Court: This is the best shape I’ve ever been in

With Cian Healy’s World Cup preparations suffering a setback due to the eye injury he sustained against England, Tom Court has an opportunity to lay down a marker should he start against the USA.

Despite having more than 20 international caps to his name, Court has never cemented his place as a starter in the green jersey, but the Brisbane born prop believes he is in the best form of his career going into the World Cup.

"It's definitely as good as I've ever felt within the squad," he told the Irish Independent.

"I'm probably in as good shape as I've ever been in.

"It's been a slow grind and a gradual process for me getting the body working, where it needs to be, from four or five years ago," he said.

"In terms of confidence I feel very good.

"Scrums have been quite good in the four lead-ups and getting better, and the fitness has been quite good.

"For me it's a matter of making an impact if I get on there and doing what I need to do really, and getting a bit of consistency rather than being up and down."

Four defeats from the four warm-up contests could have dampened the squad’s spirits heading down to New Zealand but Court insists the senior players have instilled the right attitude into the camp.

"Brian and Paul have been really trying to drive that and managing all the things internally with the players.

"Everyone is a lot tighter and thriving off each other's confidence.

"I guess they were sitting down thinking about previous World Cups and things like that, and the last couple of years with the team together.

"They realised that for the team to really kick on and bring it on to a new level, it needs to be driven from within.

"The coaches can only do so much. They can be sitting there screaming and yelling as much as they like, but in the end the players are the ones on the pitch.

"If you're not feeling how to control the play and the game from on the pitch, I think you'll be left behind in some of the bigger games."

Consistency is what the Ulster prop sees as the difference between Ireland and the Tri-Nations teams with history on the side of the southern hemisphere outfits.

"Until you get a run of games where you can put it on top of them and get the results in your favour, they are never going to be seen (in the same way) as the likes of the All Blacks or Australia,”

"It comes with success. Teams build confidence and the results have gone Australia's and New Zealand's way for a long time in games against northern hemisphere teams.

"It comes down to results."