Rugby World Cup Schedule 2015: Group Tables, Fixtures After New Zealand v Tonga

After New Zealand thrashed Tonga at St. James' Park on Friday to end their faint hopes of progressing, seven of the eight quarter-final teams at the 2015 Rugby World Cup have now been confirmed.

The focus now switches to Pool B, where the final qualification place is still up for grabs as Scotland and Japan vie to finish behind South Africa.

Elsewhere, Wales and Australia face-off at Twickenham to determine who tops Pool A, while Ireland and France will do the same for Pool D.

Hosts England will look to salvage some pride in their final match when they take on Uruguay at the Etihad Stadium.

Here are the group tables as they currently stand, the schedule for the final matches before the knockout stage and a closer look at the dramatic final weekend in Pool B.

Pos.	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Bonus	Points
1	Australia	3	3	0	0	126	29	1	13
2	Wales	3	3	0	0	105	47	1	13
3	England	3	1	0	2	73	72	2	6
4	Fiji	4	1	0	3	84	101	1	5
5	Uruguay	3	0	0	3	27	166	0	0

Pos.	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Bonus	Points
1	South Africa	4	3	0	1	176	56	4	16
2	Scotland	3	2	0	1	100	60	2	10
3	Japan	3	2	0	1	70	82	0	8
4	Samoa	3	1	0	2	36	88	0	4
5	USA	3	0	0	3	32	128	0	0

Pos.	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Bonus	Points
1	New Zealand	4	4	0	0	174	49	3	19
2	Argentina	3	2	0	1	115	51	2	10
3	Georgia	4	2	0	2	53	123	0	8
4	Tonga	4	1	0	3	70	130	2	6
5	Namibia	3	0	0	3	51	110	1	1

Pos.	Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Bonus	Points
1	Ireland	3	3	0	0	110	26	2	14
2	France	3	3	0	0	111	39	2	14
3	Italy	3	1	0	2	42	66	1	5
4	Romania	3	1	0	2	38	97	0	4
5	Canada	4	0	0	4	58	131	2	2

Date	Time (BST)	Fixture
Saturday, Oct. 10	2:30 p.m	Samoa v Scotland
	4:45 p.m.	Australia v Wales
	8 p.m.	England v Uruguay
Sunday, Oct. 11	12 p.m.	Argentina v Namibia
	2:30 p.m.	Italy v Romania
	4:45 p.m.	France v Ireland
	8 p.m.	USA v Japan

Scotland and Japan Battle for the Last Quarter-Final Place

Two points ahead of Japan, Scotland are in the more commanding position going into the final group-stage fixtures.

Their destiny is in their own hands, and they could secure second place in Pool B long before Japan even take to the field. However, with Japan almost sure to beat the winless USA, the pressure is on for the Scots to win.

Scotland head coach Vern Cotter has already made his team selection and is set to field a strong XV, per Scottish Rugby:

According to the team's official website, seven changes have been made following the comprehensive defeat to South Africa with fly-half Finn Russell among those returning to action.

Per the report, Cotter is eagerly anticipating the match and described the criteria his side need to meet to ensure a win:

"

Every Test match is a ‘must-win’ when you represent your country.

We’ve put in a huge amount of work to get us to this point, and our performances and commitment have put us in a position to qualify for the last eight.

We’ll need to be up to the challenge, enjoy the opportunity, and maintain the awareness needed to play to our strengths and impose our game. 

"

What will further help the Scots is that Samoa will be missing winger Alesana Tuilagi, who was handed a two-week ban for striking a Japanese player with his knee in their match, per the Press Association (h/t the Guardian).

Rugby commentator Scotty Stevenson was one of many who came out in support of Tuilagi and criticised the punishment:

With Tuilagi missing and Samoa no longer motivated by the prospect of a quarter-final place Scotland should be able to win, but if they don't they'll endure a nervy wait to learn their fate.

Cotter will need his side to win, as Japan will almost certainly beat the USA and could easily record a bonus point as well.

The Americans have been firmly outclassed in the the tournament thus far and have conceded 128 points in just three matches, so there's little chance of them troubling surprise dark horses Japan, who have been one of the stories of the tournament so far.