Lineout Calls of the Week – Rugby World Cup Pool Stages

Caught your breath yet? We’re not sure if we have. After five glorious weekends, the Pool stages of the Rugby World Cup are wrapped up, and what a glorious journey it’s been. Perhaps most exciting was the fact that there have been so many matches that on paper looked set to be dead rubbers, but turned out to be eighty minute edge of your seat thrill rides. Some of the big guns have left us speechless, but then so have some of the minnows. There’s been elation for many and heartbreak for some, all set against a backdrop of colorful and exuberant fans that have embraced our sport in all its glory, camaraderie and the values it holds dear. In short, we’ve loved every minute of it, and although the Pools are now sadly wrapped up, what a fantastic festival of rugby these past five weeks have been.

So now the tournament heads to the business end, and there is still so much to look forward to. We’ll have to keep this one brief as our family is in the midst of packing for the flight to Paris and the two Quarter Finals in the City of Light. Nevertheless, we’ve managed to share a few collective thoughts over a few frothy pints, and here’s what got us talking, looking back and looking ahead.

Let’s be blunt – there are two Semi-Finals taking place in Paris this weekend!

Could Saturday and Sunday’s blockbusters at the Stade de France be any bigger if they tried? Due to the much talked about lopsided nature of the draw, we very much doubt it. The four best teams in the world go head to head in Paris, and there is very little doubt in most people’s minds that the two winners will be the finalists on October 28th in Paris. Sure there is that little matter of some actual semi-finals a week after this coming weekend, but in reality they should be little more than a formality for the two teams who walk away from the Paris showdowns this weekend.

Ireland and New Zealand get us started on Saturday, and the similarities between the clash the next day between France and South Africa are more than just a little striking. In both games, a three times World Champion in the shape of both New Zealand and South Africa meets two Northern Hemisphere sides who have never managed to lift the trophy. In the case of Ireland, they have never managed to even make it past the Quarter Finals, whereas France have at least made it to three Finals. The big question is who’s under more pressure, France or Ireland?

France having won their Pool and being the host Nation must surely be favourites on Sunday over South Africa. Despite getting a wake up call of note from Uruguay, France have for the most part looked relatively comfortable with the task at hand, and so far seem to be at ease with the enormous weight of expectation of a nation who demands nothing less than absolute success. Even the loss of their star playmaker, Captain, and scrum half Antoine Dupont didn’t really seem to phase them. Furthermore, France’s remarkable medical resources went into high gear, and now their talisman will return to face South Africa. After their wobble against Uruguay, we simply can’t find any evident weaknesses in this French outfit. Even if Dupont’s Phantom of the Opera face mask fails him and he has to return to the bench against South Africa, we have a hunch this French team still won’t miss a beat.

In Damian Penaud, they have the tournament’s leading try scorer and in Tomas Ramos the leading points scorer. If you compare their statistics in the tournament to date to those of their opponents on Sunday, there are only two areas where South Africa has an edge and that is in dominant tackles and defenders beaten, and it’s only really in the former where the Springboks have a clear lead over their French counterparts. Add to that South Africa’s inability to gain success from the kicking tee, and on paper, it’s hard to argue against France getting the job done on Sunday.

As for South Africa, they will have to rely on their physicality to stifle French creativity, and ensure that their discipline is water tight thus negating the threat of Tomas Ramos and his kicking tee, while at the same time hoping they don’t have rely on their own tee too often. For us, though, the biggest question is who they put in at fly half and what centre partnership they go with given that Lukhanyo Am is now available. For the fly half question, as much as arguably Handre Pollard is the more accurate kicker, Manie Libbok, despite his erratic form off the tee, offers South Africa so much more ability to create and use space. Ally, that skill to Lukhanyo Am’s vision and control in the midfield and South Africa just might be able to unlock that resolute French defence. Out wide South Africa can be just as lethal as France, but they need a conductor to allow those wide channels to breathe, and consequently, our gut instinct is a Libbok/Am axis to make it happen.

Ireland, like France, dominated their Pool, but unlike the hosts, they never appeared to get rattled once so far this tournament. They have one or two niggling injury concerns heading into their clash with New Zealand this Saturday, but nowhere near on the scale of World Cups in the past. While Ireland may have never made it past the Quarter Finals there is a quiet assurance and adaptability about them this tournament that we’ve never seen before. Add to that perhaps the biggest ever travelling Green Army seen at a World Cup in the stands assuring them, in the loudest possible way, that the psychological hurdle of getting past the Quarters is simply all “in their head” according to the Dolores O’Riordan Cranberries classic Zombie.

On paper, New Zealand actually looks sharper than Ireland, and the stats don’t often lie. However, look at those Irish performances against South Africa and Scotland. They were clinical, efficient, and ruthless. Against South Africa, they simply found a way to absorb everything South Africa threw at them, despite the Springboks dominating many aspects of the game. They played a smart game that, apart from a lineout that backfired dramatically in the first half, still found a way to win. If you look at many of Ireland’s performances in the last year that’s been a consistent theme, they simply find a way to win based on their cohesiveness and understanding of their game plan that is second to none. In short, they are just really good at playing their brand of rugby and adapting it to suit the needs of each new opponent they face. That final performance against Scotland, apart from switching off for five minutes and allowing Scotland to score two tries, was perhaps the most complete Irish performance we’ve ever witnessed. This is a very smart team with everybody singing from the same song sheet.

New Zealand appears to be rising rapidly to the challenge. They’ve scored more tries and points than any other team, but we’d qualify that with the fact they’ve only really been tested once, in the tournament opener against France. To write them off would be the height of foolishness, but they also know that many see them as the underdogs on Saturday, and they are clearly enjoying the lack of attention and pressure this brings. Compare this to Ireland, who know that a nation expects them to finally break their dismal record of failure in the knockout stages of the World Cup. This is an exceptionally good All Black side. We just feel that as a unit, they simply aren’t clicking the way Ireland are at the moment. In reality, that is the only difference we can find between the two. Perhaps the best way to think of this match is that New Zealand are playing for something they’ve already owned and simply want back again, whereas Ireland have a chance to turn their wildest dreams into reality. We’ll let you decide who might be feeling the most pressure and weight of expectation, and as a result, how it might affect either side’s chances on the day.

Meanwhile down in Marseille some actual Quarter Finals are being played

As the easy side of the draw, and based on what we’ve seen so far, we have a hunch that Marseille’s four Quarter Finals are likely to be as good as it gets this World Cup for the four teams involved. Whoever emerges will have to face one of the four Super Teams in Pools A and B, giving creedence to the argument that the Semi Finals are a foregone conclusion. Pools C and D have definitely been the two most competitive groups in the tournament, but with perhaps the exception of Wales and at times Fiji, there have been some rather mediocre performances which have provided us with our four Quarter Finalists on this side of the draw.

Wales were the first to qualify and will get the party in Marseilles going on Saturday against an Argentinian side that failed to fire the imagination until their final game against Japan. The Welsh have definitely been the surprise package of the tournament in relation to Tier One countries. Written off by all and sundry before the World Cup, Wales have looked the best they’ve been in years since that tense opener against Fiji. They are boasting some very impressive numbers and have rapidly become the tournament’s smoking gun. Their demolition of Australia was clearly the icing on the cake, and despite a scrappy performance at times against Portugal, this Welsh team looks very settled and comfortable with the job at hand. Much like New Zealand, nobody is really paying them much attention, and they seem to like it that way. Furthermore, although their reunification this year with long-running Coach Warren Gatland gave rise to fears of the resumption of boring but effective “Warrenball”, there’s a lot to like about version 13.0 of Gatland’s Wales, as stodgy and predictable it definitely is not.

Their opponents on Saturday, Argentina, quite frankly have been anything but awe-inspiring. Until that is when they played Japan in a do or die fixture this Sunday. Perhaps that’s what they needed to finally spark them into life, as to be honest, we were struggling to find a pulse in this Pumas side until then. In reality, we still think they are quite a ways off the mark required to beat a Welsh unit that has looked the most consistent of all the sides in Pools C and D. However, Argentina appear to play their best rugby when it comes to the knockout stages, ask any Irish supporter, and as a result, to write them off on Saturday would be the height of folly. The big question mark centres around how well they can cope with the loss of inspirational back rower and talisman Pablo Matera, who is out for the rest of the tournament with injury. Matera has provided the fire in all of the Pumas’ recent famous victories, and without him, Argentina suddenly becomes an unknown quantity despite their wealth of talent. Hard one to call, but it’s certainly one of the weekend’s most intriguing fixtures.

England, like Wales, despite most people expecting them to crash out of the tournament in a ball of flames, surprised everyone by winning their Pool with a Round to spare. However, the quality of their opposition at times made the Men in White look exceptionally good. Their first opponents, Argentina, failed to show up on the day, allowing England to win by executing a solid kicking and defensive game. Japan, like Argentina, also clearly misread their fixture list and thought they were playing Chile instead of England, allowing England a comfortable second straight win. A brave Chilean side were sadly nothing more than a training run for a well resourced England, now featuring the return from suspension of Captain Owen Farrell. England were through to the quarters without really having to work for it.

Then Samoa turned up and highlighted the fact that England remains a poor and rather rudderless side bereft of an attacking game. The Pacific Islanders almost became the second side to make the South Pacific a place of misery for England, as the Men in White secured a narrow one point win. It was a dismal performance from England that showcased either complacency or a lack of imagination, though in our view, it was most likely a combination of the two. Traits they will pay dearly for against Fiji, who exploited such weaknesses to the full at the end of August at Twickenham. Of all the teams this tournament, England are the side we’ve found the least convincing, and one who have benefitted from opposition weaknesses rather than their own strengths. We’ll find out on Sunday, but we’re not holding our breath.

England’s opponents on Sunday in Marseille, Fiji, have also left us frustrated. We still feel they are a genuinely classy side, but consistency is simply not their strong point. Their opening game against Wales was one of the best of the Pool stages, and if that final pass had gone to hand, then they could well have ended up winning their Pool. However, that loss seemed to motivate them for that epic win over Australia a week later, where they simply outplayed the Wallabies from start to finish.

After that, however, the wheels have fallen off dramatically. We can’t figure out if it was fatigue or loss of momentum, but the almost two weeks of down time between the Australian game and their encounter with Georgia did them no favors. Their set piece work, which has improved so much during this World Cup cycle, was downright sloppy, and they were lucky to win that game against a much more structured Georgian outfit. Had Georgia been more disciplined, Fiji could have easily lost that game.

As for that final Pool game against Portugal which saw Os Lobos claim their first ever win in a World Cup, we couldn’t help get the feeling we were watching Fiji’s demise at the hands of Uruguay in the 2019 tournament all over again. Fiji put in a more cohesive performance than they did the week before against Georgia, but seemed to struggle with Portugal’s remarkable spirit and bravery. Fiji kept getting rattled by a side that simply refused to lay down and quit. As a result, the cohesion and execution that made them such a handful for Wales and Australia kept breaking down at key moments, as Portugal kept going off the script that Fiji had prepared for them. We have no doubt they’ll rise to the occasion against England and, with two back to back games under their belt, will be much sharper than what we saw in their final two Pool games. We certainly hope so, as an early exit for the magical Fijians would be as sad to witness as Scotland’s unfortunate premature exit from the Tournament.

It’s adieu to one of our favourite teams far too early, and back to the future for Australia

Your heart has to go out to Scotland, who, let’s be honest, were doomed to failure from the start. There was much justified talk about their ability as a highly skilled but maverick side to upset the giants in their Pool of Death. Sadly, though, it wasn’t to be. They never really got the chance to tilt at windmills in their two key games, which bookended their tournament. They opened their account against South Africa, who simply didn’t allow them to play, and as a result, we just didn’t see any of the promise Scotland was supposed to bring to this World Cup. They thrilled us against Tonga and Romania, but in their final match against Ireland, they once again were left with little to say. If Ireland hadn’t had a five minute lapse of concentration in the final quarter, Scotland would have emerged scoreless from that contest.

Scotland’s lack of consistency and inability to be competitive in the setpieces dogged them in the big games and ultimately found them not fit for the task at hand on the biggest stage of all. So it’s back to the drawing board despite their wealth of world class talent and yet another World Cup cycle to try and find the missing pieces. We’re genuinely sorry to see them go, and had their Pool been slightly easier, perhaps they would have found the confidence to go deeper. We’ll sadly have to wait until Australia in 2027 to find out.

Talking of Australia, they unfortunately only have themselves to blame for their first ever exit from a World Cup before the knockout stages. There is plenty of talent in this side, but it was simply too raw and inexperienced for the task at hand. Add to that a Coaching change that was going to add even more uncertainty into a side already struggling with confidence, and this World Cup was never going to end well. That it would end as such a categoric failure, however, will leave Australian rugby in a position of vulnerability that it has never been in.

Much like England, rugby in Australia is poorly managed, coached, and administered. Add in the fact that it is increasingly becoming a minority sport up against serious competition from Rugby League and AFL, and the alarm bells must surely be ringing. It will be hard to recover from the disaster of this World Cup, no matter what measures are put in place. Australian rugby has been on an accelerated slide to the bottom since the last World Cup. Its Super Rugby sides are uncompetitive unless they play each other, and internationally, Australia have only managed a 30% win rate, having won only 14 of their 43 matches since the 2019 World Cup.

With those kinds of numbers, you are in serious danger of losing your rapidly dwindling fan base. Under Dave Rennie, who was given his marching orders at the end of last year, things were slowly starting to look up, but under his replacement, Eddie Jones Australia have essentially gone skydiving without a parachute. We continue to hold that Jones’ appointment was a massive miscalculation on Rugby Australia’s part, and it remains to be seen if, after this, Jones himself still has a future in international coaching, let alone Australia. Nevertheless, the players themselves also need to take some ownership for the mess the sport now finds itself in. In short, the next four years will determine the future of the sport in Australia, and right now, the diagnosis is less than optimistic. We hope not, but the Wallabies look set to become a side much like Scotland that has a license to thrill, but is never really a contender on the big stage.

Portugal provide us with the most magical conclusion to the Pool stages!

What a SPECTACULAR way to end the Pool stages!! Portugal’s first ever World Cup win was a glorious celebration of our game and its potential. Portugal were worth their inclusion in this tournament from their opening match to that glorious final win over Fiji. It’s made all the more remarkable when you consider that they were the last team to qualify for this World Cup. Coach Patrice Lagisquet has left a remarkable legacy in his four years in charge of the team, and probably more than any other Coach in the tournament can look back on a job well done. As Portugal seek a new Coach after this World Cup, they must be given the exposure they so desperately crave to more International competition and be allowed to build on the remarkable momentum of this Tournament.

What has been extraordinary about Portugal is that despite only winning one game, we never saw the outrageous score lines that other Tier Two teams suffered. They never lost a match by more than 20 points and drew with fellow Tier Two opponents, Georgia. Of the two teams originally tipped to win the Pool, Australia, and Wales, they managed to keep the score difference to twenty points in both games. Then there was that remarkable win over Fiji to cap off a glorious tournament that won them fans around the globe. It was an extraordinary match that showcased that sometimes the desire to win is just as important as the skills needed to win, and Portugal demonstrated plenty of both. The matchday 23 that went up against Fiji put in a truly massive effort that will be remembered for years to come – if ever a victory has been earned at a World Cup through blood, sweat and tears and a ton of heart it was that one. Portugal’s success has been egged on in this tournament by some remarkably colorful and passionate fans whose commitment must now be rewarded in this next World Cup cycle.

Portugal’s journey through this World Cup has been a joyous expression of everything that is great about the global game, and we and thousands of others have loved every minute of it. We salute them, and they are our team of the Pool stages, leaving us hungry for more in years to come! We just hope they will be given the opportunities that they have now so rightfully earned.

A Tournament that has had its fair share of genuinely classy moments

Perhaps one of the best side affects of this World Cup has been the distraction it has provided us in a World beset with problems, and which has shown that the value of the human spirit still shines through. As we shudder from reading the daily headlines in the papers about the blatantly obvious effects of climate change, the depressing and seemingly endless war in Ukraine, ethnic genocide in Nagorno Karabakh and the always simmering boiling pot of conflict in the Middle East, this Rugby World Cup has allowed us a welcome distraction in plenty of 80 minute bites this past five weeks. It’s reaffirmed the value of camaraderie and shared values and the fact that players from a huge range of cultural backgrounds can respect each other and form bonds that will last long after this tournament wraps up. In short, it’s shown that the value of the human spirit is still a powerful force.

There have been so many moments of genuine class in this World Cup that have exemplified this, but we’ve highlighted three that have struck us the most. Firstly, Springbok Captain Siya Kolisi has not only been an ambassador for our sport but his country as well. His passion for his country and its people shines through in everything he says. He knows the difficulties South Africans face at all levels, yet he remains so positive and supportive of his teammates’ struggles on the pitch and those of his fellow citizens back home. If ever there was a player who embodies the pride and responsibility of playing for your country, then Kolisi showcases it to the full. There is humility to his words and actions, but also a strength that many, including some of our world leaders, would do well to emulate.

Perhaps one of the most heartwarming images we have seen so far is the sight of the entire South African and Tongan teams joining a group huddle and prayer on the pitch after their match. Despite South Africa emerging victorious, the recognition that they had been part of something special against a spirited and courageous side was there for all to see. The coming together of two very different cultures as a unified group of brothers in arms to recognise a special moment together, showed once more how unique our sport is and the remarkable shared values it has managed to maintain.

Last but definitely not least was the moment after the final Pool Match, where Fijian Coach Simon Raiwalui entered the Portuguese team dressing room and presented the players with Fijian kit and congratulated his opponents on an historic win. To watch the Portuguese players then embrace Raiwalui and wish him and his team success in their campaign through the knockout stages was genuine class from both sides. In short, we think you’d be hard pressed to show us another sport where mutual respect plays such a huge part in how the game is played both before and after the whistle.

So that’s it for the Pool Stages Folks and what a ride it’s been. We hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as we have. Like I say, I and the family are off to France tomorrow and won’t be back until just before the Final. I’ll do my best to get something out after this weekend’s epic round of Quarter Finals, but it’s going to be a very busy couple of weeks and we don’t want to miss a moment of soaking up the atmosphere. In short, I’ll do my best but will make no false promises. In the meantime, take care everyone and enjoy what should be an epic conclusion to a World Cup that has so far exceeded expectations!