To view irb.com fully please ensure you have Macromedia flash player 7 or higher. CWales:
RWC 2011 Rating:
IRB World Rankings
| Team | Pos. | (Prev.) | Rtg. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | England | 4 | (4) | 84.54 |
 | Ireland | 5 | (6) | 83.14 |
 | Wales | 6 | (7) | 80.73 |
 | Argentina | 7 | (8) | 80.28 |
 | France | 8 | (5) | 79.72 |
QuaterFinal-1 Match Preview:
Wales's Alun Wyn Jones and Luke Charteris stop another Ireland attack
Wales coach Warren Gatland said the younger players in his side were unaffected by the past and benefited from the solid foundation of hard work laid down in the pre-season.
"They have no baggage and there's no fear factor," Gatland said. "We are in New Zealand and not in the bubble of Wales and listening to any of the negativity that is sometimes generated back home.
"We've worked so hard in the last three, four months. We aren't ready to go home yet."
Wales's three tries to Ireland's one was a true reflection of the attacking abilities of the two sides, although not of Ireland's first-half dominance of territory and possession at Wellington Regional Stadium.
Three times they shunned early penalty shots at goal to look for tries, but Wales were equal to them.
"We spent a lot of time in that first half in their 22 and we only came up with three points in the half," said Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll.
"It hurts a bit when you're going in at half-time having the opportunities and knocking on the door but not really getting any points out of the territory."
Caught napping
Ireland had 60 per cent of the territory and 57 per cent of possession in the first half but their bludgeoning and battering of the Wales defence produced a solitary penalty goal after Wales had opened the match with a spectacular Shane Williams winger's try.
Ireland drew level early in the second half when wing Keith Earls somehow managed to keep his feet in play while sliding over in the corner.
But the match turned Wales's way when man-of-the-match Mike Phillips caught Ireland napping down the blindside of a ruck - a trademark of the France-based scrum half's play.
When Wales outside centre Jonathan Davies scored by first eluding some tiring forwards in front of him and then clapping on the pace to outstrip the cover defence, the match - and a place in the semi-finals for the first time since 1987 - was theirs.
The try had in part been created by a typically powerful run further infield by Davies's centre partner Jamie Roberts, who soaked up defenders all night.
In the second half, the territory evened out at 50-50 and Ireland's control of possession was pared back to 54 per cent, but by then the Irish had run out of time and ideas and been let down too often by their handling.
Typically gracious
Wales had to make 141 tackles in the match and missed only 11, while Ireland made 93 but missed 14. Ireland's lineout also faltered at crucial times, losing three on their own throw.
Shane Williams was bullish about Wales's chances of further progression, saying: "Some people thought I was being funny when I said we were coming here to win it, but I wasn't."
A majority of the crowd of 35,787 were solidly behind Ireland, but their support was not enough to stave off a fifth defeat in five quarter-final appearances at Rugby World Cups.
O'Driscoll was typically gracious in defeat, acknowledging that Wales had taken their opportunities where his side did not.
"It was a great opportunity for us winning the group, but they showed they are worthy semi-finalists, good luck to them.
"We needed to deliver a performance similar to the one against Australia or the one against Italy last week. We didn't do that today, we knocked on way too much ball.
"Collectively and personally I won't get this opportunity again and that really sucks. But you know, life goes on."
France:
RWC 2011 Ratings:
IRB World Rankings
| Team | Pos. | (Prev.) | Rtg. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wales | 6 | (7) | 80.73 |
| Argentina | 7 | (8) | 80.28 |
| France | 8 | (5) | 79.72 |
 | Tonga | 9 | (13) | 76.63 |
 | Scotland | 10 | (9) | 76.20 |
QuaterFinal-2 Match Preview:
France secure semi spot with flair and power
Imanol Harinordoquy battles through the England defence
AUCKLAND, 8 Oct. - Imanol Harinordoquy gave a barnstorming display to earn the man-of-the-match award as France reached the Rugby World Cup semi-finals with a 19-12 win against England on Saturday.
Les Bleus avoided a third straight RWC loss to England with a classic performance that married France's twin traditions of backline flair and forward power.
Number 8 Harinordoquy and back-row colleagues Thierry Dusautoir and Julien Bonnaire bossed their English counterparts and gave creative players Jonny Wilkinson and Toby Flood a torrid time.
This dominance ensured England were unable to gain a toehold in the match until it was too late.
"They were magnificent," France coach Marc Lièvremont said of the back row. "I know Imanol quite well and at the beginning of the tournament he wasn't playing as well as I hoped.
"Imanol is a great competitor and so I left him on the bench so that he would be ready to start this match against his favourite rivals."
Lack of discipline
Lièvremont's side roared to a 16-0 half-time lead that they battled hard to protect in the second half, even though it took them until the 73rd minute to score their first points after the break with a drop goal from replacement Francois Trinh-Duc.
It was England’s lack of discipline that allowed France to build the platform on which they secured their half-time lead.
First Flood failed to release in the tackle to allow Dimitri Yachvili to slot the first points of the night after 11 minutes.
Then, when prop Matt Stevens was penalised for bringing down the scrum five minutes later, the diminutive scrum half added his second penalty for a 6-0 advantage.
"We controlled the match well at the beginning," Lièvremont said. "After they put pressure on us, we were able to relieve that pressure with our kicking game and that allowed us to get our game in order.
"I was very happy with the first half and it was a very good half in terms of discipline. The second half wasn't so good, but maybe it wouldn't have been the same feeling if England hadn't made it more difficult for us."
Pulled the strings
In only his third match at fly half for Les Bleus, Morgan Parra pulled the strings to great effect and played a hand in both of his side's tries.
The result made a mockery of claims the French were a side riddled with divisions and in disarray after losing heavily to New Zealand and surprisingly to Tonga in their final two pool matches.
"It's fantastic," backs coach Emile Ntamack said. "I am very proud of the boys tonight and the game they played.
"A week has passed since the very bad game against Tonga. Tonight was an incredible game. We have the potential and now we know that we can realise it."
England’s attack was based primarily on getting the ball to powerhouse centre Manu Tuilagi and while the young centre was able to break through the French defence all too often he was left isolated or unable to keep play going.
Even after full back Ben Foden finally got his team on the scoreboard after 55 minutes with his third try in as many matches against France, England still failed to come to life.
Chasing the game
"We created more chances to score than they did," England manager Martin Johnson said. "We probably had three or four chances that went missing.
"They took theirs and took theirs early, so it left us chasing the game. Today we let it out of our grasp too early."
Left wing Mark Cueto’s try with three minutes remaining gave England some hope. By then, though, France had done enough to become the second side not to finish top of their pool to reach the semi-finals after Wales knocked out Pool C winners Ireland earlier in the day in Wellington.
France and Wales now meet in the first semi-final at Eden Park on Saturday, 15 October.
"Most of us realised that we were missing out on the opportunity to play in a World Cup for our country and some may only have that chance once in a lifetime," skipper Dusautoir said.
"I don't know if we played wonderful rugby, but we had 22 players who want to go on and now we must concentrate on the semi-finals."
Australia:
RWC 2011 Ratings:
IRB World Rankings
| Team | Pos. | (Prev.) | Rtg. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | New Zealand | 1 | (1) | 90.62 |
 | Australia | 2 | (3) | 87.21 |
 | South Africa | 3 | (2) | 84.34 |
| Wales | 4 | (6) | 83.21 |
| France | 5 | (8) | 82.68 |
QuaterFinal-3 Match Preview:
Pocock at the heart of Wallabies win
Waves of South African attacks were repelled by the Wallabies defence
WELLINGTON, 9 Oct. - Australia somehow turned a spluttering lineout, an embattled scrum and minimal territory into an 11-9 win over South Africa and a place in the semi-finals of Rugby World Cup 2011.
When referee Bryce Lawrence blew for full-time the Wallabies had their error-forcing defence and especially man-of-the-match David Pocock to thank for dethroning the defending champions. The flanker's heroic work at the breakdown saved them time after time when South Africa were on the attack.
Wallabies coach Robbie Deans described Pocock's contribution as "immense".
"His game was remarkable and it was bigger than he got credit for," added Deans.
The Australians were forced to make 147 tackles to South Africa's 53 as the Springboks sent wave after wave of big, powerful runners at their line.
"I'm really, really proud with the way the guys fought. It was a huge effort that took everything we needed. I'm just really stoked," said their captain and sole try scorer James Horwill.
"We got the result we deserved on the back of a massive effort from the whole group. Moving forward that's what it's going to take."
Handling errors
Aside from Pocock's crucial turnovers, South Africa were hampered by making too many mistakes in potential try-scoring situations under defensive pressure and will rue their 11 handling errors in the match. They also missed their main breakdown warrior, Heinrich Brüssow, who came off after 20 minutes.
South Africa had 84 per cent of the territory in the first half and 55 per cent of possession but still managed to trail 8-3 at the interval after Horwill scored from a Springboks mistake 11 minutes in and James O'Connor and Morné Steyn landed penalties at either end.
By full-time the possession pendulum had swung slightly in Australia's favour but the Springboks had still enjoyed 76 per cent of the territory for the match for no reward.
Springboks coach Peter de Villiers, who announced he was standing down after four years in charge, described the mood in the South Africa dressing room as "three notches lower than a funeral".
"The guys are quiet. We never expected this," he said.
"Quarter-finals, semi-finals, finals, you have got to take your chances. It didn't go our way, we didn't take all our chances. Well done to them, the few they got they took and beat us fairly on the scoreboard."
Dominant performance
Springboks captain John Smit, retiring from rugby after 111 Tests, said losing after such a dominant performance was a "sad way to end it".
"It's the first time I have lost a game on the scoreboard and won it every other way from a stats point of view so it makes it even harder to accept," he added.
"We did enough to win this game but we just were not good enough."
Australia's lineout was at the root of much of their problems. The Wallabies lost five of their 13 throws, usually to that wily interpreter of opposition tactics at the set piece, Victor Matfield.
Matfield is also hanging up his boots after 110 Tests and he was also hugely disappointed at how it all ended for his team.
"There were so many opportunities it was heartbreaking," he said.
Despite their superiority it was a penalty awarded for a South African infringement at a lineout that enabled Wallabies wing O'Connor to kick the winning goal.
Australia's scrum was often under pressure and it was only good work at the back by number 8 Radike Samo that enabled them to clear the ball. But it did not provide a solid enough platform for the backs.
Epic encounter
Nevertheless, the Wallabies eight restricted the damage to a single penalty at the scrum, in contrast to the huge problems Ireland had caused them in the pool phase.
Wallabies fly half Quade Cooper had a tentative match and the team's kicking in general play was often poor, putting the pressure back on themselves.
Deans agreed Cooper did not have one of his best nights but said he and the whole team would be better for the experience.
The match was no free-flowing try fest for the 34,914 crowd but Deans insisted they had been treated to a spectacle all the same.
"We saw an epic World Cup encounter. Different, but that's what makes this game what it is," the coach said.
"What you saw was the most experienced World Cup side in the world really turn the screws on the youngest. So, as James (Horwill) said, the boys came of age in terms of the way they accepted that challenge and stood up to it.
"I've got no doubt that the next couple of weeks will be the best World Cup rugby we've ever seen because the bar just keeps going up in terms of the capability of the sides."
Australia full back Kurtley Beale (hamstring) and inside centre Pat McCabe (shoulder) both came off but Deans said their condition would be easier to assess in another 48 hours.
New Zealand:
RWC 2011 Ratings:
IRB World Rankings
| Team | Pos. | (Prev.) | Rtg. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 1 | (1) | 90.62 |
| Australia | 2 | (3) | 87.21 |
| South Africa | 3 | (2) | 84.34 |
| Wales | 4 | (6) | 83.21 |
| France | 5 | (8) | 82.68 |
QuaterFinal-4 Match Preview:
All Black Kieran Read crashes over to score his side's first try
With the All Blacks winning the try count just 2-1, scrum half Piri Weepu kept the scoreboard ticking, kicking seven out of seven penalties to guide his team to a 33-10 over the Pumas at Eden Park.
"I think it's what we expected," McCaw said. "We realise, come knockout time, it may take 80 minutes.
"Even though it came close a few times, we realised we had to stick to it and take chances and that's the way it turned out."
Graham Henry's side will now face Australia in a semi-final next Sunday after the Wallabies beat South Africa earlier on Sunday in Wellington.
Phenomenal pace
The last-eight clash was played at a phenomenal pace from start to finish and was packed full of big hits and tough tackling as the Pumas showed some incredible defensive play.
Argentina notched the first try on 31 minutes when flanker Julio Farías Cabello touched down in the right corner, but the All Blacks hit back through second-half tries from Kieran Read and Brad Thorn.
New Zealand led 12-7 at half-time, but Pumas centre Marcelo Bosch scored the first points of the second half with a 46th-minute penalty after a Conrad Smith obstruction to cut the All Blacks' lead to 12-10.
However, the hosts restored their five-point advantage just three minutes later when Weepu slotted his fifth successive penalty.
Welsh referee Nigel Owens went to the video referee after 58 minutes as New Zealand came close to scoring a try, but Richie McCaw was held up when making a dive for the line at the base of the right post.
Owens then took play back for an earlier penalty, which Weepu converted for 18-10 to the All Blacks.
Yellow card
Pumas scrum half Nicolás Vergallo was given a yellow card before Owens again called for the video referee's input.
Number 8 Read collected a pass from flanker Jerome Kaino to touch down in the left corner after 66 minutes for a 23-10 lead, Weepu failing with his conversion attempt.
But a 72nd-minute penalty by Weepu took the All Blacks 16 points clear.
Thorn crossed the line in the 77th minute for the All Blacks' second try to finish off the Pumas' resistance. Aaron Cruden, a replacement for Colin Slade, hit the extras for 33-10.
Argentina had almost been handed a try in the seventh minute when Slade fumbled from a simple Weepu pass, allowing Bosch to kick on. The outside centre chased his kick, but his All Blacks counterpart Smith recovered the ball.
The first points were not long in coming, Weepu's 12th-minute penalty giving the All Blacks a 3-0 lead after Argentina prop Rodrigo Roncero was caught off side.
Dragged into touch
Slade came close to touching down for the first try of the clash in the left corner on 18 minutes, but his left leg was dragged into touch from Santiago Fernández's tackle.
The All Blacks won a penalty six minutes later when Roncero collapsed the front row, and Weepu made it 6-0 from wide on the right.
The Pumas touched down in the 31st minute in the right corner through flanker Cabello following a flowing backline move, Felipe Contepomi kicking the conversion to give Argentina a 7-6 lead.
In the 36th minute, Contepomi was penalised for a high tackle on Cruden and Weepu slotted the kick over for 9-7 to the All Blacks.
Weepu made it four penalties from four in the 39th minute to hand New Zealand a five-point advantage at the break.
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Next Time on Who Will Win?
SemiFinal Results, The Bronze Finale and The Grande Finale
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