What eliminated teams can be happy with their World Cup performances?

Since World Rugby rankings began Japan have never been below twenty, so they would grace any tournament on merit.

Sunday’s programme starts with Ireland against Argentina in Cardiff, the Irish in particular having paid the price of the attritional nature of the competition.

After three weeks of thrilling rugby, the business end of the Rugby World Cup – the quarter-final knock-out stage – has arrived. The major nations should not get half of the World Cup revenue. Rob Howley made the point that Wales are battled hardened coming into this one. But for the first time, none of them looked out of place.

Nearly 70 additional trains are being provided for the two games – 24 per cent more than for the entire Glastonbury Festival which is one of the biggest events on the GWR network.

But I think as things go on, over the next three to six months, not just Gloucester but other clubs will be looking at season ticket sales, by looking at matchday sales, by looking at merchandise, how many people are engaging in terms of websites and websites and social media, how many people are signing up to clubs as members, etc. I think that will be a real gauge, a real metric to look at over the next few months. Because the smaller teams have been performing so well, it has just made for a terrific tournament. So far in this tournament, Japan are the only northern hemisphere team to have beaten a southern one, with their 34-32 defeat of South Africa. They could have done with a little more finesse on attack, which I think will come, but Wales can certainly win the World Cup.

In seven previous tournaments Japan had managed just a solitary win – against fellow minnow Zimbabwe – in 1991. After their first match against New Zealand in 1905, Wales played 15 matches against them in the 90 years before the game turned professional.

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The general consensus is that this world cup has been one of the best ever, with its fair share of shocks and plucky underdogs.

The All Blacks are still yet to hit top gear but nonetheless topped Pool C without too much difficulty, first accounting for Argentina, and then recording bonus point wins over Namibia, Georgia and Tonga. But World Rugby should have called Tew’s bluff.

“We’re investing 10 million pounds a year trying to close the gap”, Egan told Reuters. One wonders how many big games are left in an ageing team but the Springboks should have enough nous, pride and experience to beat a depleted Welsh side, much as I would love to see a home nation go all the way.

Apart from Japan’s heroics, the big story in the Pool stages was, of course, England’s early exit.

In Georgia, a tiny former Soviet republic that has become an improbable Tier Two success, WR helped provide basic facilities. And then, at 30-6 with 15 minutes to go, the All Blacks faded and Scotland finally started to play. Tbilisi had just two unplayable pitches through the whole of the winter.

Savaged by injuries prior to and during the World Cup, Wales are not the type of side to blow their opponents off the park, but they are capable of beating anyone in a dog-fight. While there probably might be too many occasions when they go to the TMO, we also say that we want the referees to get it right.

Canada coach Kieran Crowley complained his country had to play three games in 11 days: “They wouldn’t ask (pool rivals) France or Ireland to do that”, he said.

A semi-final showdown with either South Africa or Wales at Twickenham on October 24. They’ve always had good forwards but now they can also play off the cuff. Any “neutral” spectators in Australia were supporting the other team, but to be honest, you thrive on it. When you play away, most of the fans are against you, so it’s nothing new. Samoa and Fiji play in Europe in the November internationals. It shook the world, and said there is something happening here.

And the second piece is going to be that we’re investing a lot into the community this year – more than ever before – and we are hoping to take advantage of the World Cup buzz and energy and the bubble, and we will be doing a number of initiatives to try and drive more children in the area to be playing.

WR have only limited power to influence the richer unions.

Peter Morris, the chief economist at Ascend Flightglobal Consultancy in Britain, said the Rugby World Cup was definitely a positive factor for airlines at a generally “slow” time of the year.

Beyond Tier Two are the “performance unions”, such as Germany, Belgium, Chile, Zimbabwe and Kenya.