Andy Farrell: Important for Ireland to remember we're a 'bloody good' team

Andy Farrell insists that Ireland are now much more comfortable being top dogs and have shed any "inferiority complex" that existed before.

The team are one victory away from an international record-equalling 18th win in a row, a record currently held jointly by New Zealand (2015-2016) and England (2015-2017).

As it happens, both of those streaks were ended by Ireland.

But the shoe is on the other foot now and Ireland are ranked number one, a spell that stretches over 66 consecutive weeks since July last year.

Grand Slam champions Ireland are marginal favourites for Saturday's Rugby World Cup quarter-final clash in Paris (8pm).

It’s the first time the team, who beat New Zealand in three of their last four encounters, have been tipped against the All Blacks by bookmakers.

In fact, since 1996, the three-time World Cup winners have been favourites in all bar five of 359 matches.

All five games where they were underdogs came in away matches against South Africa and they went on to lose four of those fixtures.

"Performance anxiety" was blamed for Ireland’s poor showing in Japan four years ago as they lost to the hosts in the pool stages before being "beaten out the gate", according to Johnny Sexton, by New Zealand in the last-eight.

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"I suppose an inferiority complex is what's happened in the past in terms of getting to world number one and thinking that we're going to fall off a cliff because this shouldn't be happening to Ireland," said Farrell after naming his side yesterday.