What Teams Qualified for the Rugby World Cup?
The four teams battling for the one remaining spot in the Rugby World Cup played over the weekend in order to decide which two would play for the final position. Uruguay came away with a victory at home over Kazakhstan, while the Romanian side gave themselves a shot with a win over Tunisia.
Uruguay 44 Kazakhstan 7
The Uruguayan side came out strong and did not look back for the full 80 minutes. They were able to control the scum, and their speedy backs proved to be too much for the worn down Kazak defence.
Leandro Leivas notched two tries for the Uruguayan side, and Martin Crosa scored two of his own, as the South Americans ran to victory. The Kazaks were hampered by a late arrival and never really seemed to have it together throughout the entire match.
Uruguay will now move on to face Romania in the final two-leg playoff in November.
Romania 56 Tunisia 16
The Romanian squad was concerned heading into the match against their African rivals, as many of their starters were either injured or given the match off after a long season in Europe. It turned out that they did not have to be worry, as Romania had a perfect balance through the air and on the ground, scoring at will against the struggling Tunisian side.
Dan Dumbrava gave the Romanians the boost they needed at the tee, notching three penalties and hammering home all five of his conversions. In total, Dumbrava accounted for 19 of Romania’s 56 points.
Youngster Valentin Ivan was forced out due to injury, and veteran Valentin Calafeteanu stepped in for the first time since his injury. The fly-half did a great job of controlling an aggressive Romanian attack, which always looked poised for a try. Calafeteanu managed a try of his own in the second half, capping off what was a very impressive day.
Romanian coach Steve McDowell had this to say of his team’s performance: “Maybe this was not our best game, but in the end the boys delivered… One should remember that we have had a three week break and most of the players are on holidays.”
The victory gives Romania the opportunity to continue its perfect record of Rugby World Cup qualifying, having not missed a tournament since its inception.
Romania vs. Uruguay
Both these sides will receive a stiffer challenge from one another in the two-leg final qualification match-up in November. The Romanian side had very little trouble against a Tunisian squad, who was forced to get most of their points through the air.
The Romanians should have the majority of their starters back, many of which should be in top form as European rugby leagues will be in full swing come September and October. In addition, with the strong play of Calafeteanu and the likely return of Lucian Sirbu, the Romanians should be more than ready at the fly-half position.
McDowell had this to say of his team’s preparation heading into the November: “We will start to work on the match against Uruguay, when I hope the standard of our players will be much higher, as the domestic leagues will start in September and our players will be better prepared and motivated.”
Uruguay also had very little trouble against the Kazaks in a match they were heavily favored to win. The Kazaks managed only one try against a strong Uruguayan scrum.
Uruguay will go into the November match-up as the underdogs, despite having qualified for the World Cup twice before. The one thing the Uruguayan side might have on their opponents is that they have managed to remain more healthy, and the bulk of their main starters were able to play the very important game against Kazakhstan.
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