Billy Dardis proud of Ireland's rise to Rugby World Cup Sevens contenders

They once resided in the "basement of Europe" but Billy Dardis says Ireland are targeting the world's summit in Cape Town this weekend.

Dardis has overseen an incredible rise as Ireland Sevens captain and they head into Friday's World Cup with ambitions of bettering their ninth-place finish in San Francisco in 2018, when they beat Australia in the Challenge Trophy final.

That was one of a number of breakthrough moments for this Ireland side, from qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics to their historic fifth-place finish in this year's HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, which included a silver medal in Toulouse and beating Fiji for the first time.

On Friday morning they will look to maintain that momentum when they face Portugal in the opening game of the World Cup (7.45am Irish time).

"I'm incredibly proud," Dardis told RTÉ Sport. "As captain I play only a small role these days. With all the leaders in the squad, I've become just a speaker on behalf of the team.

"It's incredible to see what Irish Sevens has done over the last five or six years. To go from the basement of Europe to a World Cup, to qualify for the World Series and Olympics, and to become one of the top eight in the world, it has been pretty cool. To captain this team is something that I'm extremely proud of.

"It's become a really good, well-respected programme in Irish rugby. That's been fairly well demonstrated from the players we've churned out onto the national team.

"Now we get to travel the world together, month-in month-out, playing in some of the biggest tournaments and against the best players. It's been a good ride."

If Ireland do make the World Cup final in South Africa they'll have done it the hard way. England await the winners of their game with Portugal,