The Rugby World Cup quarter-finals are past, the semi-finals are coming. Who is left in the title race in France?

The Rugby World Cup, one of the most watched sporting events of the year, is reaching its climax. Over the weekend, France played host to a tightly contested quarter-final battle at the tenth anniversary championship. The defending champions or the most successful team in history are still in contention for the Webb Ellis Cup. What do the semifinal pairings look like?

Rugby World Cup quarter-finals

Wales – Argentina 17:29

Wales and Argentina opened the play-off programme on Saturday afternoon. The British Isles’ Group C runners-up led 10:6 at half-time thanks to Dan Biggar’s points. But the South American Pumas turned the game around.

Emiliano Boffelli, who followed up his two goals at the end of the first half with two more just after the break, had a hand in that. It didn’t help that the Welsh were able to take back the lead.

In fact, the end belonged to the Argentines, such as substitute Nicolás Sánchez, who scored the last five of the match. The country of the reigning world champions can continue to dream of a medal success also from the rugby summit after winning 29:17. Its representatives will play the semi-finals for the third time overall.

Ireland – New Zealand 24:28

The Irish team, which also represents part of the United Kingdom of Northern Ireland, was considered by many to be the biggest favourite before the tournament. These expectations were supported by their leading position in the world rankings.

However, the All Blacks, holders of a record three championship titles, once again showed their strength. As expected, it was an even encounter at the Stade de France on Saturday night with the half-time score 17:18 in favour of the Irish.

The New Zealanders held the lead in the second half, helped by Will Jordan’s five and more points from kicker Jordie Barrett. The Irish national team bid farewell to the tournament after a failed final assault of a whopping 37 phases and a 24:28 defeat, with the legendary Johnny Sexton also bidding farewell to his playing career.

England – Fiji 30:24

Sunday afternoon at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille belonged to the duel between England and Fiji, the most surprising quarter-finalist. England built up a promising lead in the first act, 21:10.

However, the Oceania team fought back and made the match more dramatic. They even equalised in the 70th minute at 24:24, after fives by Ravao and Botitua and conversions by Kuruvuoli.

Owen Farrell secured the 30:24 victory for the English team, who have the 2003 world title to their name, with a drop goal and a penalty in the last ten minutes. The rugby players from the cradle of the game still have a chance to improve on their silver from the last World Cup in Japan.

France – South Africa 28:29

The quarter-final match between France and South Africa was described by some as an early final. And indeed, in this case too, a dramatic battle was on display in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis.

Both teams were jostling for the lead from the start. Frenchman Thomas Ramos made the difference at the end of the opening 40 minutes with a converted penalty kick. He made the score 22:19.

The same player scored twice more in the second half, but the motivated home side Les Bleus did not score again. South Africa’s defending champions succeeded, thanks to Eben Etzebeth. With the help of the error-free kicking of Handré Pollard and solid defence, the Springboks then went on to win 29:28.

Rugby World Cup semi-final

The knockout stage spider for the semi-finals brought Argentina and New Zealand together. The All Blacks are the favourites, however, they will not have an easy job against the ambitious and well-playing South Americans at the Stade de France on Friday from 9pm. The New Zealanders dominated their recent match on 8 July 41:12.

The second quarter-final, kicking off exactly one day later, will be a repeat of the last final. Four years ago in Yokohama, the South Africans won 32:12. The English have a lot of ground to make up. In the last meeting of forces so far, they fell at Twickenham in London on 26 November 2022 after a 13:27 result.

Source: Rugby World Cup, Livesport