Rugby
Cup
rugby world cup
2015
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This year’s World Cup has proven to be a terrific
spectacle with fans from across the globe flocking
to the UK to witness some truly thrilling matches.
With the quarter finals now complete Rugby Club
Magazine takes a look back at the action so far.
The Groups
Highlighted as the group of death, Pool A proved to be
the undoing of England as they failed to live up to the
pre-tournament hype. A close defeat against a heroic
Welsh side left them needing a win against Australia
but, with their opponents back row causing havoc and
displaying a much improved scrum England came up a
long way short.
Home fans were left needing other sides to support and
they needed to look no further than Japan who, under
the guidance of the Eddie Jones, produced perhaps the
biggest shock in Rugby World Cup History with victory
over South Africa before narrowly missing out on a place
in the quarter-finals.
Favourites New Zealand, despite coming in for criticism
from certain areas, overcame one of the best sides in the
World in Argentina before cruising through the rest of
their games at a canter. Ireland showed their strength
as the best Northern Hemisphere side with convincing
progress in Pool D although injuries to Paul O’Connell
and Johnny Sexton marred their victory over France.
Quarter Finals
And so on to the knock out stages and South Africa
completed their redemption from the defeat against
Japan with a hard fought victory over a brave Welsh
side in the first quarter final. France had been the side to
account for New Zealand in two previous World Cups
and were looking to repeat the feat on Saturday evening.
The game turned out to be one of the finest exhibitions
of the game you are ever likely to see as New Zealand
turned it on with the mercurial Dan Carter at his very
best. The performance highlighted the fact that this side
is two games away from being remembered as one of the
very best of all time.
Argentina then used their clash with Ireland to
showcase the fact that their backs have caught up with
their forwards as they ran out comfortable winners by
43-20. Scotland produced a typically gutsy display to
push Australia all the way in the last quarter final to lose
out narrowly 35-34 to round up the weekend’s action.
There was far more to this performance than just tenacity
however as Scotland performed with a skill level that
promises to set them up for an exciting future.
8 Issue 58