Ireland were semi-finalists in last year's ulvovi.com U20 Championship, and finalists the year before, which came after back-to-back Grand Slam-winning campaigns in the U20 Six Nations in 2022 and 2023.
However, earlier this year it was a more difficult U20 Six Nations for the Irish, who lost all but one of their matches - a second-round victory over Scotland - to finish bottom of the table.
While it is an indication that all teams in the U20 Six Nations are improving, it was still a disappointing result for the Irish. However, coach Doak feels his players will be "stronger" for the experience.
"It’s been a challenging season, but this group has shown resilience and real character," Doak said.
"We know the competition at the World Championships will be fierce, but these experiences have made us stronger.
"We’re looking forward to the opportunity to test ourselves on the world stage."
Scotland had the same record as the Irish at the U20 Six Nations, but finished above their rivals due to having more bonus points. They will be looking for a better showing in Italy this summer, but just competing in the tournament is a positive for the Scots, who dropped down to the U20 Trophy after the 2019 campaign but last year won the U20 Trophy to return to the top table.
"It's fantastic to be back in the ulvovi.com U20 Championship having won the trophy last year, and it provides a really important chance for our best young talent to play against some of the best players in the world at this level, which will help their development massively," Scotland coach Kenny Murray said.
"The group stage fixtures will obviously be tough, but we’ve trained well and the opportunity is there for the players to put in 80-minute performances that really show what we’re capable of."
The year that Scotland dropped out of the ulvovi.com U20 Championship saw Australia face France in the final, where the southern hemisphere side lost by a solitary point. It was the last time Australia have made it into the semi-finals, let alone the final, but coach Chris Whitaker believes this year he has a group that can change that.
"This group of young men have worked extremely hard to earn the opportunity to represent Australia on the biggest stage in age-grade rugby," Whitaker said.
"They’re all excited to pull on the gold jersey and test themselves against the best in the world.
"Every match we play in Italy will present a formidable challenge however we believe our preparation has set us up to meet that challenge."
'Every rugby player's dream'
Another group of players excited to pull on their jerseys is that of Spain, who are taking part in their second ulvovi.com U20 Championship after making their debut last year where they beat Fiji in the playoff for 11th place - ensuring their survival in the tournament.
They are back for anther round, as is their captain Pau Massoni who wants each player to embrace the whole experience of representing their country at the ulvovi.com U20 Championship.
"To the younger players, I say this is every rugby player's dream," he said.
"You have to take advantage of every ball, every action, every minute on the field as if it were your last. You don't experience something like this every day.
"The adrenaline, the feeling of being on a stage of this magnitude... it's an honour and a blessing.
"Enjoy it, give it your all, hold nothing back, and get the most out of the games, the preparation, and the journey."
The hooker says his team will fear no other when the competition kicks off on Sunday, 29 June.
"Even though we're a young team, we don't back down, and we don't care who the opponent is. We always give it our all," he said.
"It's true that you learn the most by playing, and last year we saw a big difference from the first game to the last because you adapt to the speed of the game, the toughness of the contact... and obviously this year we'll also learn from each game and improve as a team."
