Italy have been drawn in a tough pool with both Tri-Nations champions Australia and Ireland and history is against them having never reached the quarter-finals.

But having given Les Bleus a bloody nose in Rome earlier this year and come within a Ronan O’Gara drop goal of defeating Ireland, Parisse maintains Nick Mallett’s team are no longer affected by any inferiority complex.

He said: “Four years ago we couldn’t beat France, but this year we beat them in the Six Nations and that shows our growth.

“At the last World Cup, we had the same objective as this year, which was to reach the quarter-finals.

“The pool we had was a little bit easier as we had Romania, Portugal and Scotland, who we had beaten a couple of times in previous years, but obviously we lost to Scotland.

“This year it is different and the pool is tougher, but everyone believes in team, especially Nick, even though he is leaving after the World Cup.

“We lost 64-10 [against the All Blacks on his debut], but if you look at our most recent match with the All Blacks we only lost 20-6 at the San Siro in 2009. It means we have closed the gap with the other teams and shows the growth and development of the other players."