Given the tournament's just kicked off, I think we could use a thread. Once upon a time, this was the most exciting event of every four year cycle for me, though the insidious influence of Melbourne has long since caused my passion for Aussie Rules football to comfortably overtake that for rugby. Nonetheless, I'm still pretty keen! No prizes for guessing which team this Kiwi is hoping will FINALLY win the Cup back after 24 long years, even if I'm not terribly optimistic about the whole thing.
For the record, the groups are as follows. Two teams advance from each to the quarter finals:
GROUP A
Canada
France
Japan
New Zealand
Tonga
GROUP B
Argentina
England
Georgia
Romania
Scotland
GROUP C
Australia
Ireland
Italy
Russia
USA
GROUP D
Fiji
Namibia
Samoa
South Africa
Wales
None really strike me as a "group of death" scenario, though Group B and D perhaps have delusions of claiming that title. New Zealand and France from Group A, Argentina and England from Group B, Australia and Ireland from Group C, and South Africa and Wales from Group D are the predictable quarter finalists.
PS Everybody in New Zealand, I pity you having to put up with the madness of the tournament for the next few weeks.
For the record, the groups are as follows. Two teams advance from each to the quarter finals:
GROUP A
Canada
France
Japan
New Zealand
Tonga
GROUP B
Argentina
England
Georgia
Romania
Scotland
GROUP C
Australia
Ireland
Italy
Russia
USA
GROUP D
Fiji
Namibia
Samoa
South Africa
Wales
None really strike me as a "group of death" scenario, though Group B and D perhaps have delusions of claiming that title. New Zealand and France from Group A, Argentina and England from Group B, Australia and Ireland from Group C, and South Africa and Wales from Group D are the predictable quarter finalists.
PS Everybody in New Zealand, I pity you having to put up with the madness of the tournament for the next few weeks.