The World Cup will undoubtedly be the primary focus of rugby attention in 2023, which is rapidly approaching.
Warren Gatland is back to lead Wales to a fourth global tournament, and the schedule is finalized. So, how much of a chance does the Kiwi have of improving on their semi-final finishes in 2011 and 2019 and quarter-final finishes in 2015?
Gatland has a very real chance of going deep into the competition once more, despite the peculiar nature of the draw this time around and Wales’ recent form and the odds offered by bookmakers.
In point of fact, despite the fact that the top four teams in the rankings in 2022—Ireland, France, New Zealand, and South Africa—appear to be miles ahead of the rest based on performances, results, and rankings points, two of them simply cannot advance to the semifinals.
Ridges, then again, can practically arrive at the semi-finals without confronting any of the ongoing top five groups. But Wales are in a tough pool, and it won’t be easy for them to even get out of it.
Wales’ opponents in Pool C of the Rugby World Cup are now known to be Australia (ranked sixth), Fiji (ranked 14th), Georgia (ranked 13th), and Portugal (18th). On Sunday, September 10, the first opponent will be Fiji, a team that, with adequate preparation, can defeat any team in the world. Portugal comes next on September 16, Australia eight days later, and Georgia comes next on October 7.
At the end of 2022, Wales, which is ranked ninth in the world, should have enough to finish in the top two and try to win the group. However, the group is full of banana skins, as the historic first loss to the Georgians in Cardiff shows.
Due to the contentious nature of the draw this time, this is where things get interesting. The pools were chosen in December 2020, a long time ago. World Rugby decided that the seedings would be determined by the world rankings at the beginning of that year, when Wales were still ranked fourth and the reigning Six Nations Grand Slam champions. This decision was made in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This indicated that they were one of the highest draw seeds.
Ireland and France, in the mean time, who overwhelmed the 2022 Six Countries and are positioned one and two on the planet, were both just second seeds.
That implies we have what is going on where New Zealand and France are in a similar Pool (A) and Ireland and South Africa are likewise gathered in Pool B. Likewise, at the quarter-last stage, the champs of pool A face the sprinters up of pool B as well as the other way around – implying that a limit of two of the four best sides can arrive at the semi-finals.
Wales’ Pool is tied to Pool D, which also includes England (ranked fifth), Argentina (ranked eighth), and Japan (ranked tenth).
It is difficult to predict how that group will play out, but England is favored to win, with Argentina coming in second.
This means that Wales, if they win their pool, could play Argentina in the quarterfinals, a tough game that gives them a real chance to reach the semifinals once more. A quarterfinal matchup between England and Wales is also a very real possibility.
France are justifiably the top picks on home soil (5/2), trailed by New Zealand (3/1). South Africa, the champions again, are next at 9/2, and despite their status as world number one, Ireland is currently only fourth with the bookmakers. This is probably as a result of their poor World Cup record, in which they have never advanced beyond the quarterfinals. Wales is currently the seventh favorite to win the trophy at 25/1, followed by Australia and England.