Rugby World Cup 2015: Winners and Losers from Sunday's Final Pool Games
The Rugby World Cup 2015 pool phase reached its conclusion with four games on Sunday.
Ireland sealed top spot in Pool D with a comprehensive 24-9 win over France at the Millennium Stadium in the day's biggest game, while their quarter-final opponents Argentina tuned up with a 64-19 thumping of Namibia.
Italy finished their campaign with a 32-22 win over Romania, and Japan saw off the USA 28-18.
The major storyline of the day was the potentially terrible cost of Ireland's victory, with the team seeing three key men helped from the field in Cardiff, Wales.
Let's assess the pool stage's last set of winners and losers.
Winner: Johnny Redelinghuys
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Namibian prop Johnny Redelinghuys brought the curtain down on his international career with a plucky conversion attempt that only just missed the target.
The ball struck the upright after Redelinghuys was given the honour of taking the kick to mark the finale to his Test career after Eugene Jantjes had scored a try at the death of Namibia's 64-19 defeat to Argentina.
But despite not splitting the posts, the 19 stone front-rower's effort still got the crowd off their seat to applaud him.
A nice touch of fun to round off the pool phase of a tournament that has brought plenty of entertainment to the grounds that have played host.
Loser: Marcelo Bosch
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Argentina's Marcelo Bosch may yet face further punishment for the tip tackle that earned him a yellow card against Namibia.
The Saracens man was on as a replacement in the second half and lifted his man way beyond the horizontal before he crashed to the turf.
It looked ugly on the replay, but referee Pascal Gauzere deemed the Theuns Kotze had landed on his chest rather than his head or neck, grading the offence worthy only of yellow and not red.
But should the citing official wish to take another look, that view could be called into question, and Bosch's crime could still be upgraded in the way Australia's Michael Hooper's charge on Mike Brown was.
It would be a big miss for the Pumas if they were to lose Bosch for their quarter-final.
His partnership with Juan Martin Fernandez has proved a potent combination in the midfield, and he can also kick goals from the halfway line, which could be a useful weapon in a tight knockout contest.
Winner and Loser: Ireland
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Ireland secured top spot in Pool D with a consummate performance in a 24-9 win over France, but it came at a high price.
Captain Paul O'Connell was stretchered off and administered oxygen after what looked like a tournament-ending injury.
And Ireland also lost fly-half Johnny Sexton and flanker Peter O'Mahony to injuries they will hope are not equally as serious.
In addition, man of the match Sean O'Brien may yet face action for a punch not seen by the officials during the game.
These problems take the shine of a deeply impressive display from Joe Schmidt's team, who never gave France a sniff and booked a quarter-final against Argentina, sending France into a meeting with the All Blacks.
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Loser: Eagles Still Deep in Their Slumber
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How much longer can we continue to label the USA the "Sleeping Giant" of international rugby?
Much is made of their potential to fish in the deep reservoir of talented American football and basketball players who, unwanted by those indigenous sports, could transfer their physical attributes to rugby union.
And yet their team are not showing signs of progress.
They have arrived at this World Cup and failed to muster a single point in their pool while other minnows, such as Georgia, Romania and Japan, have won games and bloodied noses in others.
The size of the market in the States represents a huge opportunity for the sport to grow, but the national team needs do something on the scale of Japan's success in this tournament to make anyone take notice across the pond.
Winner and Loser: Japan
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Japan made history at Kingsholm, England, by becoming the first team ever to win three games and not qualify for the quarter-finals.
Eddie Jones' men finished their campaign with a 28-18 win over the USA, but Scotland's win over Samoa yesterday meant they had already sealed second place in the pool.
So the Blossoms go home, and Jones departs the job as head coach—leaving behind a side who provided the standout moment of the pool stages with that astonishing win over South Africa.
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