Instead the Ulster prop has urged his teammates to take positives from the progress made by the Irish provinces in the Heineken Cup, and believes his side can compete with the very best – including World Cup semi-finalists Wales.

"There's a fairly short turnaround between games so it doesn't really matter who you play first,” said the 29-year-old.

“It's nice to have a home game up first, but that also adds extra pressure to perform at home. It's the start of a new tournament and we're looking forward to that.

“It's an exciting time if you look at what the provinces are doing. Until that disappointing end against Wales, we proved we can produce big performance after big performance.

“Now the pressure is on us to reproduce that and try to win five games in a row. We know that if we can play close to 100 per cent, then there aren't many teams that can live with us.”

Ireland will be without Munster back Keith Earls after his newborn baby was admitted to hospital, and Best revealed Declan Kidney’s troops will be playing for him this weekend.

He added: "There are moments in your life when you realise there are more important things in your life than rugby.

"All the players wish him and his family all the best. Hopefully his little girl will get better and Keith will join us soon. He's a great character around the squad and will be missed this weekend as a player and a person."