The contenders
New Zealand a.k.a the all singing, all dancing, all choking, all blacks
Hot favourites for the World Cup based on home advantage and being absolutely savage.. Yeah its true you can't look past them but tell me, when have we ever been able to write them off for a world cup?
Runners up in the Tri-Nations this year ( which sounds good, till you realise there were only 3 places). New Zealand are a damn good rugby team, with the potential to bring teams crashing to their knees, but are they really that far ahead of the rest? I think not.The world watches in anticipation of a breakdown somewhere in the New Zealand steam train and given their track record in World Cups we have every reason to predict such a downfall. But I'm not here to predict the future. I can't say that New Zealand will cave under the pressure that will escalate to heavenly heights as they progress through the competition. What I will say though is that New Zealand are beatable in my eyes and the bookies have got it wrong in their pricing of very short odds to win.
Australia a.k.a Ruck-thats official "favourites"
All the pre tournament talk leads us to a New Zealand vs. Australia final which is a reasonable prediction given the form of both. If that is to be the case then Australia would go into that game with a slight edge given they beat New Zealand to be crowned Tri-Nations champions. They also prized the Super 15 title from New Zealands grips when The Reds beat The Crusaders only a few months ago. So in terms of silverwear its 2-0 to the Aussies in this battle with New Zealand....Hold your horses I hear you say? Theres a lot of rugby to be played between now and the final and to assume that one of these teams, not to mind both, will contest the final is a bit boring! Australia are my favourites for the world cup given the class they possess in their backline. We'll be taking a look at key players later which will illustrate the sheer class I am talking about.
South Africa a.k.a the boks
The old dog for the hard road is it they say? South Africa are ranked as third favourites for the competition and I can't see a reason why!.Their preperation has been abismal in the build up to the world cup choosing to rest the more senior members of their squad before bringing them back in a desperate bid to stop the downward spiral of their form. In saying that, you still have to give respect to a team filled with world cup winners. Respect they will get, follwed by a beating! They play a 10 man game of rugby and it won't be enough to take them past the quarters (if they even get there) I expect a quarter final exit at the hands of Ireland/Australia depending on results.
England a.k.a anybody living in England for more than 4 years regardless of nationality
Much like South Africa, England will play a very conservative game with the only difference being that they have the option to change should it go belly up. England have got class in the backline and gritty pack. Not only that but they also possess a unique ability to deliver the goods on World Cup year. Couple those facts along with the nice easy pool they got and all of a sudden they are looking at a probable quarter final against France. Luckily for England the timely arrival of Manu Tuilagi in the centre should add a bit more coal to their fire (no racist pun intended).
France a.k.a Les Blues
Mark Lievermont was appointed head coach just after the World Cup in 07. Since then he has won a grand slam in 2010 and brought through some fine players in the process. His downfall however has been his tendency to select teams seemingly at random. The weird thing is it doesn't seem to have any bearing on their off loading game which you think would improve with consistency at selection time! Don't fear though, the Nutty Professor has been building toward this world cup since his arrival and has been very outspoken about that fact. " ERRR I AM A BUILDING TO THE WORLD CUP, WOULD YOU LIKE SOME GARLIC?" he said in a recent interview with myself... France have the potential and the class to beat anybody. I think they may just even pull off a surprise victory against New Zealand in the pool stages and wouldn't that mix things up a bit!!
Wales a.k.a The Dragons
Word on the street is that Wales are one of the fittest teams going to the World Cup. Apparently they done their pre season in Poland (don't ask me why) taking part in upto 8 sessions per day, which is crazy! They recorded a decent win over England in the Millenium as part of their warm up matches crediting the win down to their fitness. I honestly believe they've got a serious serious chance of beating South Africa in the group stages. Its no secret here on this blog that I have a soft spot for Wales. They will be fitter and faster and they've got finishers in the backline who can score from anywhere on the park, something which South Africa lack. In terms of going all the way, I can't see it but they will hurt somebody big after they come out of the pool of death.
Ireland a.k.a the golden generation
4 warm up games, 4 losses, 2 casualties in Felix Jones and more importantly David Wallace and 2 surprise ommissions from the squad in Luke Fitzgerald and Tomas O'Leary. Not an ideal way to be jetting off to the World Cup but rest assured Kidney knows what he is doing. They've landed now and like the backdrop in the picture (below), things are looking bright again. They've gone to the world cup with 29 great players and Paddy Wallace and they are capable of beating any team. We won't read too much into the 4 defeats, with it being such a competitive squad to get into, you have to account for players being under some serious pressure in those games. Supposedly we haven't shown our hand yet in terms of backline moves, set pieces and even selection in some cases so my suggestion is to take the warm up with a pinch of salt. They say you don't turn into a bad team over night although as 07 taught us, you can! But we're not looking at 07...that is dead and burried and we've come a long long way since that claiming a first grand slam in 61 years. I don't know if we'll beat Australia but we will win the quarter final! After that, sure ye never bloody know..........One things for sure, its going to be a brilliant World Cup. Sit back and enjoy!! We all need an excuse to start drinking at 6 o'clock in the morning and for the next month or so, we've got that!! COME ON IRELAND
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