It is less than a month to the beginning of the sixth Rugby World Cup and despite the shenanigans of the All Blacks coaching staff pulling 22 players out of the Super 14, the Springboks defaulting on the Tri-Nations, Wales throwing the game a couple of weeks ago against England, and Ireland‘s dubious showing against the Scots, it is pretty clear what is going to happen.

Samoa are no push-over, and as they have done in previous Rugby World Cup they will put in a bruising performances against both the Boks and the English, but it is unlikely they will actually win either game. So it is that the mighty South Africans and the current world champions, the English, go through to the quarters from Pool A – and I’m not even sure it matters in what order.

Pool B is barely worth thinking about. Australia will definitely win it, and Wales will definitely be runners-up.

'Whichever team faces Stirling Mortlock and his Wallabies in the final will meet the grittiest defence ever to grace the Stade de France'


With regards to Pool C, any comment would be even worse than stating what I just stated for Pool B.

Pool D, however - the so-called Pool of Death - provides the sole interest in the opening round. Could Argentina knock-over hosts France in the first game? Could Ireland back-up an Argentina victory by defeating the French themselves and sending them packing? Pool D is the only serious three-horse-race for entry into the quarters. France and Ireland should prevail in that order. But Los Pumas, so reliant on their big forwards and super-boots for so long, may now have that all important missing ingredient for the first time at a Rugby World Cup – a backline!

So it is to the quarters, South Africa or probably England versus the Wallabies – and Australia to exact revenge on losing the World Cup last time around. Bye-bye world champions.

South Africa should put away Wales. Ireland could very well beat the All Blacks, but playing it conservatively at this point, let’s go with the ABs. And lastly, France should get past the Scots.

The semis see the Wallabies put the All Blacks away, as is customary. South Africa versus France in the other semi-final is anyone's guess, but I don’t think it matters. Whichever team faces Stirling Mortlock and his Wallabies in the final will meet the grittiest defence ever to grace the Stade de France, together with enough determination and guile to bring the cup back Down Under a fourth time – a third time to the wrong country.