RWC 2015 - Quarter-Final Previews and Predictions

Now, our prediction of England to win the World Cup may have gone slightly terribly wrong, but the rest of it looked OK in the grand scheme of things, including the Georgia victory over Tonga, although punting for France to top their group was another misjudgement. Still, onwards and upwards, let's have a look at what lies ahead in the Rugby World Cup.

 

South Africa vs Wales

A vastly different side to that which opened up the tournament for the Bokke, this Springboks side look back to their old selves after what a pretty disastrous start to the World Cup. The iconic, record-breaking Bryan Habana helped South Africa on their way to being the second-highest scorers in the pool stages, just behind Argentina. They will however be missing their talisman Jean De Villiers, who sadly ended his international career through injury in the group stage.

If you want to talk about injuries, look no further than this Welsh squad though, who despite having to play inexperienced players often out of position managed to escape the Pool of Death and knock England out of their own World Cup, something the players and fans should be proud of. However, if we're being honest, it wasn't convincing. The heart and guts shown in that match against England to come back was phenomenal, but the better team for most of the game were a poor England side, who still could have come away with a draw. Now if you're only narrowly beating that bad England side, and failing to score against Australia when they have 13 men, there is very, very little chance of escaping this match against South Africa with a victory, especially considering the desperately poor Welsh scrum, despite the last match between these sides ending in victory for the Welsh.

Now it will not be easy for the Springboks, the Welsh will leave everything they have out on that pitch as always,  but they should come out of this battle as victors, even if Dan Biggar is his usual clinical self with the boot. He saved them against a bad England team, he won't be able to repeat those heroics against a confident South African side.

Prediction: South Africa by 10

New Zealand vs France

Eight years on, same fixture, same location, surely it can't happen again, can it? Well, something needs to change from the the match against Ireland in order for Les Bleus to stand a chance. They were comprehensively beaten by a good Ireland side, and Saint-Andre has a lot on his plate if he is to turn this around. However, when the French are on the same pitch as the All Blacks, something stirs deep within them and they come out fighting. They need to make the most of every opportunity, Spedding and Michelak need to have their kicking boots on whilst Dusautoir needs to win that ball back as often as possible for France. There is a sprinkling of star quality in the French line-up, Fofana and Dulin notably, but even they lack the skill of the New Zealand backs, and give away a lot of weight and size to their opposite numbers.

New Zealand have every right to be confident going into this game given their recent record against France and the fact that they have the most talented players in the world. However, something just isn't clicking right now. They aren't as impressive as they should be. The side that usually make the game of rugby look so easy are making far too many mistakes, and that was in the easy pool they had. Pushed close by Argentina, the Kiwi fans should probably be a bit more nervous than they are.

The French need a pick performance from the pack if they are to win. An unconvincing New Zealand scrum has to be the target, and from there the French can knock over the points from range, keeping it simple. Expect France to raise their game as usual against the Kiwis, but  it has to be said that a clinical Kiwi performance, which we have yet to see this World Cup, would see off the French.

Prediction: New Zealand by 8*

*This was insanely hard to write as, having just moved to France, I would love nothing more than to experience a repeat of the atmosphere in 2007. There is a lot of talk about that fateful match 8 years ago here, and some real optimism, so I will be singing La Marseillaise and cheering "Allez Les Bleus", desperate for that win, but reallyt New Zealand should win, and would be horribly devastated by another loss to the French.



Ireland vs Argentina

Argentina can win this. No Irish fan should think this is a straightforward match, not by any means. In Los Pumas, Ireland come up against the top point scorers of the pool stages, even though they were in the same group as New Zealand, a team they pushed very hard. Now, Ireland do have a few injury worries that we will go into later, but even a fully fit side woulsd struggle against a side with the form of teh Argentinians, who beat South Africa in the Rugby Championship leading into this World Cup.

The trademark, powerful Argentinian scrum still exists, but now there is a worryingly good, expansive game to accompany it, and Imhoff and Sanchez have been vital in this regard, they will need to perform well on Sunday to give the Argentinians a chance. Elsewhere in this Argentinian side, look for Fernandez Lobbe, Tuculet and Cordero to shine and surprise many viewers, with Fernandew Lobbe performing in what could well be his last game for Argentina, I expect a passionate performance as always from the man.

Now Ireland will not be able to field their full-strength side due to the stupidity of O'Brien and the unfortunate injuries to O'Connell and O'Mahony in the game against France. We will find out today if Sexton will be able to play, and whilst he is one of the best fly-halves in the world, the way tha tMadigan performed against France will please the Irish greatly. They will also be pleased to see the return of Iain Henderson, who should never have been dropped, and the back row looks as if it will consist of Jordi Murphy at 6, Chris Henry at 7 and Jamie Heaslip at 8. Not bad, but not ideal.

Sadly, we have seen the last of Paul O'Connell in international rugby. What a hero, talisman and legend he is. A massive loss for the Irish on the pitch, but he will certainly be just as involved off the pitch as he always has been, inspiring the players and lending his experience to those who need it. He will know better than any that Argentina should not be underestimated, having been knocked out in the pool stages by them in 2007. He will send the warning out to the boys in green and ensure they are as fired up as they can be.

However, the way this World Cup has gone so far, with all its thrills and spills, I can see the Argentinians building on their momentum for another 2007-like competition. It will be tight, and the Argentinians will excite no matter how the Irish come at them, and I get the feeling that Schmidt's side will taste a very bitter defeat here. It is always going to be diffcult to compete with the leading points scorers, they inherently have a confidence that the Irish do not right now, the Argentinians know they can score points against anyone. They showed it against New Zealand, and will show it again against the Irish.

Prediction: Argentina by 4

Australia vs Scotland

This one will be rather straightforward. The Australians showed how they can punish teams with good, quick ball against England, and then they went on to prove against Wales that even with 13 men they can prevent a team scoring. Scotland on the other hand are lucky to be here. They scraped past Samoa, and beat a fatigued Japan side that arguably deserved a spot in the quarter-finals more than the Scots. If Scotland's defence is as sloppy as it was against Samoa, this could be truly embarassing for Cotter and his men.

Bennett, Hogg and J Gray are Scotland's best players, but even they won't be able to save what could be a pretty big scoreline judging by the pool stage performances. Folau, Foley, Giteau and almost every Australian player will fancy this opportunity to build real momentum and pile on the points. Let's not forget David Pocock either, who is putting his name forward for the best player in rugby, with his insatiable hunger for turnovers. Scotland won't see much of the ball this game, and when they do it will likey be a panicked kick for touch.

I'm not discounting a Scottish try, that would be foolish when Maitland, Bennet, Hogg and Russell are there, but I can only really see it coming one way having looked at the Australian defence so far, and that would be through an interception/dropped ball fly-hacked through for Hogg to chase. If the Scots are to stand a chance, this try needs to come early, they need ot build belief and take the wind out of the Australian sails. However, this will be a comfortable Australian victory, and Scotland will prove just how out of their depth they are at the moment in the quarter-finals of a World Cup.

Prediction: Australia by 25+