Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt has claimed that his side will need to "dance around" to enjoy success against the bigger sides at the World Cup.

A 21-13 defeat to England at Twickenham on Saturday raised concerns that Ireland may be lacking a physical edge to their game, but Schmidt is confident that they will overcome the challenge when the tournament gets underway.

Schmidt told reporters: "I don't think there is too much panic from us. But there's always an anxiety, do we have the firepower to foot it when the big teams come to play?

"I think when you are playing England, and there are other teams that are equipped similarly, we wouldn't be the biggest team, we have to dance around a bit to stay in the fight some times."

Ireland start their campaign against Canada next Saturday.