Pool C
Pool C is probably the easiest group to predict. New Zealand are almost guaranteed to come in first place. Argentina are clear favourites to join the All Blacks in the knockout stages. Tonga have the ability to compete with Argentina but it is still very unlikely they will beat the Pumas. Georgia are strong upfront but are lacking in the backs. It could be a tough few weeks for Namibia who always excel in effort but tend to ship points in the second half.
Argentina
The Pumas will be relatively happy with their pool as although they have to face New Zealand they have a fairly a simple run of games to secure second. Argentina reaching the quarter-finals will be regarded as a success. Furthermore no team will want to play an Argentinean side with nothing to lose in knockout rugby. They showed in the Rugby Championship when they convincingly defeated South Africa in Durban that on their day they can match anyone in World Rugby. Their inclusion in the Rugby Championship has strengthened their squad and given them vital match experience against the world’s best teams. I therefore expect them to beat all sides in the group bar New Zealand.
The Argentinean pack is revered around the world. Their scrummaging in particular is much admired and rightly so. Marcus Ayerza is one of the best loose-head props in the game and will help to give Argentina a strong platform. The captain Augustin Creevy will lead from the front. He marshals the lineout excellently and helps to bring an edge to the pack. The Pumas possess a very talented back-row including Pablo Matera, Leonardo Senatore, Juan Manuel Leguizamon and Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe. The Argentina back-row will compete hard at the breakdown and be a challenge for any side in this area.
Argentina’s back line is looking stronger than in the past. Tomas Cubelli is a good scrum-half and will provide clean ball for Nicolas Sanchez or the mercurial Juan Martin Hernandez at fly-half. Marcelo Bosch is a class operator in the centres who has the ability to kick penalties from within his own half which makes discipline around the halfway line vitally important for opposition sides. Juan Imhoff, Horacio Agulla and Joaquin Tuculet form a deadly back-three that will thrive of counter-attacking ball.
Player to watch: Racing Metro winger Juan Imhoff will provide a real threat on the wing. He is quick, powerful and a potent finisher. Imhoff has consistently scored tries for both Racing and Argentina. He has scored 11 tries in 27 caps including a hat-trick against South Africa in this year’s Rugby Championship. He is definitely one to keep an eye on.
Georgia
Georgia are the best European team outside the Six Nations. They qualified very comfortably to the World Cup but in the past the jump up in quality once at the tournament has been too much. However, Georgia will be targeting a third place finish this time around. A result against New Zealand or Argentina will be a step to far. But a victory over both Namibia and Tonga, a much more difficult task, will ensure a successful tournament.
Georgia have not had an ideal preparation losing all their warm-up games against Newcastle Falcons, Canada and Japan. Nevertheless I expect them to raise their game when the opening game of the World Cup against Tonga. A win would get them off to a flyer but it would be a bit of an upset.
If Georgia are to be successful it will rely heavily on winning the forwards battle. Long-time Clermont servant Davit Zirakashvili will provide some quality and grunt from prop. The star of the Georgian pack is Captain Mamuka Gorgodze. The Toulon number 8 is an extremely physical player in both attack and defence. He often requires multiple players to bring him down which can help create space for his team mates.
In the backs keep an eye out for youngest ever World Cup player Vasil Lobzhanidze who starts against Tonga at scrum-half. He is only 18 years old and has already won six caps. Lobzhanidze certainly has a bright future in front of him. Unfortunately the Georgian backline does not quite live up to the forwards. It is something they need to develop if they want to move up to the next level.
Player to watch: Mamuka Gorgodze was the only real option. The rampaging back-row forward is box office to watch. His performances are going to be absolutely vital if Georgia are going to attain the third place position they desire.
Namibia
Namibia have never won a World Cup match and sadly it seems very unlikely that this will change. Although Tonga and Georgia are by no means in the top echelon of world rugby they are way ahead of Namibia in terms of quality. It is going to be a very tough campaign.
However the team’s ethic of hard work is epitomised by their inspirational captain Jacques Burger. He leads from the front for both the national team and Saracens. This is often shown by tackling the opposition with his face which illustrates the commitment Burger has when on the field. Renaldo Bothma will add some more quality to the back-row. He plies his trade for the Sharks in Super Rugby and performed well in last year’s Currie Cup.
Exeter Chiefs’ Chrysander Botha is the stand out back. The fullback started promisingly for Exeter last season but was hampered by long term injuries throughout the season. Botha is extremely quick and has good feet. He has scored 31 tries in 35 appearances for Namibia and will be their main try threat out wide.
Player to watch: Jacques Burger is the best player in the Namibia team. His work rate at the breakdown and the number of tackles he makes is what marks him as a great player. When playing for Namibia his work rate often increases further, if that is possible, and expect him to rack up some extremely impressive tackles statistics in the tournament.
New Zealand
The All Blacks go into the World Cup as outright favourites and rightly so. They have only lost three games since the last World Cup which has often been followed up with a crushing victory to re-establish their dominance. New Zealand have a great balance of experience and players who are in the prime of their careers who will be ready to perform on the world stage. The reigning world champions have been handed a fairly simple run to the quarter finals avoiding any major threats. They have certainly lucked out in comparison to those teams in Pool A. They go into the tournament aiming to be the first team to retain the Web Ellis Cup and frankly who would bet against them.
The All Blacks team is too good to go through individually and pick out star players as it would be a profile of all players from 1 to 15 and arguably 1 to 23. In the pack there a couple of players I will focus on starting with the electric Dane Coles. The fastest front row in rugby. Coles is a quality player across all facets of the game and can do everything a normal international hooker is required to do. Then add into the equation his rapid pace that has taken him around many a player including world class fullback Willie le Roux to score under the posts. Coles could be one of the stars of the tournament and is undoubtedly the long term successor to Kevin Mealamu. Brodie Retallick is the best second-row in the world. Once again what sets him apart is his ability to do everything a lock needs to do while bringing something extra to his game. The IRB 2014 world player of the year has such good hands and reads the game so well it allows him to do things that no other second-row can do. Kieran Reid is another player who is the best player in the world in his position. Reid is less powerful than some other number eights around the world but his skill levels added to his strength make him a joy to watch. He creates space for others and his offloading game is incredible. New Zealand’s set piece as a whole is strong and their lineout in particular works especially well. Richie McCaw will ensure they are a nuisance at the break down and to beat New Zealand the break down must be dominated. This much more easily said than done when you consider who is trying to slow down the ball.
In the backs the team just gets even better. Aaron Smith is the best 9 in the world and provides such high quality ball to the backline. Dan Carter is starting to look back to his best but I think he is one of the weaker backs in the All Blacks starting line-up. This is largely because of the quality of players around him rather than a reflection on Carter himself. The centres will be fascinating to watch. Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith have forged one of the best centre partnerships of all time. It would take a special player to break this up but Sonny Bill Williams may well be that player. It is very difficult to leave any of those players out of their starting team but most likely one of them will be on the bench. Julian Savea, Nehe Milner-Skudder and Waisake Naholo ensure explosive power and quality on the wings. Savea is very likely to be right at the top in terms of tries scored. Ben Smith, the man who has kept Israel Dagg out of the 31-man squad, is another player who just does everything excellently. Expect him to glide through opposition defences throughout the tournament.
The New Zealand team is too good for them not to come first in the group. It is going to take an exceptional performance to stop them becoming champions.
Player to watch: Nehe Milner-Skudder is likely to start on the right wing while Naholo recovers from injury. This opportunity may well be enough to secure him the right wing berth. Milner-Skudder has unbelievably quick feet and can beat a man in next to no space. He is a class finisher and I expect him to have a big tournament.
Tonga
Tonga are the third best side in the group. However they are in a precarious position. Georgia are closer in ability to them than they are to Argentina. Therefore they are more likely to come 4th than 2nd. This makes their opening game against Georgia a huge one. If they win that they can concentrate on giving the New Zealand and Argentina a tough time to try and create an upset. Tonga are ranked are 11th in the world and are a decent side. They managed to beat France in the 2011 group stages who went on the finish as runners up so an upset is by no means impossible. Tonga will be targeting Argentina for a similar upset.
Tonga have an extremely physical pack which is epitomised by the likes of Gloucester flanker Sione Kalamafoni and the massive number eight Opeti Fonua who has recently joined Leicester Tigers. Steve Mafi will be crucial for Tonga in the second-row. Mafi is great around the park but will have a massive role in organising the lineout in particular.
Fetu’u Vainikolo has the opportunity to become Tonga’s top try scorer during the tournament. The former Exeter Chiefs winger is a talented finisher who in typical Tongan style combines pace and power.
It is going to be a difficult campaign for Tonga but a win over Georgia and two shots at upsets mean a strong campaign could be on the cards.
Player to watch: Telusa Veainu is a 24 year old New Zealand born winger. He has featured for New Zealand under 20s in the past and has played for Melbourne Rebels in Super Rugby. Veainu opted to play for Tonga this year and scored two tries in his first four caps during the Pacific Nations Cup where he was a standout player. The New Zealand fan has good pace and a strong rugby pedigree. Expect him to be one of Tonga’s star players at the tournament.
Prediction
New Zealand will have too much for all the sides in the group although Argentina should challenge them. The Pumas are a good enough side to see off the challenges presented by Tonga and Georgia and should reach the quarter finals without too much trouble. I expect Tonga to edge out Georgia and secure third place. Unfortunately for Namibia a clean sweep of defeats is likely to occur.
New Zealand
Argentina
Tonga
Georgia
Namibia
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