Rugby World Cup Fixtures 2015: Schedule, Groups, Live Stream Info and More
An exhilarating first week of the Rugby World Cup 2015 has showed fans the world over exactly what the cream of the international crop have to offer, with plenty more shocks and surprises still to come.
Minnows Namibia will be the last team to start their tournament when they take on the not-so-slight challenge of reigning champions New Zealand on Thursday before Week 2 gets up and running.
We provide a full breakdown of the live streaming information needed to ensure you don't miss any of the World Cup drama to come.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Live Stream: ITV Player (UK), Universal Sports (US), Fox Sports (AUS), Sky Go (NZ), SuperSport (SA)
You can visit the official Rugby World Cup website for a breakdown of the complete tournament schedule, while Conor Pope of the Irish Times has also provided a rundown of the competition's fixtures:
Pool Standings
| 1 | Wales | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 9 | 1 | 5 |
| 2 | England | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 11 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Australia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 13 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Fiji | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 24 | 63 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Uruguay | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 54 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | Scotland | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 10 | 1 | 5 |
| 2 | Samoa | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 16 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | Japan | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 44 | 77 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | South Africa | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 32 | 34 | 2 | 2 |
| 5 | United States | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 25 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | New Zealand | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 16 | 0 | 4 |
| 2 | Georgia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | Tonga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 17 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | Namibia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Argentina | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 26 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | France | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 70 | 21 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | Ireland | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 7 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Italy | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 32 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Romania | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 38 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Canada | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 50 | 0 | 0 |
Biggest Remaining Pool-Stage Fixtures
England vs. Australia, October 3
Two of the front-runners for this year's Rugby World Cup title are on a collision course in the Pool of Death, with tournament hosts England ready to face off against 2015 Rugby Championship winners Australia on October 3.
This particular matchup was always likely to have a grave impact on who would progress from Pool A, but the injury setbacks suffered by Wales have only distanced the pair further from the rest of the pack.
The Wallabies were concise and well-regimented en route to a 28-13 defeat of Fiji on Wednesday, but their failure to clinch a four-try bonus point could be a major miss, says Ben Coles of Planet Rugby:
Next up for Australia is a chance to get some points on the scoreboard against Uruguay this Sunday before preparing for the much tenser duels against England and Wales, in that order.
Regardless of how tournament hosts England fare against Wales this Saturday, Australia must treat their tie against England like a final in itself, with the victor likely to clinch the more favourable top-place finish in Pool A.
South Africa vs. Scotland, October 3
An already open Pool B landscape got blasted further apart on Tuesday after Scotland demolished South Africa superiors Japan with a 45-10 hammering to open their tournament in style.
The bonus-point win puts Vern Cotter's side top of Pool B, and Breathe Sport hints at the possibility of the Scots handing the Springboks a second defeat when they collide on October 3:
"Scotland > Japan Japan > South Africa So... Scotland > South Africa #SCO have got this group in the bag. pic.twitter.com/0srWUCvLys
— BreatheSport (@BreatheSport) September 23, 2015"
South Africa are in disarray following their shock 34-32 defeat to the Cherry Blossoms in Brighton, and what once looked a routine pool schedule for them just became a much more treacherous route.
The Press Association provided quotes from Springboks helmsman Heyneke Meyer, who touched upon the unity needed from his side to overcome their obstacles, as well as some deeper-rooted issues for the nation:
Scotland had their share of heroes in the win over Japan, where the likes of John Hardie, Mark Bennett and birthday boy Finn Russell were each in stellar form against a tired-looking opponent.
South Africa may appear a wounded animal at present, but the pedigree of the two-time world champions can't be underestimated at any point. The clash between this pair just became so much more appealing.
France vs. Ireland, October 11
Utter it at your own peril, but Pool D looks likely to remain a two-horse race between France and Ireland, with the pair closing out the pool stage with their much-anticipated head-to-head on October 11.
And according to Rugby World writer Gavin Mortimer, certain sections of the French press already see their team making it to the final eight, or at least newspaper Midi Olympique appears to:
"Bullish headline in @midi_olympique given what Japan did to SA. "France already in the quarters". Over to you, Canada, Romania & Ireland
— gavin mortimer (@gavinmortimer7) September 21, 2015"
Ireland's competition started out brightly with a 50-7 drubbing of Canada, while Les Bleus built on a 32-10 victory over Italy by beating a limp Romania side 38-11 on Wednesday.
Philippe Saint-Andre's side did so without the talents of winger Yoann Huget, however, who was ruled out of the tournament thanks to a knee injury sustained against the Azzurri. Murray Kinsella of The42_ie illustrated his importance:
The script would have it that whoever triumphs in this match is likely to top Pool D and thus avoid the winner of Pool C in the quarter-finals, which looks to be reigning world champions New Zealand at this stage.
That in itself is motivation for both France and Ireland to lay on an entertaining encounter of massive proportions next month, with both hoping to mount some challenge on this year's crown.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
