BLACKBURN winger Damien Duff has told Republic of Ireland fans 'not to expect too much' as he prepares to make his World Cup bow against Cameroon tomorrow.

With disgraced skipper Roy Keane conspicuous by his absence from Mick McCarthy's squad for the group E clash in Niigata, the whole of Ireland will be looking to Duff as the man to fill the void left by the crest-fallen Manchester United star.

But, even though the inspirational Rovers man is ready to shoulder the expectations of a nation, he insists it's unfair to expect him to become a 'world beater' over night. "I know a lot of people have been saying I'm going to do this, that, and the other but I don't tend to take too much notice of all that, to be honest," said Duff.

"All I can do is my best and, hopefully, that will help Ireland to progress to the knock-out stages.

"But as for becoming a 'world beater' like some people have been suggesting, all I can say is anyone who knows me will tell you I won't let that affect me.

"I just want to keep my head down and concentrate on playing for the Republic and, thankfully, I've got my family to help me keep my feet on the ground."

After all the publicity surrounding Keane's bust-up with McCarthy, Duff and the rest of the squad are now desperate to put the whole sorry episode behind them.

And a victory against Cameroon would do much to lift the clouds which have completely overshadowed their preparations for the tournament so far.

However, with tough games against Germany and Saudi Arabia to follow, they know they have their work cut out if they plan to qualify for the next stage without the help of their best player.

"We know it's going to be tough but I'm just glad we're not in England's group because that looks the toughest of the lot by far," said Duff.

"Obviously, our biggest game is going to be the one against Germany next Wednesday.

"I know people are saying they are not the force they once were after England beat them 5-1 but you can't afford to underestimate them going into a major tournament because of what they've achieved in the past.

"So, on paper at least, that's going to be the toughest game in the group.

"As for the other two, I don't know too much about Saudi Arabia but I'm sure we'll watch plenty of videos on them in the build-up to the game.

"And Cameroon have done well at World Cups in the past so we can't afford to take them too lightly, either.

"They'll be strong, physically, so they could be a threat but we've only lost a couple of games out of the last 20 so we've got no reason to fear anyone."

With Keane out of the equation, big things are expected of Duff because of some impressive displays as an emergency striker during the Republic's qualifying campaign.

And Ireland boss McCarthy looks set to utilise him in a similar role in the Far East where he is likely to partner Robbie Keane in a potentially explosive attack.

"Obviously, Mick McCarthy plays me up front and he must see something in me as a forward because he hasn't played me on the left-wing in ages," said the unassuming 23-year-old.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's just great to get a start at all but I do enjoy it up there, because there's the added pressure of scoring goals and I just hope I can sniff a few out.

"I'm not an out-and-out goal-poacher in the mould of someone like Andy Cole but, hopefully, I can weigh in with a few.

"It's about time I delivered at this level.

"I've been on the international scene for about four years now and I've only really started to find my feet this year."

As for McCarthy, the whole squad has given the former Millwall boss their unswerving support in what has been the most turbulent 10 days of his managerial career.

And Duff would love to put a smile back on his manager's face with a star performance against Cameroon's 'indomitable lions'.

"Mick McCarthy has done brilliantly for me, personally," said Duff. "He was the one who gave me my debut and he's stuck by me ever since so I'd love to repay him with some big performances over here."