RUGBY WORLD CUP 2023 PREVIEW

By Peter White

The best men’s teams will meet in France this September and October. Is it to be a fourth title for the All Blacks or could France or Ireland win for the first time?

Four years is a long time in sport but for New Zealand rugby fans, it still feels like only yesterday that the All Blacks suffered a humiliating semi-final defeat to a resurgent England in Yokohama, Japan.

So much rugby has been played since that fateful occasion for it to be just an historic footnote to this year’s Rugby World Cup in France, but it adds even more pressure on the All Blacks to win the final in Paris on October 28.

Since winning the inaugural World Cup held in New Zealand in 1987, the All Blacks have won just two more in 2011 and 2015, despite being the team to beat in world rugby between tournaments. The other nations to have triumphed are South Africa (1995, 2007, 2019), Australia (1991, 1999) and England (2003).

Ramping up the pressure and difficulty of this year’s assignment for the All Blacks is their meeting with host nation France in the tournament opener. The bruises may have faded from the teams’ last encounter in 2021, but not so the psychological advantage it gave France, after Les Bleus thumped their great rivals

40–25, a scoreline that flattered the men in black.

However, greater stress will be on the home side as their passionate fan base hope they can go one better than their footballers and win the Rugby World Cup for the first time. France have fallen agonisingly short in the past, losing the final in 1987, 1999 and 2011, so they must feel they are due to win one.

As New Zealand fans know all too well, there are no guarantees when it comes to winning the title but certainly France deserve to start as favourites, even if they are ranked behind world number one, Ireland. Since that demolition of the All Blacks, France played 10 tests last year and won the lot, including a Grand Slam against the other home unions.

Rugby World Cup kicks-off with that dream match-up between France and the All Blacks at the magnificent Stade de France in Paris. It will be only the second time the two teams have met during the pool stage and will have a huge bearing on who tops Pool A.

The two rugby heavyweights have met seven times at Rugby World Cups. The All Blacks have won five, including the tension-filled final in 2011 when Richie McCaw’s men hung on grimly to win 8–7. The two defeats probably rankle Kiwi fans more than any other losses incurred at World Cups, outside losing the 1995 final to South Africa.

In 1999, the All Blacks were cruising to victory, leading 24–10 in the semi-final at Twickenham before one of rugby’s greatest comebacks saw France triumph 43–31. Then eight years later, the two teams met in the quarter-final held at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium. The All Blacks were hot favourites after sweeping all before them in pool play, but lost 20–18 despite dominating large sections of the match.

But this Rugby World Cup is far, far more than just a two-team shoot-out. Ireland has every reason to be confident after they defeated the All Blacks last year to win their first series in New Zealand. One match that will have a major impact on Ireland’s chances of winning the tournament will come on September 23 when they take on defending champions South Africa at Stade de France.

Surprisingly, the two teams have never met at a Rugby World Cup. The Springboks have won 18 of the 27 tests played between them but significantly Ireland have won the last two.

This Rugby World Cup is perhaps the hardest to pick of them all, with so many teams capable of beating each other. The TAB has France as favourites, followed by the All Blacks, with Ireland, England and South Africa jointly rated third. Australia, Wales, Argentina and Scotland are the next four on the tipping table.

It is going to be a fascinating tournament for rugby fans around the world to enjoy.

France $3.50, New Zealand $3.75, Ireland $6.00, England $6.00, South Africa $6.00, Australia

$12.00, Wales $26.00, Argentina $31.00, Scotland $51.00, Fiji $151.00, Japan $151.00, Italy $251.00, Georgia $501.00, Samoa $501.00, Tonga $1001.00, Namibia $2501.00, Romania $2501.00, Chile $5001.00, Portugal $5001.00, Uruguay $5001.00