27.09.2015
Australia 65, Uruguay 3 in Birmingham (World Cup, Pool A)
Scotland 39, United States 16 in Leeds (World Cup, Pool B)
Ireland 44, Romania 10 in London (World Cup, Pool D)
Briefly
Australia, Scotland and Ireland all got through their pool matches last night predictably with bonus points.
The next match is on Tuesday, Tonga v Namibia.
My next preview will be on Wednesday as I will be away.
27.09.2015
Australia v Uruguay in Birmingham (World Cup, Pool A)
Scotland v United States in Leeds (World Cup, Pool B)
Ireland v Romania in London (World Cup, Pool D)
I’m unable to review these games due to other commitments.
Predictions
Australia to defeat Uruguay by 55 points-Score 66-11
Scotland to defeat USA by 21 points-Score 33-12
Ireland to defeat Romania by 33 points-Score 49-16
26.09.2015
Wales 28, England 25 at Twickenham (World Cup, Pool A)
South Africa 46, Samoa 6 in Birmingham (World Cup, Pool B)
Italy 23, Canada 18 in Leeds (World Cup, Pool D)
Briefly
After being behind in just about every aspect of the games Wales stormed home in the last quarter of the match to snatch a 28-25 win over England in their pool match. The Twickenham crowd was noisy and full of song for most of the match as England looked to have the game well under control when leading 21-12 with 30 minutes remaining. Wales’ comeback was remarkable but came with costly injuries.
England now have to win against Australia on the 3rd October to hold second place in the pool or become the first Rugby World Cup host to miss the quarter finals. Desperate stuff.
South Africa blew away the memory of the loss to Japan with an emphatic 46-6 victory over a brave but outclassed Samoan side. The Samoans were not match for a South African side that were determined to stamp their mark on this tournament. Sadly South African captain Jean de Villiers has been ruled out of the tournament with a broken jaw.
Italy had to struggle past a gallant Canadian side that came close to scoring the second major upset of the tournament.
26.09.2015
Briefly
Belgium, even without some of their France-based players, were too strong for Sweden away in Stockholm. The result would seem to put an end to Sweden’s ambitions of staying in REC 1B for 2016-18 following their promotion in 2014.
| P | W | D | L | PF | PA | DIFF | B | PT | |
| BELGIUM | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 130 | 95 | 135 | 3 | 27 |
| MOLDOVA | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 155 | 83 | 72 | 4 | 16 |
| POLAND | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 132 | 157 | -25 | 2 | 15 |
| UKRAINE | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 108 | 81 | 27 | 1 | 13 |
| NETHERLANDS | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 81 | 74 | 3 | 2 | 10 |
| SWEDEN | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 80 | 296 | -193 | 0 | 0 |
26.09.2015
Venue: Twickenham
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)
| P | W | D | L | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | BP | PT | |
| WALES | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 9 | 45 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| ENGLAND | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 11 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| AUSTRALIA | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 13 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| FIJI | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 24 | 63 | -39 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| URUGUAY | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 54 | -45 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
Preview
It doesn’t get bigger than this game in Rugby World Cup Pool play. Two of Europe’s fiercest rivals will square off in the pool of death. Apart from the France-Ireland clash in Pool D this is one of THE crucial games before the quarter finals. Both teams have everything to win and an awful lot to lose from the outcome.
England were shaky in their 35-11 win over Fiji in the opening game of this tournament. They did enough but didn’t impress against a tough Fijian side who played a part of that game with 14 men. Their second game in front of their home crowd will see a huge improvement.
Wales’ preparation for this game was an easy win over Uruguay, hardly ideal before such a crucial game. Their lead up form was impressive during the warm up games which included, like England, a win over 6 Nations Champion Ireland.
So this is it. The first BIG clash of the tournament. It at the home of rugby and it will be in front of a packed house. What an atmosphere! What a game!
Last Five Encounters W 3, E 2
06.02.2015 England 21-16 in Cardiff (6 Nations)
09.03.2014 England 29, Wales 18 at Twickenham (6 Nations)
16.03.2013 Wales 30-3 at Cardiff (6 Nations)
25.02.2012 Wales 19-12 at Twickenham (6 Nations)
13.08.2011 Wales 19-9 in Cardiff (World Cup Warm-up)
Previous Rugby World Cups
08.06.1987 Wales 16-3 in Brisbane (World Cup)
England Last Five P 5, W 3, L 2
05.09.2015 v Ireland W 21-13 at Twickenham (World Cup Warm Up)
22.08.2015 v France L 20-25 in Paris (World Cup Warm Up)
15.08.2015 v France W 19-15 at Twickenham (World Cup Warm Up)
14.03.2015 v Scotland W 25-13 at Twickenham (6 Nations;Calcutta Cup)
01.03.2015 v Ireland L 9-19 in Dublin (6 Nations)
Wales Last Five P 5, W 4, L 1
05.09.2015 v Italy W 23-19 in Cardiff (World Cup Warm Up)
29.08.2015 v Ireland W 16-10 in Dublin (World Cup warm Up)
08.08.2015 v Ireland L 21-35 in Cardiff (World Cup Warm Up)
21.03.2015 v Italy W 61-20 in Rome (6 Nations)
14.03.2015 v Ireland W 23-16 in Cardiff (6 Nations)
GWC Rugby Rankings
World Table: Wales 1st, England 2nd
World Rugby Ranking Points
England 85.04, wales 84.63
Data from www.rugbyinternational.net
Prediction: England by 6 points. Score 29-23
TEAMS
England
15 Michael Brown, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Bradley Barritt, 12 Samuel Burgess, 11 Jonathon May, 10 Owen Farrell, 9 Benjamin Youngs, 8 William Vunipola, 7 Christopher Robshaw (Capt.), 6 Thomas Wood, 5 Courtney Lawes, 4 Geoffrey Parling, 3 Daniel Cole, 2 Thomas Youngs, 1 Joseph Marler
Replacements
16 Robert Webber, 17 Mako Vunipola, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Joseph Launchbury, 20 James Haskell, 21 Richard Wigglesworth, 22 George Ford,
23 Alexander Goode
Head Coach: Stuart Lancaster
Wales
15 Liam Williams, 14 George North, 13 Scott Williams, 12 James Roberts,
11 Hallam Amos, 10 Daniel Biggar, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Taulupe Faletau,
7 Samuel Warburton (Capt.), 6 Daniel Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Scott Baldwin, 1 Gethin Jenkins
Replacements
16 Kenneth Owens, 17 Aaron Jarvis, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Luke Charteris,
20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Lloyd Williams, 22 Rhys Priestland, 23 Alexander Cuthbert
Head Coach: Warren Gatland
26.09.2015
England v Wales at Twickenham (World Cup, Pool A)
South Africa v Samoa in Birmingham (World Cup, Pool B)
Italy v Canada in Leeds (World Cup, Pool D)
Briefly
England v Wales and South Africa v Samoa reviewed elsewhere on this blog
Italy v Canada
POOL D
| P | W | D | L | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | BP | PT | |
| FRANCE | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 70 | 22 | 48 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 9 |
| IRELAND | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 7 | 43 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| ITALY | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 32 | -22 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| CANADA | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 50 | -43 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| ROMANIA | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 38 | -27 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
This will be a very difficult pool for Italy to qualify from for the quarter finals. They are up against France and Ireland. To have any chance they will need to score bonus points against Canada. This they can do but I expect Canada to put in a tough performance against Italy, sniffing weaknesses in the Italian play and hoping for the second major upset in this tournament. Although it will be close I don’t expect Italy to lose.
Prediction: Italy by 10 points. Score 23-13
26.09.2015
Venue: Korsängens Arena, Enköping
Referee: Stuart Gaffikin (Ireland)
| P | W | D | L | PF | PA | DIFF | B | PT | |
| BELGIUM | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 189 | 75 | 114 | 2 | 22 |
| MOLDOVA | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 155 | 83 | 72 | 4 | 16 |
| POLAND | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 132 | 157 | -25 | 2 | 15 |
| UKRAINE | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 108 | 81 | 27 | 1 | 13 |
| NETHERLANDS | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 81 | 74 | 3 | 2 | 10 |
| SWEDEN | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 60 | 255 | -193 | 0 | 0 |
Preview
Taking backstage to the Rugby World Cup the European Championship continues with Sweden hosting Belgium. Sweden is almost guaranteed of relegation whilst Belgium, who are heading the points table has a lot to win for.
Prediction: Belgium by 10 points. Score 26-16
TEAMS
Belgium Squad
Julien Berger , Provence Rugby
Bertrand Billi , Soignies
Nathan Bontems , Racing Métro
Ryan Brion , Royal Kituro
Cian Cauwenberghs , Royal Kituro
Brieuc Corradi , Soignies
Tom Coupé , Dendermonde
Bram Coupé , La Hulpe
Sep De Backer , Dendermonde
Christophe Debaty , RFC Liégeois
Max Dubois , Soignies
William Hubert , ES Catalane
Baptiste Lescarboura , Royal Kituro
Simon Marote , ASUB
Julien Massimi , ASUB
Tornike Megrelidze , Soignies
Tuur Moelants , Boitsfort
Romain Pinte , Royal Kituro
Florian Piron , Chartres
Hugo Sensée , Royal Kituro
Maxime Temmerman , ASUB
Esteban Thewissen , Stade Toulousain
Raffaele Vaccaro , Boitsfort
Savenaca Vocea , Dendermonde
Kevin Williams , ASUB
http://sportkipik.be/trois-changements-chez-les-diables
Sweden Squad
Prop , MakJelek Dozo , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Hooker , James Darbyshire , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Prop , Mark Beveridge , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Lock , Erik Sjöbeck , Pingvin RC Trelleborg
Lock , Tobias Rörstam , Pingvin RC Trelleborg
Back row , Sebastian Nockmar , Norrköping RK Trojan
Back row , Måns Derk , Södertälje RC
N°8 , Sean Burke , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Scrum Half , Matt Mitchell , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Fly half , Dustin Eaton ,Stockholm Exiles RFC
Winger , Oliver Sharp , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Center , Tim Karl Johansson , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Center , Neill Erasmus , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Winger , Robin Fransson , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Full Back , Ian Gowland (Capt.), Stockholm Exiles RFC
Prop , Henrik Ek , Norrköping RK Trojan
Hooker , Alexander Johansson , Vänersborg RK
Prop , Grant Duffy , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Lock , Alexander Rappestad , Stewarts Melville RFC (Scotland)
Back row , Andre´ Eriksson , Pingvin RC Trelleborg
Player , Karl Linderoth , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Player , Rikus Van Niekerk , Stockholm Exiles RFC
Player , Oliver Callaghan , 19930618 , Amstelveense RC (Netherlands)
Adapted from http://iof3.idrottonline.se/SvenskaRugbyforbundet/Nyheter/Senastenytt/HerrXVlagetmotBelgien/?source=0
26.09.2015
Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
| P | W | D | L | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | BP | PT | |
| SCOTLAND | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 10 | 35 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| SAMOA | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 16 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| JAPAN | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 44 | 77 | -33 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| SOUTH AFRICA | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 32 | 34 | -2 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| UNITED STATES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 25 | -9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Preview
This is a massive game for both teams. South Africa must come back with a bonus point win to make up for their shock loss to Japan whilst Samoa will be eyeing top spot in this Pool.
South Africa has made a number of changes to their side including most of the backline. It is do or die for them and they will surely bring back a hugely physical game.
Samoa is not known for standing back and will bring their physicality to this game. For them it is a chance to secure their first win over South Africa and steal top place in this Pool. That is their aim.
This will be a massively brutal game. Can’t wait
GWC Rugby Rankings
World Table: South Africa 9th, Samoa 13th
IRB Ranking Points
South Africa 81.15, Samoa 76.18
GWC Rugby Ranking Points
South Africa 81.15, Samoa 76.18
Prediction: South Africa by 9 points. Score 39-30
TEAMS
Samoa
15 Timothy Nanai-Williams, 14 Ken Pisi, 13 Paul Perez, 12 Rey Lee-Lo,
11 Alesana Tuilagi, 10 Michael Stanley, 9 Kahn Fotuali'i, 8 Ofisa Treviranus (Capt), 7 Jack Lam, 6 TJ Ioane, 5 Joseph Tekori, 4 Teofilo Paulo, 3 Census Johnston, 2 Motu Matu'u, 1 Zak Taulafo
Replacements
16 Ole Avei, 17 Viliami Afatia, 18 Anthony Perenise, 19 Faifili Levave, 20 Vavae Tuilagi, 21 Vavao Afemai, 22 Tusi Pisi, 23 George Pisi
Head Coach:Stephen Betham
South Africa
15 William le Roux, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Jean de Villiers (Capt.), 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Fourie du Preez, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Schalk Burger, 6 Francois Louw, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Adriaan Strauss, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Replacements
16 Schalk Brits, 17 Trevor Nyakane, 18 Frans Malherbe, 19 Lood de Jager,
20 Siya Kolisi, 21 Ruan Pienaar, 22 Patrick Lambie, 23 Jesse Kriel.
Head Coach: Heyneke Meyer
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