A glance at the fate of some WXV nations
If you wanted extreme drama, you could view the men’s World Cup final in Paris or enjoy a trip around the world to take in the final rites of WXV2 and 3.
USA v Italy
The final minutes of WXV2 could not have been tenser.
Italy were way ahead of USA, so no worries about the final result. It was the other points that mattered, points difference. In an agonising finish all depended on the TMO’s verdict about legal grounding. Italy desperately needed one more score. The replays looked as though the camera was in Row Z. Finally Leo Colgan spotted an Italian obstruction in the build-up, so no try.
Scotland celebrate – photo Johan Rynners – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images
The game went on. The Azzurre continued their all-out attack, but an error had to come, the Eagles defending as if their own lives were at stake.
In the stand were the Scots, hardly daring to watch. It was all a matter of that one final score. Italy were given a penalty. A kick at goal in a strong wind?. Sofia Stefan shouted for help from the stand: which option? They went for a scrum, they flung the ball around like a hot potato. When a knock-on occurred, the Scots erupted with joy; the Italians were crestfallen. The Americans realised they still have a long winding path to regain their past stature.
Now we see that the try scored by Emma Orr in the 79th minute against Japan the day before was the vital act that gave the Scots the trophy.
Watching the Azzurre play gives a lot of pleasure, the number of passes out of the tackle seemed to mount into the hundreds; wild passes were netted as if by the old mail train travelling at 60 mph. It was breathless, but it was helpful not to be an Italian fan, the tension would have been too great.
They scored some quite wonderful tries, involving multiple passing movements, sometimes lateral, sometimes direct. I have long felt they were the side most likely to make the big advance in the Six Nations. With so many newer faces brought into the team by Giovanni Raineri, the future looks bright.
For the Eagles the same bright hopes were dimmed. Their performance seemed to hold out great promise; the pack did well, the backs had their moments, but the lack of time together must be the ultimate deterrent to progress.
From the outside their best bet looks to be for Milton Haig to take over permanently. His initial approach has been to stress the historical aspect of their rugby progress. But it’s what happens on today’s training fields that matters more. If they could afford to bring the most promising players together for a lengthy period in one place – the Chula Vista Center comes to mind – things could advance rapidly. But that is asking for the moon.
For the moment Kate Zackary has to talk modestly about gradual improvements. The talent is most certainly there but not the finances. It’s a familiar story.
Result: USA 8 Italy 30
PotM Sofia Stefan
Referee: Natarsha Ganley (NZR)
ARs: Aurélie Groizeleau (FFR) and Zoe Naude (SARU)
TMO: Leo Colgan (IRFU)
Final table W L Pts Diff Pts
Scotland 3 0 55 15
Italy 3 0 53 15
South Africa 1 2 -6 5
Japan 1 2 -22 5
USA 1 2 -22 5
Samoa 0 3 -58 1
Here we see here the tightness of the results. The weakness of the structure is the arbitrary nature of who plays whom. Teams playing the side that finished bottom were always likely to achieve a better points difference. USA finished fifth solely because of that regulation. They scored one more try than Japan.
As for promotion, Ali Donnelly keeps reminding us (and commentators in particular) that finishing top does not mean automatic promotion. It all depends on 6N finishing spots, and anyway there’s no promotion this year. For the moment the two European sides lie comfortably ahead of their competitors. That is why the WXV came into being.
WXV3
Ireland v Spain
Result: Ireland 15 Spain 13
PotM Dannah O’Brien
It shouldn’t have been like this. Ireland were the odds-on favourites to walk off with the WXV3 trophy. But they were unable to recreate the domination they had known in the two previous rounds. Credit for that must go to Las Leonas, for whom this competition might have been invented. They disrupted Irish plans so much that it was like being back in the last Six Nations: the Girls in Green all over the place, not knowing which way to turn.
This was another agonisingly tight match. Against most expectations – mine certainly – the Irish struggled all through to achieve the narrowest of wins at the last gasp. They were far from the carefree group who had cast away dull care against Kazakhstan and Colombia. But just look at the comparative standings of the opposition.
Now they were fallible, all too often fumbling. It is to their credit that they kept fighting to the final whistle, Sam Monaghan a tower of strength as captain and reliable line-out provider. The young out-half Dannah O’Brien kept the Spaniards beyond arm’s length by the power of her left boot. Now Ireland need to develop a second kicker to vary the pattern. Too many of O’Brien’s kicks failed to find grass; an inside centre using the right boot would have created more uncertainty in Spain’s defensive alignments.
For them Amalia Argudo at full-back had an outstanding game too.
But the fact remains that Ireland were the winners of the championship, and everyone who has shared their unhappiness over the past few years can share their delight.
Overall
The point about arbitrariness (but not promotion!) is even truer of WXV3. There, inevitably, the contrasts were at their greatest. Ireland and Spain fought toe to toe. The huge gap in points difference (172/37) is quite misleading.
Final table W L Pts Diff Pts
Ireland 3 0 172 14
Fiji 2 1 165 11
Spain 2 1 37 10
Kenya 1 2 -22 5
Kazakhstan 1 2 -221 4
Colombia 0 3 -131 0
Here the Kazakhs scored fewer points and conceded far more than Colombia, but managed to beat them head-to-head.
For the four non-European nations this tournament will have meant a great deal. They can now return home knowing far better what needs to be done to improve their lot. That goes for the coaches as much as for the players. And they will have enjoyed the camaraderie that playing in a single location has offered them.
