By Iestyn Harris Wales international

The waiting is almost over and we can't wait to get on the plane Sunday night to head for Australia.

It's always nice to go somewhere you haven't been before, so I'm looking forward to settling in at our base for the World Cup in Canberra.

But our arrival will see a step up in training and preparation as we target our first pool game against Canada on 12 October.

So far most of our work has been on physical preparation, but Steve Hansen will add to that as we near the big kick-off.

I know some people think that playing for our regions or clubs would have kept us match fit, but you always run the risk of injuries.

Personally, I've appreciated being able to put in some quality weights and fitness work without niggles and strains hindering what I'm trying to achieve.

Any result is possible, anything can happen Iestyn Harris

There might be a touch of ring-rustiness when we face Canada but the cobwebs will blow away very quickly once we get on the pitch.

We don't know who will be handed the shirts for that match, but all you can do is hope for an initial first start and make sure you perform to the best of your ability.

Canada haven't had the best preparation, with players like my Blues team-mate Dan Baugh being forced to withdraw from their squad because of insurance difficulties.

But they'll still go into the match with a lot of confidence. They've had a decent record against Wales in the past and they might take heart from our form over the past year.

If they do it could be a mistake!

It's the last match that counts - not the ones that came before - and it is a relief to go into the tournament with two wins on the bounce against Romania and Scotland.

There's a confident mood in the squad - and it's nice not to have to talk about losing streaks anymore!

Taking one match at a time may be cliched, but that's the only way you can approach a tournament like the Rugby World Cup.

We know we have New Zealand in the final pool match and we expect to reach the quarter-finals, but we are just concentrating on Canada at the moment.

If you look too far ahead you lose focus, and we'll be using all the collective experience we have to calm everything down and take one step at a time.

The thing about a World Cup is you don't know what could happen, any result is possible, anything can happen, and there will be some upsets along the way.