Capped 76 times for Wales Dwayne Peel who now plays no 9 for Bristol, reckons it's the most open championship in years.

"Group A pits together three big guns, England, Wales an Australia and whoever wins the group could well have the momentum to go on to win the tournament," says the nimble scrum half, who will be a key member of S4C's presentation dream team.

Dwayne has represented Wales in two World Cups, the 2003 tournament where Wales dazzled and almost beat eventual champions England and the 2007 tournament where they flopped and were kayoed by Fiji.

"Momentum and team spirit are key in a knockout tournament and although New Zealand start as overall favourites, the Group A winners in Wales' Group of Death will be really battle hardened. They could well be a match for the mighty All Blacks, who will be under pressure every World Cup as they are rightly considered favourites."

"It's a very open competition this year, and with hosts England also sure to feel the pressure, Wales have a realistic chance. Why not? Wales are a team who can match the best. One of six countries could win it, with Ireland, South Africa and Australia also in the mix."

Father of two Dwayne, who now lives back in his native Llanelli after enjoying six happy years in Manchester with Sale Sharks, is looking forward to covering a tournament so near to home.

"Crossing the Severn Bridge to cover matches in Twickenham, as well as at Cardiff, will be awesome.

For a rugby player, there's no higher honour than representing your country in the World Cup. You love the pressure and the nerves, you savour the victories and learn from the defeats, but covering the matches for S4C is a good alternative."

Dwayne says that quality teams and great players grow in the face of disappointment.

"We lost in 2003 to England as a result of a late Jason Robinson try. But to be fair, they deserved to win and went on to become world champions. We learnt from that defeat and two years later went on to win Wales' first Grand Slam for 27 years."

Dwayne believes that the Wales team will have learnt from their 2011 heartbreak when Sam Warburton's unfortunate spear tackle meant Wales had to try and beat France with 14 men for most of the semi-final.

"Sam Warburton has grown as a player since that heart-breaking incident and is a captain supreme. I will be looking to Scott Williams to sparkle now he's in for the injured Jonathan Davies and, with natural leaders like Alun-Wyn Jones there, we're a challenge to any side."