It’s hard to remember a set of four quarter-finals of this quality, showing just how good rugby can be when played at its best.
It’s hard to remember a set of Rugby World Cup quarter-finals that have reached the heights we have seen this weekend. Four matches that were all close until the end, and three absolute classics that would be worthy of the final.
Warren Gatland, Wales Kiwi coach, had never lost to Argentina in six contests, but that all ended in quarter-final one in Marseille, with Michael Cheika’s Pumas coming back from a 10 point deficit for a dramatic 29-17 win.A brilliant intercept by 34-year-old replacement flyhalf Nicholas Sanchez in the last five minutes sealed the victory for Argentina. Late in the game, Welsh veteran Dan Biggar had suffered an injury and was replaced by rookie Sam Costelow at 10.
At 51 minutes Cheika made changes en masse – including Sanchez – turning the momentum to Argentina and suddenly the passionate Pumas supporters went into overdrive. One of the replacements, Matias Moroni, pulled off the tackle of the tournament, stopping Welsh super-star winger Louis Rees-Zammit from scoring a crucial try.
Ardie Savea made an enormous contribution in a man-of-the-match performance but the real hero was Jordie Barrett, whose wrestling skills prevented a match-winning try by the Irish with two minutes to go.at finding and developing talent from beyond their own shores, and it’s worth noting that all of the match’s five tries were scored by Kiwis, with Bundee Aki and Jamison Gibson-Park proudly going over in the green of the Irish.
The influence of Farrell on the result was significant. Farrell was a controversial selection to start at flyhalf ahead of George Ford and his name was booed when it was announced before kick-off. But his 20 points through five penalties, one try conversion and a vital field goal ultimately made the difference for England.that is in their DNA if they were to have a chance of winning, and when they threw caution to the wind late in the game that paid off.
There was no braver player on the field than French captain Antoine Dupont, who returned to the team after fracturing his cheekbone in the pool-stage against Namibia. He was truly influential but was dead on his feet by the 80th minute.
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