Australian rugby coach congratulates France on hosting the World Cup

During an interview with RMC Sport, Phil Waugh, president of the Australian Rugby Union, praised France for its successful organization of the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

disaster. For Australia, the recent Rugby World Cup in France was a huge disappointment. For the first time in their history, the Wallabies failed to qualify for the final stage of the competition, due to a chaotic run marked by defeats to Fiji (22-15) and Wales (40-6). In response, Eddie Jones tendered his resignation at the end of October, less than ten months after returning to the national team.

He arrived at the end of last January to replace New Zealander Dave Rennie, with the aim of giving Australia a third world title after winning in 1991 and 1999. The rest were not at the level and announced a major project as all eyes are now turning towards the next World Cup, which the Wallabies will host in 2027.

“The French did a very good job.”

Phil Waugh, President of the Australian Federation, spoke to RMC Sport about this major challenge. He wanted to salute the French organization. “I think the French have done a very good job,” he explains. “It’s a great country to visit, and the international events it hosts are unparalleled. It’s not just about the atmosphere in the stadiums. It’s about the way the host cities participated.” At the World Cup, it was a pleasure to be there with a really nice atmosphere everywhere, in the stadiums, in the cities, all over the country.”

Between fans being late arriving at some stadiums, a lack of water or beer, and controversy over children’s choirs performing the national anthem, the first weekend of the World Cup saw some bumps.

Phil Waugh explains: “There are always challenges when hosting such a large event in so many different locations. So it was not surprising to see some organizational shortcomings at the beginning. But overall, I think the global competition, the FFR and the Organizing Committee reacted quickly. . And we know it all too well, running out of beer at a rugby match is never a good thing! It was important to adapt quickly. But as a spectator who went to all the host cities, I found that the World Cup got “better and better as the competition progressed. This is thanks to the flexibility of the organizing committee.” “There will always be criticism from the fans about what could be done better. But the truth is that it is a big tournament with a lot of visitors in different places.”

“We can’t do things 100% well,” he adds. “But overall I think it was great.”

France “world team”

Then Phil Waugh, who succeeded Andy Marinos last June, returned to the campaign of Antoine Dupont’s colleagues, and was stopped in the quarter-finals by South Africa after a home fight. “The French national team has been a world-class team, especially over the last two years. The fact is that the best nine or ten teams in the world have become closer together. As you know, South Africa competing in the quarter-finals “was a particularly difficult task. It’s a very disappointing result for the French, but I think the way they hosted the tournament and the way the country supported the French, “It was really nice to see that. It’s a shame for the tournament that they didn’t do that. We won’t qualify for the quarter-finals,” he said. Final”.

Phil Waugh also expressed his opinion on Fabien Galthiet: “He did an excellent job. He relied on the depth of the French team. When you lose a player, you have another left, and the quality of this player is not far from good.” “The other player. I think he did a good job. France could have won the World Cup. For all international teams, the World Cup is really important. The most important thing is to win frequently and in as many matches as possible. And I think he did a great job of that.” “