Wales head coach Warren Gatland has admitted that he is nervous ahead of his side's Rugby World Cup opener against Fiji on Sunday.
The New Zealander will be taking charge of his fourth successive World Cup as Wales head coach, and his fifth overall, having also led Ireland into the 1999 tournament.
However, he has only overseen two wins in his eight games since reassuming the reins from Wayne Pivac, who had initially replaced Gatland after Gatland stepped down in the wake of the 2019 World Cup.
Wales as a team have only won three of their last 15 Tests, but Gatland is confident of improvement following a drama-free buildup to the tournament.
"I still get nervous myself, I think nerves are always a positive. You feel helpless as a coach, that's the hardest thing, so there'll be some nerves before and probably during the game," Gatland said at his pre-match press conference.
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"I spoke to the coaches about us this week not talking too much, not over-coaching and allowing the players to take responsibility today and tomorrow. I was pleased to see them do that. They look very clear in their own minds about what they want to achieve on Sunday.
"When you're nervous about the game or what potentially might happen, it focuses the mind in terms of what's coming. There's nothing wrong with that. I see it as a positive in terms of the players being right on the edge in terms of their preparation just before the game.
"[The preparation] has been fantastic. I'm pleased at just having that whole preparation for the World Cup. We've been able to do that detail you don't often get to do during the Six Nations. We've had some new faces come in, which has been great for the group. A lot of young players have got some experience.
"We've had some issues in Welsh rugby. Hopefully those are behind us now and we can completely focus on this World Cup. There's a great atmosphere within the group in terms of getting that balance of when we have to work hard and when there's times to have a laugh and a joke.
"That makes the atmosphere more special. Having that time and preparation and putting some of those things that happened in the Six Nations behind us has been a real positive. We've worked incredibly hard and the boys have been through some tough, gruelling camps and sessions.
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"From that point of view, we can take a huge amount of confidence going into the World Cup. In international rugby, you have to go to dark places and have to be hurting. It's whether other teams are hurting that little bit more than you."
Wales take on a Fiji side coming into the tournament off a historic victory over England in their final warm-up game, and sitting above Pool C rivals Wales and Australia in the world rankings.
"This is a quality Fiji side,. The advent of Super Rugby has been a huge boost for them, playing in a top quality competition week-in, week-out," Gatland added.
"A lot of their other players are either in France or the UK. That gives them the quality to be playing at that top level on a regular basis. That's definitely strengthened their side."
After facing Fiji, Wales then take on Portugal, Australia and Georgia in their bid to seal a top-two finish in Pool C.
Barney Corkhill
