Rugby World Cup 2023: Your country-by-country Pool A guide - plus Donal Lenihan's verdict
MAIN MAN: France star Antoine Dupont will be expected to have a big tournament on home soil Picture: INPHO/Laszlo Geczo
France v New Zealand, Saint-Denis
Italy v Namibia, Saint-Etienne
France v Uruguay, Lille
New Zealand v Namibia, Toulouse
Italy v Uruguay, Nice
France v Namibia, Marseille
Namibia v Uruguay, Lyon
New Zealand v Italy, Lyon
New Zealand v Uruguay, Lyon
France v Italy, Lyon
New Zealand 4/5, France 10/11, Italy 150/1, Namibia 500/1, Uruguay 500/1
World number 21-ranked Namibia are one of only four teams to have conceded more than 1000 points at Rugby World Cup, sharing their unwanted record with fellow 2023 qualifiers Romania and North American duo USA and Canada. The Namibians crossed the threshold of 1000 points in a 58-14 defeat to the All Blacks in 2015.
An opening-night blockbuster when hosts France kickstart their home tournament at Stade de France against three-time champions New Zealand. It is a game to get the pulses racing as Fabien Galthie’s team welcome the resurgent All Blacks to Saint-Denis, with plenty at stake for the watching Pool B big guns, Ireland, South Africa and Scotland, whose ‘reward’ for reaching the quarter-finals will be a date with one of these two.
Can Uruguay catch the Italians by surprise in Nice on September 20? After apparently coming of age in the Six Nations in 2022, the Azzurri took a regrettable backward step in the championship earlier this year and the World Cup will represent head coach Kieran Crowley’s last before departing the scene. They will need to be on their guard against the South American minnows.
Take your pick here but if there is a more eye-catching player on the planet than France scrum-half and captain Antoine Dupont, we’ll eat our berets.
Penarol and Uruguay flanker Manuel Ardao, the younger brother of Uruguay sevens captain Diego, was crowned player of the tournament at Superliga Americana de Rugby
For his oversized glasses alone who wouldn’t want Fabien Galthie of France to be at the helm?
For all the loveable efforts and infrequent turning of the tables achieved by the Italians, this year’s hosts perfectly encapsulate the best and most romantic of rugby ideals. Allez les Bleus!
Perhaps the most difficult category of all, given the winemaking pedigrees of three of the teams in this pool but with heartfelt apologies to the French, a New Zealand pinot noir from Central Otago on the south island is difficult to beat.
Built in 2016, Parc Olympique Lyonnais, otherwise known as OL Stadium, the home of Ligue 1’s Olympique Lyonnais and the city’s Top 14 club, will play host to five pool matches, four of them in Pool A. The 59,186-capacity arena will be home to all five teams in the pool over the final two rounds with Les Bleus setting up camp there for their final game of the qualifying stages when they host Italy there on Oct 6, a day after the All Blacks take on Uruguay there. Wales and Australia get the ball rolling in Lyon in Pool C on September 24.
The lopsided nature of this pool means that once the hosts, France, and New Zealand have launched the tournament with a mouthwatering opening game on Friday night they can sit back, despite the outcome, and plan for a quarter-final outing five weeks down the line.
In any other company, Italy might fancy their chances of creating an upset but, despite their Six Nations pedigree, they too will prove no more than cannon fodder for two of the clear favorites in France and New Zealand to go all the way.
The challenge for the remaining pool occupants, Uruguay and Namibia, is to somehow come out of their incredibly challenging games against the other three opponents with bodies intact for what amounts to their only realistic opportunity of registering a win in the competition when they meet each other on September 27.
With the impressive Italian coach Kieran Crowley, a member of the New Zealand squad that won the inaugural World Cup back in 1987, already deemed surplus to requirements after the event, he has one last opportunity to finish his reign with the trademark attacking rugby that the Italians have shown in recent Six Nations campaigns.
Whoever loses that fascinating contest on the opening night will be able to draw on the fact that, despite losing to the All Blacks on the opening weekend of action in Japan in 2019, South Africa were able to recover and lift the Webb Ellis trophy six weeks later.
The outcome of that opening game also has implications for Ireland, which should prove fascinating.
This one is pretty straightforward. France and New Zealand will both be in rude health and ready to lift their game to the next level when the quarter-finals roll around in October.
(19) Cyril Baille (Toulouse), Jean-Baptiste Gros (Toulon), Reda Wardi (La Rochelle), Uini Atonio (La Rochelle), Dorian Aldegheri (Toulouse), Sipili Falatea (Bordeaux-Bègles), Julien Marchand (Toulouse), Peato Mauvaka (Toulouse), Pierre Bourgarit (La Rochelle), Thibaud Flament (Toulouse), Paul Willemse (Montpellier), Romain Taofifenua (Lyon), Cameron Woki (Racing 92), Gregory Alldritt (La Rochelle), Paul Boudehent (La Rochelle), Francois Cros (Toulouse), Sekou Macalou (Stade Francais), Charles Ollivon (Toulon), Anthony Jelonch (Toulouse).
(14) Antoine Dupont (Toulouse) – captain, Maxime Lucu (Bordeaux-Bègles), Baptiste Couilloud (Lyon), Matthieu Jalibert (Bordeaux-Bègles), Antoine Hastoy (La Rochelle), Damian Penaud (Bordeaux-Bègles), Gabin Villiere (Toulon), Louis Bielle-Biarrey (Bordeaux-Bègles), Gael Fickou (Racing 92), Jonathan Danty (La Rochelle), Arthur Vincent (Montpellier), Yoram Moefana (Bordeaux-Bègles), Thomas Ramos (Toulouse), Melvyn Jaminet (Toulouse).
(18) Dane Coles (Hurricanes), Samisoni Taukei’aho (Chiefs), Codie Taylor (Crusaders), Ethan de Groot (Highlanders), Tyrel Lomax (Hurricanes), Nepo Laulala (Blues), Fletcher Newell (Crusaders), Ofa Tu’ungafasi (Blues), Tamaiti Williams (Crusaders), Scott Barrett (Crusaders), Brodie Retallick (Chiefs), Tupou Vaa’i (Chiefs), Samuel Whitelock (Crusaders), Sam Cane (Chiefs) – captain, Shannon Frizell (Highlanders), Luke Jacobson (Chiefs), Dalton Papali’i (Blues), Ardie Savea (Hurricanes).
(15) Finlay Christie (Blues), Cam Roigard (Hurricanes), Aaron Smith (Highlanders), Beauden Barrett (Blues), Damian McKenzie (Chiefs), Richie Mo’unga (Crusaders), Jordie Barrett (Hurricanes), David Havili (Crusaders), Rieko Ioane (Blues), Anton Lienert-Brown (Chiefs), Caleb Clarke (Blues), Leicester Fainga’anuku (Crusaders), Will Jordan (Crusaders), Emoni Narawa (Chiefs), Mark Telea (Blues).
(19) Pietro Ceccarelli (Perpignan), Simone Ferrari (Benetton), Danilo Fischetti (Zebre Parma), Ivan Nemer (Benetton), Marco Riccioni (Saracens), Federico Zani (Benetton), Luca Bigi (Zebre Parma), Epalahame Faiva (unattached), Giacomo Nicotera (Benetton), Niccolò Cannone (Benetton), Dino Lamb (Harlequins), Federico Ruzza (Benetton), David Sisi (Zebre Parma), Lorenzo Cannone (Benetton), Toa Halafihi (Benetton), Michele Lamaro (Benetton) – captain, Sebastian Negri (Benetton), Giovanni Pettinelli (Benetton), Manuel Zuliani (Benetton).
Backs (14) Alessandro Fusco (Zebre Parma), Alessandro Garbisi (Benetton), Martin Page-Relo (Lyon), Stephen Varney (Gloucester), Tommaso Allan (Perpignan), Giacomo Da Re (Benetton), Paolo Garbisi (Montpellier), Juan Ignacio Brex (Benetton), Luca Morisi (unattached), Pierre Bruno (Zebre Parma), Ange Capuozzo (Toulouse), Montanna Ioane (Lyon), Paolo Odogwu (Benetton), Lorenzo Pani (Zebre Parma).
(18) Felipe Aliaga (Peñarol), Diego Arbelo (Peñarol), Manuel Ardao (Peñarol), Matías Benítez (Peñarol), Lucas Bianchi (Peñarol), Santiago Civetta (Peñarol), Carlos Deus (Peñarol), Manuel Diana (Peñarol), Eric Dosantos (Peñarol), Ignacio Dotti (Peñarol), Facundo Gattas (Old Glory DC), Germán Kessler (Provence), Manuel Leindekar (Bayonne), Ignacio Peculo (Peñarol), Reinaldo Piussi (Peñarol), Guillermo Pujadas (Peñarol), Juan Manuel Rodríguez (Peñarol), Mateo Sanguinetti (Peñarol) Backs (15) Juan Manuel Alonso (Peñarol), Santiago Álvarez (Peñarol), Baltazar Amaya (Los Teros 7s), Santiago Arata (Castres), Felipe Arcos Pérez (Los Teros 7s), Bautista Basso (Los Teros 7s), Felipe Berchesi (Dax), Felipe Etcheverry (Peñarol), Ignacio Facciolo (Los Teros 7s), Nicolás Freitas (Vannes), Tomás Inciarte (Peñarol), Gastón Mieres (Peñarol), Agustín Ormaechea (Nice), Rodrigo Silva (Peñarol), Andrés Vilaseca (Vannes) – captain.
Forwards (17) Jason Benade (Univ. of Namibia), Adriaan Booysen (Dallas Jackals), Aranos Coetzee (Cheetahs), Wian Conradie (New England Free Jacks), Tiaan de Klerk (Mogliano), Prince Gaoseb (Tel Aviv Heat), Richard Hardwick (Melbourne Rebels), Muharua Katjijeko (Tel Aviv Heat), Adriaan Ludick (Limoges), Johan Retief (Griquas), Desiderius Sethie (Univ. of Namibia), Mahepisa Tjeriko (Univ. of Namibia), Tjiuee Uanivi (Montauban), Louis van der Westhuizen (Cheetahs), Torsten van Jaarsveld (Bayonne), PJ van Lill (Capbreton Hossegor), Casper Viviers (Baulois).
Backs (14) Oela Blaauw (Univ. of Johannesburg), Danco Burger (Wanderers), Johan Deysel (Colomiers) - captain, JC Greyling (Wanderers), Cliven Loubser (Utah Warriors), Le Roux Malan (New England Free Jacks), Gerswin Mouton (Wits University), Chad Plato (Kudus), Alcino Isaacs (Boland Cavaliers), Divan Rossouw (Lions), Damian Stevens (New Orleans Gold), Tiaan Swanepoel (Lions), Jacques Theron (Wanderers), Andre van der Berg (Wanderers).
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