The first eight matches of the 2023 World Cup in France have now been played, meaning there are already plenty of tries, controversial moments, and big results to analyse.
France 27 vs New Zealand 13
Perhaps the most exciting and fiercely competitive fixture of the first round was first up on Friday night, kicking off the hosts' World Cup against the three time World Cup champions New Zealand. After a rather strange opening ceremony that included a 6ft human chicken and a giant flying hat, the main event got off to the perfect start for the All Blacks with an early try from Mark Telea. However the pinpoint boot of Tomas Ramos and tries from Penaud and Jaminet meant the scoreline was in the end comfortable for the French. There is no doubt that both sides could improve still during the tournament, and the sweltering heat played a factor in an exhausting encounter. Discipline will be a main takeaway for New Zealand where the penalties proved to be the difference in the end.
Italy 52 vs Namibia 8
The first of the inevitable mismatch fixtures that happen in every World Cup. This time it was Italy sweeping aside Namibia who are yet to record a World Cup win despite this being their sixth appearance at the tournament. The scoreline flattered Italy slightly who led just 17-8 at half time, and the quality in depth showed during the final ten minutes where Italy ran in three quick tries. Nevertheless, a bonus point win for Italy is the perfect start in their hopes to reach the quarter final.
Ireland 82 vs Romania 8
A rather embarrassing scoreline if you are Romanian (which I'm pretty sure you're not so that's okay) but the real win for Ireland is getting through this routine fixture unscathed from injuries. Sexton shone on his return to the side scoring two tries and dominating the game hauling in 24 points. Bundee Aki and Peter O'Mahony were the other two main standouts for the Irish as they piled misery on the poor Romanians. I mean it really seems unfair to have a full strength, no.1 in the rankings Irish side play the third lowest ranked team in the World Cup but the game's the game.
Australia 35 vs Georgia 15
It was sixth time lucky for Eddie Jones as he finally won a game as Australia Head Coach. In fairness, Georgia are a really underrated side so this no easy fixture for the Aussies, and given their form and confidence they could easily have lost. Fly-half Ben Donaldson was the star of the show scoring 25 of the points. This was Georgia's opportunity to make a real statement against a tier one nation but their performance was error strewn and lacked the basics to make a real game of it.
England 27 vs Argentina 10
What a ridiculous game this was, and with so much to talk about. Going into the game England looked utterly devoid of all confidence, management seemed unsure of what the best starting 15 is, and they had suffered two red cards in the warm up games. The Pumas were therefore heavy favourites pre-game, partly because England fans are generally rather pessimistic. Any English hopes seemed to be obliterated almost before the game had even started when an innocuous head collision left England flanker Tom Curry in the sin bin and awaiting his fate under the new red card reviewal system. Five minutes later saw a nation shouting at their television saying 'never a red' and 'the games gone soft' following confirmation Curry would sit the rest of the game out. Twitter then engaged in its fiercely polarised debate over the rules of rugby, where surprisingly the majority felt it was in fact a harsh decision on Curry, but rules are rules. After Argentina survived a red card review of their own for a late challenge, the destiny of the match looked settled.
George Ford however had other ideas, putting in one of the performances of the weekend and probably of his career. After years of criticism for his slower, controlling style of play in an England shirt, the manner of this game fell perfectly into his hands. Three consecutive drop goals, two of which were from the half way line, had England fans in dreamland of pulling off an incredible result given the circumstances. We were reminded frequently by the players in the run up to the World Cup not to rule them out yet, and they were absolutely right. Ford finished the game with every single of one England's 27 points, as Argentina wilted further away with every penalty that drifted through the posts.
Despite the elation of the game and the deserved plaudits for England's game management and sturdy defence, England's issues cannot be forgotten going into the next round against Japan. Argentina played pretty awfully, particularly considering their man advantage for most of the game. Errors and penalties were all over the place for the Pumas and no doubt they will feel embarrassed by this result. For England, their attacking form is still poor with no sign of a try on Saturday, they now have three suspensions, and still no idea who their best players are. Either way, build Ford a statue right now.
Japan 42 vs Chile 12
Chile's first ever appearance in a World Cup was by no means an embarrassment. Japan scored six converted tries, but Chile should be proud to have scored two tries of their own. Japan made the most of the two yellow cards Chile received, as discipline and basic errors were common issues for the South American side, perhaps unsurprising given they are the lowest ranked team in the World Cup. Nevertheless, a comfortable win for Japan sets them in good stead ahead of their clash with England on Sunday.
South Africa 18 vs Scotland 3
South Africa are the odds on favourites to win the World Cup, and got off to a solid start against a plucky Scotland. The lowest scoring game of the first round by a distance saw just the two tries, which both came within four minutes of the second half restart. At half time and the scores at 6-3 after the Scots applied some serious pressure to the supposedly indomitable South African scrum, it all came crashing down rather disappointingly. The physicality and discipline that the South Africans are so renowned for meant a response from Scotland would have taken a miracle, and they won't feel too ashamed to be the lowest scoring side in the World Cup right now. Both sides will feel there are plenty of improvements to make before the next round of fixtures. The game was not without controversy of course. As was a common theme throughout the weekend, the height of tackles and head collisions has been called into question. Most significantly, the consistency with which referees and the TMO are penalising seemingly similar tackles. In this case, South Africa's Jesse Kriel avoided sanction for a head collision with Jack Dempsey which many have argued was just as bad as the tackle that saw Tom Curry sent off for England. Whether or not they should be red cards tends not to be the main topic of discussion, only the consistency in which the rules are applied by the referees.
Wales 32 vs Fiji 26
The final game of round one was a tasty encounter between one side that have been in reverse over the last year, versus one that has been well in the ascendancy lately. No prizes for guessing who's who, but Wales got the better of Fiji... just. With 14 minutes left on the clock, the game looked done and dusted for Wales as they led by 18, a professional job against a strong and athletic team. Fiji had other ideas as they ran in two quick tries to cut the deficit to just six with two minutes left to play. Welsh hearts were racing as Fiji approached nearer and nearer to Wales' try line, and just as they spread the play looking like inevitably scoring in the corner, Fiji's star man Semi Radradra fumbled the ball, allowing Wales off the hook and letting a nation breath again. Wales will be thrilled to have picked up the maximum five points in what was a tricky opening game against the side that had most recently beaten England at Twickenham. A loss for Wales would have been no shock as they find themselves three places below Fiji in the world rankings. Fiji however deserved to feel hard done by the refereeing, which saw Wales get away with countless penalties on their own try line, whilst Fiji picked up an almost instant sin bin for an offence in their own 22. A mighty escape it seems for Wales, but such an important one given upcoming fixtures against Australia and Georgia.
What's to come
The second round of World Cup fixtures kick off on Thursday with France against Uruguay. The home nations matches to look out for are Wales against Portugal on Saturday (16th), Ireland versus Tonga later the same day, and England against Japan on Sunday (17th). Scotland meanwhile have the week off.
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