RWC Draw
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jeez Pool A looks soft!
Japan to win it
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@taniwharugby wrong thread for baiting the Lions fans dude.
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@taniwharugby said in RWC draw + project players:
jeez Pool A looks soft!
Japan to win it
Minus 2 out of 10 for trolling qualities. And another point deducted for being late with your comment.
Tsk, tsk.
-3/10. Must try harder. Please sit at back of class from now on and learn from the masters.
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@Bovidae said in RWC draw + project players:
@KiwiMurph said in RWC draw + project players:
@mariner4life Nice summary. I think its actually looking like an ABs-England semi final if both teams top their pools and win quarters.
Yep, if the draw stays the same as previous RWCs then the only way NZ could play England in the final is if one of them finishes runner-up in their pool.
The likely match-ups would be:
Quarter-Final 1 (Winner Pool C v Runner-Up Pool D) England vs Wales
Quarter-Final 2 (Winner Pool B v Runner-Up Pool A) NZ vs Scotland
Quarter-Final 3 (Winner Pool D v Runner-Up Pool C) Aust vs France
Quarter-Final 4 (Winner Pool A v Runner-Up Pool B ) Ireland vs SASemi-Final 1 (Winner Quarter-Final 1 v Winner Quarter-Final 2) England vs NZ
Semi-Final 2 (Winner Quarter-Final 3 v Winner Quarter-Final 4) Aust/France vs Ireland/SAThe quarter final lineups will be as you state I.e. A1 v B2. etc., according to WR site. Can't find anything on senifinals though.
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@Pot-Hale when do they arrive?
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@Pot-Hale is that you Mrs Hesselgrave?
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@Pot-Hale This QF and SF format was used at the 2011 and 2015 RWCs.
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Herald reporting semi lineup as (all going to ranking) as
NZ V ENG
AUS V IREhttp://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11853533
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Who knows. Teams can look like world beaters now and turn up utter dog crap come World Cup year. England had beaten us soundly at Twickenham and gone 4-1 in the Six Nations at the same time last RWC cycle - they were viewed as a tough out.
From a NZ perspective I like the idea of playing SA in the pool rounds. It gives us something different to break the monotony of being paired with Tonga, Argentina, France & in the early days Wales - did pick up Italy again though.
In terms of draw structure what is better the Boks first up, last or somewhere in the middle?
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In terms of draw structure what is better the Boks first up, last or somewhere in the middle?
Later on, definitely, I think. Possibly last.
Ideally an easy shakedown game first, another bunny for the dirt-trackers to play second. A solid warm-up against Italy and to book qualification. Then a serious hit-out against the Boks prior to the play-offs.
Only downside with that schedule would be potentially picking up short term injuries to key squad members - in a dogfight with the Jaapies - that don't get a chance to heal.
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Ireland draw is funny, looks great at first, except they'll play either NZ or SA in the QF, being a bit underdone after just Scotland and dross in the pool.
NZ on the other hand, if they beat SA in pool, get a Scotland QF and then likely England SF, which is a nice smooth build up given we also have Italy in the pool.
Basically, the RWC is funny, you can either have 0, 1 or 2 quality pool opponents. 1 is perfect. 0 means you get a hard QF as thre will be multiple quality teams in the pool across from you in the draw, plus you'll be a bit underdone (a la NZ in 2007, likely Ireland in 2019). 2 means a pool of death like Eng/Aus/Wales in 2015, so you have at least 1 (maybe 2) effective knockout games before the actual knockouts.
1 is the perfect number. Which NZ had in 2011, and have in 2019. Sweet.
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@TeWaio Agreed. Ireland have got a very tough quarter final. They will either play us or the Boks.
If we can win our pool and England finish top of their pool and go on to beat Wales or Australia in the quarters, then the ABs should stroll into the final. We should take care of Scotland in the quarters fairly comfortably and then will be up against an English side that would be shattered after already having to peak for four massive test matches. They will be heavily fatigued and I think we will be much too strong for them.
Everybody is saying that Australia has the perfect draw, but I think we have the dream draw as long as we can finish on top of our pool.
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Pool A could be more interesting if Samoa land into the group as well. I don't think either of Ireland's matches v Scotland or Japan will be surefire wins at all. There's a good chance that Japan v Ireland may be selected as the tourney opener which puts more pressure on both sides for a win.
Scotland then lie in wait. Unless Samoa enter the frame, in which case there'll be a few bruised bodies emerging from this pool, but relatively battle-hardened.
Either way, I think Ireland up against NZ would actually be the perfect QF for them to be underdogs but respected. And I'd give them more than a chance of beating NZ too.
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Everyone says Ireland have a tough QF, most likely facing the Boks. Current form would suggest that the Boks would have a tough QF more so than the Irish.
People expect the Boks to be better and they play a style suited to a World Cup. We didn't find them easy in the semis and really could have lost that game.
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@hydro11 although Boks have dropped a long way since 2015, we can only hope they will be better by 2019
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@taniwharugby said in RWC Draw:
@hydro11 although Boks have dropped a long way since 2015, we can only hope they will be better by 2019
Nah ... am happy for them to be shit ....
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