland’s defeat of four time world champions New Zealand in the last World Cup means they won’t fly under the radar in a pool that could go down to the wire, with Tierney’s side currently ranked fifth in the world, sandwiched between group opponents France and Australia.

Entering her second World Cup, winger Miller believes that the additional time together as a squad is in contrast with the Six Nations and believes her team-mates are physically ready for the gruelling schedule.

"We’ve worked really hard on our fitness and we’re fitter than we have ever been.  I think there’s 12 of us who have been to the last World Cup. We know what it’s like and we’re used to it," she told RTÉ Sport.

"The added advantage of being at a World Cup is that everyone is in camp for those weeks and people don’t have to worry about their jobs and making a living."

"During the Six Nations, people are going back to jobs. They are playing a hard game, they go back and work a full-time job, they get up and train.

"The added advantage of being at a World Cup is that everyone is in camp for those weeks and people don’t have to worry about their jobs and making a living

"That will be an advantage. You can recover and rest up. It will be great for girls that maybe haven’t played in a World Cup and have been balancing training and work.

"Now they can fully put their focus into rugby for a few weeks," the trainee teacher added.

While professional in their approach, it is still a part-time set-up and while that can provide certain challenges, the 36-cap international is glass half-full in her outlook and takes encouragement from her team-mates.  

"We enjoy doing it. No one is forcing us, we wouldn’t do it if we didn’t want to do it, but it does give you massive motivation to know what girls are doing.

"Claire Molloy (above) for example flies in from Wales and other girls are making sacrifices and some are high achievers in top level jobs....they are top of the field in their careers and top of their field in rugby.

"For me it’s inspirational and it does give you motivation."

The challenge facing Ireland cannot be underestimated.

Aside from a tricky looking pool – Japan are the outsiders after qualifying for their first World Cup in 15 years – the schedule is a gruelling one.

"You have a long-term goal, but you have to have short-term focus in each game."

Three games in nine days will test of depth of Tierney’s squad and the Connacht player acknowledges that the format is "cut-throat".

"There’s no margin for error. There are going to be some good teams that are going to lose out. That’s the nature of the way the pools are organised.

"You just have to concentrate on the first game.

"You have a long-term goal, but you have to have short-term focus in each game."

FIXTURES

Ireland v Australia, UCD Bowl, 7pm, Wednesday 9 August,

Ireland v Japan, UCD Bowl, 5.15pm, Sunday 13 August

Ireland v France, UCD Bowl, 7.45pm, Thursday 17 August

Watch all of Ireland's games live on RTÉ Sport and the RTÉ Player (ROI only), listen live on 2fm and follow live blogs on RTÉ Sport Online and the News Now app.