World Cup 2023, controversy renewed!
Discussions about the 2023 World Cup draw, which took place too early, should be reconsidered in light of the quarter-final and semi-final results, which were ultimately impressive.
Much has been said and written about this World Cup draw, which took place three years ago, with a hierarchy that does not exist today. This led to imbalance in the groups, and the quarter-finals reached the semi-finals between France and South Africa, as well as between Ireland and New Zealand.
Given their performances in recent months and their level during this tournament, France and Ireland would undoubtedly have deserved to appear in the semi-finals, rather than England and Fiji. But the surprising performance of the XV de la Rose, and the spectacle it presented during the quarters, made us reconsider that debate. This is what PlanetRugby does in its review of the semi-final match.
“Five of the last six matches were exceptional.”
“We all know the draw was lopsided and undermined the competition somewhat, but the lamentation after the first semi-final, especially from Irish pundits, fans and journalists, was rather amusing.” Can we read on PlanetRugby. If the draw had seen the four best teams in the world avoiding each other, we would have had an uncompetitive quarter-final, which would undoubtedly have drawn criticism from observers. »
“Having Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa and France in the semi-finals would not have automatically made this tournament better. Appreciation of our colleagues, especially when the quarter-final confrontations were rightfully considered among the best confrontations ever. Instead, after the draw, five of the last six matches have been exceptional, with the All Blacks’ match against Argentina being the only exception. »
For France and Ireland, losing in the quarter-finals or semi-finals will not change much in the end, because the big dream for these two teams was to reach the end. Reaching the quarter-finals was not the goal. We cannot say that the finalists, New Zealand and South Africa, have stolen their place at this stage of the competition, because they did not benefit from a particularly easy trip. If the Big Four had faced each other in the semi-finals, would the results have been different? Impossible to say.
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