so who's going to win the rugby world cup this year?
 

any rugby fans in here? who do you think will win the world cup? im definitely going for the all blacks. this time, they are going to the top!

All Blacks

South Africa

All Blacks

Get real, Batman. Joost is in the side. That alone signifies failure.

I think its between the All Blacks (Or make that the Blues + Jona Luma) :) and England.

or shall we just make that the Crusaders ;)

I havent seen your squad yet, but as formidable as the Crusaders' pack is, I'd rather put my money on the Blues' backline. In a strength v Strength contests with England, the Crusaders' pack will lose out. The Blues showed everyone how to play them. England would have taken note. And with little johnny there for place kicking.......lets just say I'd rather bet on Dougie Howlett & co.

France

hahaha! now that is humour! ;)

Hey where does it say on the thread title: Excluding The Wallabies? They're clearly the favorites and they'll clearly win.
Go Aussies!

My compatriot thebatman started it when he mentioned us as a possible winner. At the moment we are world number 5 and it hurts.

"kin convict rugby league converts and imports. ;)

England possibly (hate to say it though).
France I believe will be up there. The 6 Nations was a practice for them, trying out different players. Come World Cup time, they'll be up for it and probably on form.
Obviously I want Ireland to win, but I can't see that happening because England are too good as are New Zealand.
I do think New Zealand will win it though.

WALLABIES!!!

actually, jmf1234 - Australia is nowhere near being fav in this world cup. we've got about 10 wallabies on the injuries list, and recently we lost to both the All Blacks and the Poms, meaning that they're favoured above us...

however, i think that eddie jones has quite a few tricks and surprises up his sleeve for this september.

anyway, back to the question - my money is on an England vs New Zealand final... and a New Zealand win... with the Aussies as a outside pick.

i'd hate to see the cup go to the northern hemisphere!

All Blacks and England would be my leading picks. South African rugby is in danger of treading the downward spiral the Welsh have; the Wallabies look to be in the kind of slump that hit New Zealand in 90/91 and 97-99, with experienced, quality players leaving and no ready replacements.

It's a tough one. Before I start I must mention that am English and suffer from some element of bias.

There are 4 teams that can win it, England, Australia, New Zealand, and France. England are currently the world's best but to put it bluntly we are not that great away from home. Australia as hosts have to be favourates a great side and couple that with the fact that we only just beat them at twickenham, a lot will depend on that 'orrible George Smith (he is a bit good). New Zealand, well again England only beat them in a very tight game, they are always strong and will potentially make the final. This is the one I hate to say, France, they have the power of the northern hemisphere and the flair of the southern hemisphere. Fair enough they were rubbish in the 6 nations but the French will be there for the world cup. Just look at the 2 teams in the final of the Heineken cup (european cup), both french (although one would prefer to be catalan).

Outsiders: Ireland. Great season and with the pace of O'Driscol and the emergence of Geordan Murphy at full back they could indeed surprise a few.

No Hope: South Africa, they are in utter turmoil, lacking players in a lot of positions. Especially number 10, they only just managed to beat scotland at the weekend.

Gah that should have been an all Irish Heineken Cup final. And then Leinster would have beaten Munster on account of the final being in Lansdowne Road. er, and because they are better too. :)

All Blacks

I don't see why not, but the upcoming test with England will be crucial imo. If the ABs lose, Mitchell better shake up the squad in time for the World Cup.

Once again the English win a couple of games and proclaim to be the best. To even be considered the best in the world you have to have beaten everyone, everywhere. There are only two teams that have consistently done that of late: the Wallabies and the All Blacks. Sure, you beat us at Twickenham, but when was the last time you beat us below the Equator? (actually, i'm interested to know that, it might be not as far back as i thought...)

Don't get me wrong, England is a fantastic side, but too much seems to rely on the boot of Wilkinson. To beat Southern Hemisphere sides, you have to play strongly through the backs, and i'm not sure England can do that. It's true in the past they've won against SH powerhouses, but most have been in try-less shootouts, and that type of rugby is rarely seen in World Cups...

The Kiwis are the one's to beat. Jonah is a big loss, but they have an army to pick from with easily the best 4 club sides in the world.

The Wallabies will be up there also, as well as France, but surely the Kiwis would have to start favourites. It would be a dark day for us Aussies if the All Blacks won the cup on our soil!

Whoever wins, it will be the best tournament ever, that's for sure...

id love to say england but i think they've gone too old in the pack, neil back and dorian west etc should give way i think the all blacks, the NZ teams were great in super 12 this year it just looks like they've got so much depth i think they've got to win

The English are great at Twickers but the world cup isn't played there is it?

Oh and about the poll. I think it should have been a straight pick between tri nations and six nations. and then europen cup and super 12. Club rugby is not the same as international even though, as Meridae'n pointed out, the sides mention would tonk some NH national sides.

The same could be said for most sports.
Clubs will usually be better than international teams. Exception probably being the NBA.

That's an interesting theory Eiresol, but not one i agree with. The old adage "A champion team will always beat a team of champions" sure is romantic, but it's complete horseshit.

Ireland are my dark horse, failing that, I would really like to see someone embarrass England.

I think England will do a pretty good job at that!

Unfortunately, i'm only joking...

after seeing england playing such boring spoiling tactics on the weekend, i really hope someone takes them down.

i fear that won't be the wallabies this saturday, though. Flatley has just been ruled out, and that makes about 11-12 on the injured or not available list. even though we beat the welsh pretty easily, they're only the welsh, and we lacked intensity.

england only just beat the all blacks, who were not playing well at all! umaga had a shocker of a game, and even the Haka was poor. carlos spencer was seriously good, even though he should have run the backs more.

england, annoying as always played a rushed defense and spoiling game that should give an indication of what to expect for the rest of the year.

i think that south africa put up a much better show than expected against the scots. maybe we shouldn't be counting them out of the world cup after all...

well, after a seriously important weekend, thats the major 4 teams.

my pick for bill is still the all blacks, with much more game experience after the tri nations. england in the final, but hopefully being thrashed there, or earlier. wallabies as an outside pick, also after a good tri nations build up.

I was a bit worried about who was lining opposite Wilkinson on Saturday night, but Nathan Grey is the man for the job. He is probably the hardest back to have played for Aust. in the last five years - runs like a train and has a reputation for smashing blokes in tackles. Probably the ideal man opposite Wilkinson, who needs to be put under pressure. Injuries have kept him low for the past couple of seasons, but fittness has bought him a new lease on his career. The only thing is he's never started a Test at 5/8...

i just wanna see Grezy (coz heś crazy) absolutely polax wilkinson.
i think with Greyt at 5/8 this should be an interesting match. the poms are using a spoiling defense at the breakdown, which confused the All Blacks, but with Grey theyĺl probably just smash it up the centre.
hope its a great game tonight.

England - no debate :)

well, last night was a wee bit disappointing.

i could think of a few excuses... like our season only starting, many injured wallabies, England peaking too early... but the fact is, England beat us like we used to beat them.

Wallabies were ok, that was by far their best form so far this year, but England were too good. and they didn't play that boring spoiling defense like they did against NZ.

i'd love to know what was going on between Mat Rogers and Josh Lewsey... that hit he got on Rogers was absolutely massive. he'd probably lined him up for a long time, and then absolutely polaxed him.

oh well, there are still a few months to improve so we can beat the Poms when it counts. hehe.

and about NZ thrashing Wales, that was revenge.

The Wallabies will win.

They would have won last weekend in Melbourne had the crowd of 55,000 known more about the sport than it is played with a ball of similar shape to an Australian Rules Football!!!!

If you have ever been to "Telstra Dome" in Melbourne during an AFL game there is no risk of nodding off to sleep - the acoustics in there make for a fantastic atmosphere - on Saturday night the crowd was too busy trying to work out why everyone was throwing the ball backwards to voice their support for the Aussies.

Come World Cup and the Aussies playing in front of their REAL home crowd in Sydney, they will beat England (and everyone else, but that's a given!).

I reckon it's a toss up between the 3 Southern hemisphere teams and England. The poms are in great form right now, but you can't rule out Australia or New Zealand - I must admit I haven't been keeping that up to date with rugby right now though - I'm an Aussie Rules man myself (though I enjoy all sports and follow them all to some degree)

This ain't 1995. Jonah is extremely doubtful to play and the team doesn't seem to have the bias that it has had in recent years (mostly Crusaders etc).

England do rely too heavily on Wilkinson I think. Boooring rugby. :)

Maybe in the past i'd have agreed with you but after the way we thrashed you Wallabies on your home patch , no way .

And we did it with a malfunctioning Wilkinson to boot !:)

England clear favourites with France to make it an all northern hemisphere final .

the wallabies are going to make it 2 in a row and become the 1st team to win 3 world cups

Rrrrigghhttt, because getting thumped by New Zealand twice CLEARLY means they're going to win the RWC. /sarcasm.

Oh, btw, Blacks rated as number one in world cuz the dumb pommies sent their B Squad to Canada when they said they were bringing their A Squad, and they lost to France. All Blacks vs. England in the final, All Blacks get revenge. dustbuster, England can't play France in the final because the way the pools are set up, they'll prolly play each other in the quarter final tho.

England should face France in the semis. If everything goes to form.

As for the rankings depends on who you look at. The IRB rankings rate England 1st, NZ 2nd, and Ireland 3rd. Australia are ranked 4th. Mainly due to the shoeing NZ gave them and their loss to England http://www.irb.com/rankings/index.cfm

Wow, USA is ranked 14th, not bad, not bad at all.

England are clearly overrated.

The All Blacks shown they can be very lethal once the two wingers (Douggie and Rock'em-Sock'em) find space and get some momentum.

As long as the ABs don't play conservative (like they did against England) they should have no problems advancing in the tournament.

Well, I'd like to say South Africa and I'm going to be supporting them. But theyve had "internal issues" lately and thats going to affect their game.

So my guess is Wallabies, and if not them, then All Blacks.

I think France's last time was just fluke.

The Red Sox!!!!! Hell, once they finish off winning the World Series, I think they can do anything.

I disagree that England are over-rated. They won a grand slam in the northern hemisphere and beat everyone of note in the southern hemisphere. A great year. What more can they do? Granted they tied up NZ and made it difficult to play, but then thats sport you play to your strengths not your opponents.

Granted NZ will walk over every team in the tournament except Australia and England. Both games will be immensely tough and will depend on the kicking brilliance of Wilkinson and the lethal english wingers. The supreme ability of Spencer, if only he could kick. Don't discount Australia, they probably have 2 of the top 4 flankers in the world, along with the best scrum half.

I'm so looking forward to it. Took friday off work to watch the opening day, a day of rugby and beer life can not get better.

England isn't over-rated, they play some good footy. However, I still contend that the ref controlled that test match between the Blacks and the Poms and slowed it down so much, he basically gave the match to the Poms. If the ref that does the judging for the Blacks/Poms match, lets the game flow, the Blacks should dominate with their amazing speed. Remember, their prop was the fastest in the 6K time runs. I guess it's like a train, once it gets goin, you can't stop it.

Arrrr, maybe not the Wallabies but didnt Sydney put on a great opening show this morning?

Those boyo's sure do know their shit :)

Err they beat us this year.

Hate to say it but they would have to be the favourites. So long as the kiwis or poms don't win it, i'll be reasonably happy, but we're definetely going to have to improve from the Argie match.

Phil

GO JAPAN!!
(its half time against Scotland atm, and their only losing 15-6!! i think thats called improvement)

and

GO GEORGIA!!
(i´m definitely cheering them on later against England!!)

Japan have played really well. Just a shame that Scotland's fitness has enabled them to win by 21 points. They definately didn't deserve to lose by that much.

England up next, anybody think the world record could be in danger of being broken here.

Okay it's chucking it down in Perth. England to win by 50 points plus.

at least. but i´m hoping they put up a decent fight.

what a shame Japan didn´t get on top of the Scots... you´re right Zubrei, they just didn´t have the fitness to keep up the intensity.

i reckon the US will have a real match on their hands against the Japanese. later on in this competition.

**edit - ok, so its half time in this one... and its a bit of a blow out... and after half time i think its going to get a lot worse... with Georgia getting tired... but GO LELOS!! ... they´re putting up a decent fight!!

New Zealand to take England out in the final.

AUSTRALIA WILL. And if the Penrith Panthers were involved they would take it out.

LOL!!

i like you more already!

i reckon they should run the Panthers up for Australia in both the League and the Union.

(just don´t rub the whole panthers thing into cchris... he won´t take it well - haha)

Bundy- I live in Penrith. You should see this place, its like Day of The Dead, all these people/ bums/ derros wandering around in old Penrith Jerseys. Its amazing. Its done alot for the town.

oh, please don´t get me wrong, i´m really pleased for the Panthers, and for the good its doing for the area... i hope they can back it up with another trophy next year (and that the Panthers boys in the Kangaroos do Australia proud against NZ and England).


back to the Rugby...

AMERICA, you should be getting well and truly behind your rugby team!!!

they played GREAT rugby against Fiji the other day... they were very unlucky to lose (i mean, that Australian, Hercus... thats right, he went to school in the year above me at one of my schools top rivals - could have won it with that last conversion).

the Yanks have really surprised everyone.
this isn´t to say that they are going to compete against the real top tier teams, it just means that for a minnow in this competition, they are going to kick ass.

another great surprise was Japan!! i can´t wait to see the US vs Japan match on the 27th.


i´d be really interested as to how many ex-pats are playing for other nations in this competition...

i mean, there are many many Kiwis playing for other teams, like Japan. quite a few Aussies playing for other teams like Scotland.
i´d also be intersted in how many other countries have Australians and Kiwis on their coaching staff. (like Mark Ella for Japan - if yoy were wondering why the Japanese backs played out of their skins against Scotland - thats the reason).

i wonder how the Japanese will cope against the French on Saturday night... i mean, they´ll lose.. but will the usual dirty tactics from the French team play a factor (i wonder if the Japanese are used to eye-gauging??)

4 SAfricans in the US team, apparently I think we have about 10 at the WC playing for other teams.
2 England
2 france
4 Yanks
I think 1 Italian
1 Aussie
Plus a few for Namibia

thats right, i´d forgotten about Dan Vickerman. he´s a damn good player... thanks South Africa.

I'm damn proud of the Eagles, taking Fiji to within a conversion of upsetting them. We also had the lead at one point. It was a heartbreaker, but hey, they still did a damn good job.

hey Doos, looks like all my cheering for the Bokkas last night wasn´t enough. bloody english!

yes, thats right, this little Aussie was backing South Africa last night, because hey, i mean, theres this little saying, ¨Anyone, but the English!¨

(actually, being an Aussie, i was really barracking for a big Van Niekerk hit on Wilkinson causing him to be put out of the cup - but lets not say that too loud, since thats not a nice thought!!)


might i bring up the age old question - why are teams like Uruguay, Namibia, Romania and Georgia even playing in this cup - i mean, they are just making up the numbers.

i know that teams like the US and Japan have really been putting a good fight. they are clearly capable of upsetting second tier teams, or maybe just challenging them ...

AUSSIE,AUSSIE,AUSSIE,OI,OI,OI !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I finally got to watch the US/Fiji test match (Fox Sports World is broadcasting matches on a 72 hour delay schedule and Pay Per View prices are just too high at 20 bucks a pop for a match) and I gotta tell ya, I'm just a little disappointed after seeing that match. Too many mistakes by the U.S. side to give up that lead. I know it's asking a lot, but hey, I'm a stickler for mistake free anything if it means a mark in the "W" column. It seems like the Eagles got on a high off of scoring that beauty of a try from Hercus' torpedo kick (someone's been watching too much American Football and the punters) and just forgot to play their game and let Fiji come back. Overall, it was a good effort, but I don't think I'm the only Yank that's tired of just "moral victories" for our side.

On a side note: I've been watching way too much rugby (if there is such a thing) I've started to say things like "bugger" around my friends. They're starting to look at me strangely whenever I start talking like a Kiwi and saying phrases like that.

Quick update on the standings for the RWC, they look pretty strange;

Pool A
Ireland w/ 10 points
Australia w/ 9
Argentina w/ 5
and Romania and Namibia tied w/ 0

Pool B
France w/ 10 points
Scotland w/ 5
Fiji w/ 4
USA w/ 1 *yeah, we have a point in the standings, amazing isn't it?*
Japan w/ 0

Pool C
Samoa w/ 10 points
England w/ 9
S. Africa w/ 5
and Uruguay and Georgia tied w/ 0

Pool D
New Zealand w/ 10 points (duh).
Wales w/ 9
Italy w/ 4
and Tonga and Canada tied w/ 0

England needs to start scoring some tries or else they're gonna end up in the runner up position and possibly facing elimination at the hands of the All Blacks.

Remember that Argentina were crap for a few WC and now are very competitive.

For me, the problem is that most of the new boys lack the infrastructure and finance to step up one more level.

I think England have a really great chance this time. If not maybe the all blacks.

That's exactly right, because besides the Aussies, Kiwis, Brits, Scots, Irish, and the South Africans, nobody has the structure to get their ruggers up to the speed of the perennial powers, although, those Minnow teams now, will eventually come around and start takin names and kickin butt.

Bugger :-( SA lost to England. Means we now face NZ in the quarters.

Not looking good, not looking good <b>at</b> all.

Well, if Samoa keeps goin on its big run and England stays pretty consistent with the W column, and if SA doesn't get its act together, the Bokkas might not even MAKE it to the Q-finals. Ahhh, it's a wonderful time to be a Kiwi Supporter.

You know the Argentineans are still on the basic grant of whatever it is that the players receive from the WC as a stipend? Something like $275 (Aus) a day?

Well, as the Kiwi says, we might not even make the quarters ;)

don´t believe that for a second.
boks will get through... to the quarters at least.

letting Georgia in for 19 points is pretty slack.

i´m going to the France vs Scotland match tomorrow night at Telstra Stadium ... can´t wait... i know it´ll be a run-away scoreline for France since the Bravehearts are in such poor form (esp with Andrew Mower injured - fyi, he went to my school a few years above me).

but i´d really love to see an upset.

well, no upset for me (or Scotland).

great to see a packed out stadium for this match.
crowd was absolutely pumped (and very vocally behind the Scots).

ladies and gentlemen, 142-0.
now thats a huge scoreline. (i think its the biggest win ever... i know that NZ won 145-17 against Japan a few years back, but they still let in 17).

well done to the Aussie B squad.

Update on the Pool Standings

Pool A
Australia 14
Ireland 14
Argentina 11
Romania & Namibia 0

Pool B
France 15
Scotland 10
Fiji 9
USA 1
Japan 0

Pool C
England 14
South Africa 10
Samoa 10
Uruguay & Georgia 0

Pool D
New Zealand 15
Wales 13
Italy 8
Canada & Tonga 1

Shoe Ins: Australia, what more can you say, biggest scoreline in RWC history and they ain't gonna make it, yeah right, in France's dreams. Ireland, the Argies are no longer a threat because they can't score any more Pool Place Points. France, c'mon, all they have left to play is the Eagles, man, that's gonna be uglier than Janet Reno in a thong.
England only has Uruguay to play, yeah, an upset will happen when the Eagles win the World Cup.
New Zealand, everybody surrendered and fielded their B Sides against the All Blacks, these guys were in from day one. Wales, Italy, like the Argies, can't score any more place points.

On the Edge: Scotland and Fiji, whoever wins this moves on to the Quarterfinals, same situation for South Africa and Samoa.

Everyone else is just playin for pride.

Here's how I see the Quarters matching up.

New Zealand v. Samoa, I don't think that the Bokkas have gotten focused enough to win against Samoa and move on.

Australia v. Scotland, the Aussies have too much talent to not win against the Irish.

France v. Ireland, see above.

England v. Wales, the ultimate rivalry, besides Australia and New Zealand.

I watched the England/Samoa game, England look VERY shaky, the only thing that saved them was Wilkinson's sharp up-n-under to put the nail in the coffin, but his goal kicking was attrocious.

A NZ/Samoa Quarter final would be cool :D considering a lot of the Samoans play their club rugby in NZ (like the Lions' blistering winger Lome Fa'atau).

England however have an unbelievably easy road to final, but I hope they lose to somebody, they are just too overrated and I can't stand their style of rugby, they just play flat out dirty and boring rugby.

Okay, I have NO idea how the hell the game is played, but, damn it looks like a lot of fun. Caught some of the New Zealand - Tonga games last night. Confusing? You bet? Hard to follow (at least for this american)? Yup. Fun as hell to watch or possibly play? ABSOLUTELY! In fact, growing up, my buddies and I did play this game only we called it, "Kill the guy with the ball" or "Get the hat" :D Seriously though, it was cool to watch. I think I'll check it out more often. DirecTV is showing some of the games.

The game is getting more popular in the Chicagoland area. More high schools are starting to play it. Very cool! :cool:

man that England v Samoa match was a great game.

dirty English playing 16 men.
should be penalised more harshly in my opinion.

totally agree with those Quarters ... having seen Samoa play like that they definitely deserve to go further than the boks.

the Aussie team looks like its making it hard for the selectors.

i mean, all of our squad seems to be hitting some good form... hope this match against Ireland helps Eddie Jones finally pick the best squad.

scotland haven´t been playing very well at all in this cup, so i figure that´ll be an easy one for the wallabies, but hey, anything can happen.

nz should account for samoa (thats if they get in), but that should be a great game to watch. can´t wait for that one. nz v boks should be a walk over, but it would be a tough physical match.

england v wales should be a walk in the park for the cheating poms. wales will give a lot of heart, but thats not enough. same story for the french and the irish.

that´ll lead to an interesting grand final - i mean Southern Hemisphere against Nothern Hemisphere.

bill has never been won by a northern team. and i´d hate to see the poms take it home...

Almost EVERYBODY would hate to see the Poms win. You'd never hear the end of it.

Not happenin, basically all of the Southern teams have way too much speed and when England played the Wallabies and the All Blacks at the beginning of international play (when each team played the Poms), the ruggers on the Aus. and NZ side had just come off of the Super 12 championship and there was still that feeling of "I don't quite like you very much right now..." and there wasn't that great of a chemistry between the players. However, now that both the Aussies and Kiwis are running on all cylinders, I predict a Pommie/All Blacks showdown with the Blacks dazzling them with their speed, and showing plenty of flash.

Update on RWC Pool Standings (just winner and runner up this time)

Pool A
Australia-18
Ireland-15

Pool B
France-20
Scotland-14

Pool C
South Africa-15
England-14 (The Poms still have Uruguay left to play tho)

Pool D
New Zealand-15
Wales-13 (These two still have to play as well).

some good, and some bad rugby played last night.

firstly, a complete and utter Bokka destruction of Samoa.
boks played well, samoans played poorly... end to a fairy tale for the islanders.

i have to admit while i was cheering on the boks, a tiny piece of me would´ve loved to have seen the islanders get through to the quarters.

(btw, Doos, i met the cutest africaan girl last night... damn fine lady!! please send more - i´m such a sucker for that accent)

and as for the Aussies, well, i have to say that i was hurting watching that second half.

we started off well, dominating the first 20minutes. but after that the wallabies just retreated into a defensive mind-set. no one in the backline really played well. roff had a shocker, as did latham, rogers and burke.

we only just held on.

if that was against the boks, the French, the Kiwis or the Poms, we´d have been absolutely thrashed.

but hey, we got through... next stop Scotland... and then it´s NZ...


**edit - oh, and Rod McQueen - the greatest rugby coach ever - has been warning everyone about the French... he says their discipline atm is more than enough to upset any of the major teams. after two losing RWC finals, could this be the year?? (i doubt it)

Finalized Pool Standings (again, winners and runners up only).

Pool A
Australia-18
Ireland-15

Pool B
France-20
Scotland-14

Pool C
England-19
South Africa-15

Pool D
New Zealand-20
Wales-14

Well, almost all of my playoff predictions came true, not bad for a Yank huh? My next post shall feature a breakdown of what I think will happen in the Road to Telstra Stadium for the Cup.

Quarterfinals

New Zealand v. South Africa QF1

Australia v. Scotland QF2

France v. Ireland QF3

England v. Wales QF4

Semifinals

New Zealand v. Australia

England v. France

Third Place Playoff

Australia v. France

Final

New Zealand v. England

Winner: New Zealand

archer, did you manage to see that NZ vs Wales match??

that was a GREAT game - probably the game of the cup so far...
they both played great attacking rugby.
which with the boring style that the poms have been employing, has been rare in this competition.

the Welsh really stuck it to the blacks most of the match... i mean, if it hadn´t been the best NZ squad (possibly ever) they would have been upset.

Rocococo was just too fast and in form, but the Welsh leading at half time, and dominating play in the first half was great to watch.

i think, just like Samoa, the Welsh won´t be able to repeat that effort against the next big team they come up against (they´ve got England in the qtrs)...

it can be kind of seen as England and NZ passing two big tests. Samoa scared England, and the Welsh put the wind up NZ.
shame there weren´t some real upsets.

well done to the Welsh!
hope you guys can repeat the effort against the poms.

as for your predictions for the rest of the cup Archer, well its pretty hard to bet against that outcome.

though i think for the third place spot, Australia will struggle against the French...

it´ll be a nasty match. a revenge match where the dirty French will try their hardest to hurt, and beat the Aussies in retaliation for the defeat in the final 4 years ago.

No, unfortunately, I have not seen that match yet, stupid Fox Sports World broadcasts them on a 72 hour delay, and pay-per-view is just too much money. Man, I wish I had Sky Sports. But I imagine it was a good matchup, because when I watched the first Wales/NZ match earlier in the year, the Welsh showed some promise, but never could get it going. *Sigh* maybe it's time for me to move to New Zealand.

Whoa did anyone see the All Blacks - Springboks game ?

My god that was insane, pretty much 1 try separating the teams until about 60 minutes in, I was yelling at the TV so much I nearly lost my voice.

Great game by the All Blacks, especially Spencer and Meelamu. A 20 meter break by a hooker for a try is one thing, a 20 meter break by a hooker for a try against the Springboks is another.

Great game AB's you thoroughly deserved your stay at the world cup.

Now to armageddon next week (provided Australia beat whoever they are playing now). For anybody who knows little about rugby.. the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry has absolutely nothing on the Australia/New Zealand rivalry.

GO BLACK!

Spencer was in GREAT FORM!!
which isn´t good for the Wallabies.

Boks put up a great fight.
its just a shame they didn´t upset Black.
apparently its the first time NZ has ever beaten the Boks in a World Cup... and its also the first time either of the teams has lost in before the semis.


as for the Wallabies, well another shit first half. not clinical. not good enough if thats what we´re going to give to the Blacks.

the second half was better... STIRLING and LOTE... its about time. please Eddie Jones, drop Mat Rogers for Matt Burke.


as for armageddon... Spartak... you´re bloody right.

Australia / NZ ... bring it on!! this is the greatest sporting rivalry in the world.
nothing better than having an underdog Aussie squad battling their hearts out against a tough opposition.

GO GOLD!

To be fair, we missed about 4 tackles on Mealamu.

Just wait til we get a real coach :o

Excuses, excuses, admit defeat and move on Doos.

I think France has it in them, after their performance against Ireland. So much style, so much precision, basically everything that Australia lacks. :P

you could well be right there addiction.
in the past week theres been a more than a few experts suddently taking notice of France.

personally i think it could well be a repeat of the ´87 rwc final.

OH MY FUCKING GOD!!!

Wallabies 22-10!!!

i can´t believe it!
what an amazing match!!!

Stirling Mortlock, i love you!!!
every single wallaby went out there and played their hearts out!!

too much pressure, finally made the kiwis crack...

now, lets see if France can stick it right up the poms, and then we can replay the last cup final!!

god i love rugby!

The worst possible thing happened:

The backs got shut down and Concussions MacDonald had to make pressure kicks. The blatant lack of kicking game was exposed and there you go.

The try by Mortlock didn't help either :(

I kinda hope that France lose to England, just so that I'm not cheering for both teams in the final. :P

But what an amazing performance by the Aussies. They absolutely locked New Zealand down in the last 20 minutes, and defended their lead with class. Well done.

Spartak, who needs a kicking game?

It was funny, though, the few times Australia fot it in their heads that they had a ruck. Someone really needs to tell them that they don't.

The France-England game is looking pretty violent...whichever team gets through to next weekend will have a point to prove vs. Australia; that'll be a sensational game.

And here's to Johnny Wilkinson's boot!

I hope you're being sarcastic :/

The main reason you won that game was because Elton Flatley was knocking in one penalty after another.

You do need a kicking game, look at England right now, ahead by 5 all because of 4 kicks.

EDIT: wow, all 24 points for England came from the boot of one Johnny Wilkinson.

Bring on the third place playoff!

Spartak, that boot can win matches, but we don't play a kicking game and neither do you. The strength of the Australian side is in running the ball; we rarely get involved in the kind of arial ping-pong that the Frogs and the Poms were carrying on with.
Which is a problem. We rely on our defence to keep tries out when we get caught with the ball in our own half; that strategy isn't much good against a team that likes to score field goals.
Can't really say I'm glad England won; they'll be tough competition in the final.

By the way, Bundy, great new avatar!
What a bloody champion...

Point taken.

Now good luck against the Poms! :D

Already looking forward to saturday.

2 great defences, the deciding factor will be between the back rows. Who can secure enough quality ball. Smith is simply superb, but England are so much better with Richard Hill back in the team. Look at how England totally dominated the French back row, who was regarded as the best in the tournement prior to today.

Prediction: England to win by 10 points.

what a boring display of northern hemisphere rugby sunday night was.

for everyone who wished to know the difference between northern and southern rugby, just compare saturday and sunday.

Australia vs NZ was an absolute cracker of a match, and thats not just because i´m an Aussie. England and France was boring, slow ping pong.

that Dominici attack was hilarious, probably the funniest thing i´ve seen in this tournament (apart from Rokocoko dropping the ball out over the sideline - sorry NZ, but that was hilarious)

the crap weather was courtesy of Sydney, but the rest was all down to Englands game plan, and Frances inability to just do anything.

boring boring boring.

about this coming Saturday...
can Australia once again put the English to sporting shame (just like we´ve done in every single other sport - including english staples such as darts and bowls)...
btw, if Australia does win this one, apparently we get to keep the cup.

or will the poms finally win Bill?

my advice...never, ever bet against an underdog Aussie team.


**edit - oh, and i almost forgot...

RULE BRITANNIA
MARMALADE AND JAM
5000 CRACKERS UP YOUR ASSHOLE
BANG BANG BANG