Ireland men's and women's teams begin their Rugby World Cup Sevens missions in San Francisco on a mission to further strengthen the country's reputation on the biggest possible stage.
The women are up first against England at AT&T Park tonight (8.12pm Irish time) - home of the baseball team the San Francisco Giants - with the men facing Chile at 11.35pm.
The knockout format means everybody has to hit the ground running - lose your first game and you are only playing for placings thereafter.
It ramps the intensity up even further in the seven-minute-a-half game where athleticism and skill are paramount.
There are 16 teams in the women's tournament and 24 in the men's.
In June, the men finished a fantastic World Sevens Series on a high as they beat England 21-19 in the bronze medal match at Twickenham. They want to keep that momentum going.
"This year we've had a core group (of players)," men's captain Billy Dardis told irishrugby.ie.
"It has been about 12 or 15 of us that have trained throughout the whole year and gone to a lot of the tournaments (across the season). We've had a good few lads come in, have a shot at it.
"They might not have gone well, but other lads have come in and made a big impact and they've stayed part of it. There is a core group, but it's kind of changing the whole time."
Women's captain Lucy Mulhall hopes this weekend's exploits will turn more people on to a sport growing in popularity in this country.
"More people in the country are finding out what this sport is about.
"Even for the country ourselves, especially say when the boys did so well on the World Series there last month. That brought such a buzz around the country. I think people are definitely tuning into Sevens and watching it more."
What a fabulous kick off for @WorldRugby7s #TEAMIRELAND @IrishRugby #RWC7s #MakeYourMark pic.twitter.com/HKztsGyZTz
— Irish Consulate W US (@IrelandSanFran) July 20, 2018
Ireland men's squad
Robert Baloucoune (Enniskillen/Ballymena/Ulster), Jordan Conroy (Buccaneers), Shane Daly (Cork Constitution/Munster), Billy Dardis (UCD, capt), Ian Fitzpatrick (Lansdowne), Foster Horan (Lansdowne), Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster), Terry Kennedy (St Mary's College), Harry McNulty (UCD), Bryan Mollen (Dublin University), Jimmy O'Brien (UCD/Leinster), John O'Donnell (Lansdowne), Greg O'Shea (Shannon)
Ireland women's squad
Kathy Baker (Blackrock/Leinster), Ashleigh Baxter (Cooke/Ulster), Claire Boles (Railway Union/Ulster), Aoife Doyle (Shannon/Railway Union/Munster), Katie Fitzhenry (Blackrock/Leinster), Stacey Flood (Railway Union/Leinster), Louise Galvin (UL Bohemian/Munster), Eve Higgins (Railway Union/Leinster), Lucy Mulhall (Rathdrum, capt), Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe (Railway Union/Munster), Deirbhile Nic a Bhaird (UL Bohemians/Munster), Audrey O'Flynn (Ireland Women's Sevens Programme), Hannah Tyrrell (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
