Rory Best feels that Ireland's all-island rugby team is a shining example of cross-border cooperation under the shadow of the current Brexit threat.
Asked for his view on Brexit by a Japanese reporter, the Ireland skipper said: ‘I think some of the issues with Brexit is that nobody really knows what the issue is!
"I don’t even think we’ve finalised a date to leave yet.
"But the great thing about Irish rugby over this last little bit of political instability, but more so in the late '70s, '80s, early '90s, was that Irish rugby transcends that.
"And that it was always about the sport and it was all about an island playing together and pulling together, and this is a great opportunity for us to do this on the world stage."
Best believes that Ireland are better equipped than ever to go far in this tournament.
"From the past few World Cups, we've came here in different shapes and forms, ready to go and fancied and not so fancied," he said.
"And with this team, probably the depth we have and the collective nature...in the past there's potentially been an over-reliance on one or two great players, world class players, to produce something magical.
"And if that didn't happen we were under pressure, whereas I feel this time we tried to spread that load.
"Yes, we have a few world class players in position but definitely our greatest strength is our collective and we know how important each person is to the other".
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