Ever since we lost to Spain and failed to qualify for Euro 2008, I’ve been waiting for the World Cup qualifiers to start.

Now I have my wish with the campaign kicking off for us tomorrow in Slovakia.

Expectations are going to be high, not just amongst our supporters but also the players and staff.

In the camp this week we have talked about the importance of starting well.

In recent years, we have gone into campaigns feeling confident only to lose the first match and from that moment we have been playing catch up on other teams.

We don’t want that to happen this time. And we, as players, have to make sure it does not happen.

If we come away from Slovakia without losing, that would be considered a decent result, but we’ll be going all out to make sure we come away from Slovakia with all three points in the bag.

Obviously it is a blow to lose Kyle Lafferty to injury for this game, but when players are missing it is a great opportunity for others and that is the way everyone has to look at it.

I have been around for a while now and been through quite a lot of campaigns.

Some times halfway through a campaign we have been looking to finish in third or fourth place to help our seeding in future tournaments.

Well, halfway through this one our aim has to be to be in a position to go on and win the group!

I really mean that.

That is our aim for this qualifying campaign.

Time is ticking on. There are a lot of players in this squad who know that they aren’t getting any younger and for some like Keith Gillespie and Maik Taylor it may be their last chance to get to a World Cup.

As far as I am concerned I am not getting any younger myself, so the sooner we qualify for the finals of a competition the better.

I’ll be doing everything I can for it to happen this time around, that’s for sure.

To be honest though I’m not sure I’ll be able to score 13 goals in this campaign, like I did in the European Championships.

I know there will be pressure on me but to a degree there has been since I first came into the international side and certainly since I scored THAT goal against England.

Everyone knows how much it means to me to play for Northern Ireland, so I’m more than happy to take any pressure that comes along with doing a job for my country.

The pressure won’t just be on me though, it will be on all of us and it will be up to the squad to deliver.

Keith, as he always is, will be a big player for us and other experienced guys like Stephen Craigan and Aaron Hughes will be crucial too.

They can encourage and help the younger lads, especially through difficult games and there will be a few of them in this campaign.

It’s hard to say who will shine in the World Cup matches, but I fancy Steve Davis and George McCartney to impress and I believe that you will see Jonny Evans blossom into a true international star.

It’s not just the players who can play a part - our fans will be massively important.

They are always our 12th man and provide us with such tremendous support. It really is inspirational.

Not that they need it, but my message to the Green and White Army is to roar us on home and away as they always do.

I can’t wait to get this campaign started.

Knowing Northern Ireland, it will be a rollercoaster ride, hopefully ending on a high taking us all the way to South Africa in 2010.