CANADA are set for the game of their lives when they meet Wales in Sunday's World Cup clash at the Telstra Dome in Melbourne.

"It's going to be our cup final" Newport Gwent Dragons prop Rod Snow warns Wales from the Canadian training camp at Woollongong today.

Snow throws down the gauntlet to Wales, predicting a 'ferocious' opening twenty minutes and saying the crucial first quarter is just as vital to them as it is to Wales.

"We are not going out there to make up the numbers and be friendly," said Snow, a Newport player for nine seasons and hugely popular at Rodney Parade.

"The key to our success will be a ferocious physical game up front. We rely on that and we expect our performance to shock Wales and the rest of the world.

"If Alan Phillips (Wales team manager) is saying they are going to hit us in the first twenty minutes and put the game beyond doubt that is exactly our plan too, so it should make for a pretty interesting opening.

"We can't start slowly and come back and win.

"If we are not intense in the first twenty minutes we will not do ourselves justice.

"We haven't contemplated any game other than Wales, and we are approaching it as our cup final because if we don't win our chances of advancing are pretty remote.

"Nobody in our pool is good enough to beat the All Blacks, so if we don't beat Wales there is a very good chance we won't come second in our pool and we will be going home.

"We know our strengths and if we have any fear it's the pace of their backs.

"If we don't knock them down it's going to be a long day."

Snow reports a major boost for Canada's chances with the return to fitness of key forwards Al Charron (knee), Ryan Banks (knee) and Mike James (back).

"We've had a dismal run, we have lost twice to the States and were smashed by Argentina, but the team is far better prepared this time, players are back and, more important than anything, we've had the last month together," said Snow.

"We've got a game plan now whereas we didn't before with players coming in and out."

Snow says all the pressure is on Wales, which also plays into Canadian hands. "Wales are ranked far higher than us and it's do-or-die for them. If they lose it's the end for them, too," he warned. "All the pressure is on them and none on us which really suits us.