Quarter-finals take shape as group stages culminate at Rugby World Cup
Who's through and who's going home as the group stages draw to a close at France's 2023 Rugby World Cup?
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England's rugby players moved into the last eight at the World Cup on Thursday night without even exerting themselves. Japan's 28-22 defeat of Samoa left England sitting pretty at the top of Group D with 14 points.
A win over Samoa on 7 October will confirm their spot at the top of the pool.
Argentina, who waltzed past World Cup debutants Chile 59-5 on Saturday afternoon in Nantes, will battle it out with Japan on 8 October for the other quarter-final berth from Group D.
On the face of it, nothing unusual so far.
But England went into the 10th rugby union World Cup in abject form. They had lost seven of their nine games in 2023 before the tournament.
And the calamitous air hovering over the squad seemed to be lingering. Tom Curry was sent off three minutes into their opening game against Argentina for a dangerous tackle.
But rather than a 77-minute countdown to ignominy, up stepped George Ford, a man with a spiffy haircut.
Straight of back and firm of purpose, Ford rallied the troops in Marseille on that balmy September night and with his boot bedazzled the South Americans with all of England's points in the 27-10 win.
He orchestrated an equally gritty victory over Japan, which set England fair before Owen Farrell returned from suspension to lead the 71-0 romp against Chile.
And then the calendar did the rest.
Australia cling on
Australian fans would have delighted in the first half of the match between Georgia and Fiji.
Georgia led 9-0 at the pause against a Fiji side that appeared to be on the beaches back home and nowhere near gaining the bonus point for a fourth try which would have eliminated Australia at the group stages for the first time in the 36-year history of the competition.
Fiji recovered their mojo to win 17-12 and take a huge step towards the quarter-finals.
"I'm relieved," said Fiji skipper Waisea Nayacalevu after the clash.
"We've played Georgia in a few games, the last time we played them we drew 15-15.
"We didn't manage to do a few things during the match. We dropped the ball several times and we put ourselves under pressure in the first half.
"But I told the boys: 'We keep fighting. We keep focusing, keep on going, don't back out', and in the end in the second half we managed to get away with the win, so I'm proud of the boys."
As Fiji ponder the knockout stages, Australian rugby union chiefs have reached their quo vadis moment. Fans and pundits are asking exactly in what direction the team is going.
Head coach Eddie Jones has come under intense criticism following defeats to Fiji and Wales but has refused to resign.
He says that his squad of neophytes will need to suffer before it can flourish.
Looking to 2027
But such agonies have not been the Australian way. Teams from the land have won two World Cup crowns and been runners-up twice.
The Australians are on a timescale too. They will host the 2027 World Cup.
"This is the youngest team in the competition," said Australian sports minister Anika Wells, who was in France during the tournament on a fact-finding mission.
"They've got a lot of heart," she added. "And I was encouraged that so many stepped forward to take responsibility for the result against Fiji.
"That really does show leadership and a cohesive team. And that will put us in great stead for the years to come."
Whether Jones will be there to mastermind the surge remains to be seen.
Scotland's chances
Australia maintained their wafer-thin hopes of progress with a 34-14 victory over Portugal on Sunday afternoon in Saint-Etienne.
They moved up to second in Group C on 11 points as a resut of the win.
The Fijians though will get a final opportunity to reach the quarters for the first time since 2007 with at least a draw with Portugal on 8 October.
In Group B, Scotland's chances of reaching the last eight depended on a trident of factors: thrash Romania on Saturday night in Lille to get a bonus fifth point and then revel in Tonga's shock victory over South Africa on Sunday in Marseille.
The Scots then need to go to Paris on 7 October and see off Ireland – the world's top ranked team.
And why not?
Scotland executed part one of the plan. Darcy Graham scored four ties as Romania were dismissed 84-0.
Now for the Tongans to take down the South Africans ...
Namibia out
With the huge victory, the Scots at least have extended their interest until next week.
The Namibians, though, are finished. Their four games were packed into 18 days. Three batterings and a frustration would best describe the campaign at a seventh World Cup.
No chance against Italy, New Zealand and France, they led Uruguay 23-12 but lost their discipline and the match 36-26.
"It's a bitter pill to swallow," said Namibia fly-half André van der Berg.
"Because we were doing everything that we wanted to do. We started off really quick and also after half-time.
"And then just two cards, which you can't do at this level. I think that's that's the difference – discipline. We got too many penalties against us and you can't really get back from that stage."
Namibia's pummellings at the tournament, along with calls from coaches of other tier two nations such as Fiji and Chile, should force World Rugby – which organises the World Cup – into a rethink of the annual fixture schedule to ensure the disparity between nations closes.
"The same questions are being asked," said Namibia skipper Tijuee Uanivi.
"How can you improve? And it's quite easy. It's playing more competitive games against the tier-one countries, quality opposition, whether it's one or two games a year.
"If we can do that during the next four years, I think the difference will be massive."
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