Rugby World Cup 2019 team by team guide as England gun for glory in Japan

The Rugby World Cup is almost here – and the race to lift the Webb Ellis Cup looks wide open.

Hosts Japan take on Russia in the opening game on Friday, with all the top contenders in action over the course of a hectic few days to get the competition underway.

Despite winning the last two tournaments, there are high hopes New Zealand could finally be dethroned with England, Ireland and Wales all amongst those considered as possible winners.

Two-time winners Australia and South Africa are also looking to return to the top of the tree, whilst three-time runners-up France are hoping this can finally be their year to get over the line.

The likes of Scotland and Argentina also cannot be discounted – whilst hosts Japan showed us four years ago that shocks are possible when they stunned South Africa on a historic afternoon in Brighton.

Here’s a team by team guide to the 2019 Rugby World Cup as we run the rule over all 20 teams in the showpiece competition.

POOL A

IRELAND

Coach : Joe Schmidt

Captain : Rory Best

Tournament odds : 9/1

Best finish : Quarter-finals (1987, 1991, 1995, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015)

World ranking : 1

Dangerman : Jordan Larmour

Verdict : Start tournament ranked No.1 in world after back-to-back wins over Wales which have changed mood music following dismal first half of 2019 that suggested they had peaked a year too early. Wins over NZ in 2016 and 2018 show how good they can be. Need to rediscover set-piece game.

SCOTLAND

Coach : Gregor Townsend

Captain : Stuart McInally

Odds : 40/1

Best : Semi-final (1991)

World ranking : 7

Dangerman : Finn Russell

Verdict : Within a minute of reaching semi-finals last time but unlikely to go that close again. Dreadful record away from home against tier one opposition does not bode well. Won’t fear Ireland in opener but lose that and Japan will believe they can beat them to second qualifying spot.

JAPAN

Coach : Jamie Joseph

Captain : Michael Leitch

Odds : 150/1

Best : Pool stages

World ranking : 10

Dangerman : Amanaki Mafi

Verdict : Size is always an issue for Japan but the hosts punched above their weight in downing South Africa at the 2015 World Cup and with home advantage and a fizzing attacking game they could do so again.

RUSSIA

Coach : Lyn Jones

Captain : Vasily Artemyev

Odds : 2,500/1

Best : Pool stages

World ranking : 20

Dangerman : Andrei Ostrikov

Verdict : Only made it into the tournament by default when Romania were kicked out for fielding ineligible players and Spain and Belgium fell at the same hurdle. Having lost a warm-up match to Jersey it looks bleak for the Bears.

SAMOA

Coach : Steve Jackson

Captain : Jack Lam

Odds : 750/1

Best : Quarter-final (1991)

World ranking : 16

Dangerman : Tim Nanai-Williams

Verdict : Physical as ever but not the force they once were. Defeats to Fiji and the USA in the Pacific Nations Cup, plus the usual financial issues, leave them lagging behind heading into the World Cup.

POOL B

NEW ZEALAND

Coach : Steve Hansen

Captain : Kieran Read

Odds : 5/4 favourites

Best : Winners (1987, 2011, 2015)

World ranking : 2

Dangerman : Beauden Barrett

Verdict : Lost World No.1 ranking for the first time in a decade this summer as they failed to win Rugby Championship, but come tournament time they have the class to land a hat-trick of World Cups and will have star forward Brodie Retallick fit for knockout stages.

SOUTH AFRICA

Coach : Rassie Erasmus

Captain : Siya Kolisi

Odds : 4/1

Best : Winners (1995, 2007)

World ranking : 4

Dangerman : Duane Vermeulen

Verdict : Revived under Erasmus, the Springboks won a series against England last summer and the Rugby Championship this year. They have the power to threaten anyone but need to keep Handre Pollard fit at stand-off.

ITALY

Coach : Conor O’Shea

Captain : Sergio Parisse

Odds : 750/1

Best : Pool stages

World ranking : 14

Dangerman : Matteo Minozzi

Verdict : Whipping boys in the Six Nations, they should chalk up two wins against the minnows in their pool but too brittle defensively to cope with the super-heavyweights they are bracketed with.

NAMIBIA

Coach : Phil Davies

Captain : Johan Deysel

Odds : 5,000/1

Best : Pool stages

World ranking : 23

Dangerman : Eugene Jantjies

Verdict : Lack of exposure to top-level rugby a problem for the African lightweights after financial problems led to withdrawal from Currie Cup. The decision of back row Renaldo Bothma to quit international rugby on eve of tournament and play for Harlequins instead is a big blow.

CANADA

Coach : Kingsley Jones

Captain : Tyler Ardron

Odds : 2,500/1

Best : Quarter-final (1991)

World ranking : 22

Dangerman : DTH Van der Merwe

Verdict : Defence coach Richard Wigglesworth reckons Canucks are most intelligent squad he has been involved with, having chess as part of the dressing-room ritual. Brains only takes a team so far though. Unlikely to win more than one game.

POOL C

ENGLAND

Coach : Eddie Jones

Captain : Owen Farrell

Odds : 4/1

Best : Winners (2003)

World ranking : 3

Dangerman : Maro Itoje

Verdict : On their day (usually at Twickenham) England can be devastating, their Saracens spine of Owen Farrell, Jamie George, Itoje and Billy Vunipola as good as anyone. Also have a coach with three World Cup campaigns to his name and an intimate knowledge of Japan. Should win pool but can they find consistency to go whole way?

ARGENTINA

Coach : Mario Ledesma

Captain : Pablo Matera

Odds : 40/1

Best : 3rd (2007)

World ranking : 11

Dangerman : Nicholas Sanchez

Verdict : Underestimate Argentina at your peril. Always exceed expectations and will have travelling support. Their fate could depend on their first game. Beat France, as they did twice in 2007, and they will likely qualify for the knockout rounds.

FRANCE

Coach : Jacques Brunel

Captain : Guilhem Guirado

Odds : 33/1

Best : Runners-up (1987, 1999, 2011)

World ranking : 8

Dangerman : Antoine Dupont

Verdict : Hopeless in the Six Nations, France are given little more than a puncher’s chance. But they are no strangers to upsetting World Cup form book. And if they beat Argentina in the opener they should battle for pool supremacy with England. Lose it and that may well be that.

TONGA

Coach : Toutai Kefu

Captain : Siale Piutau

Odds : 1,000/1

Best : Pool stages

World ranking : 15

Dangerman : Telusa Veainu

Verdict : England’s opening opponents pose a physical threat but not much more. One win in 2019 does not suggest Kefu’s squad will give Tonga its first experience of the knockout stages.

USA

Coach : Gary Gold

Captain : Blaine Scully

Odds : 1,500/1

Best : Pool stages

World ranking : 13

Dangerman : AJ MacGinty

Verdict : Improving but can only hope to beat Tonga. Lost Pacific Nations Cup final to Japan but have beaten Canada twice this year. Played in all but one World Cup, but won only three of 25 games.

POOL D

AUSTRALIA

Coach : Michael Cheika

Captain : Michael Hooper

Odds : 14/1

Best: Winners (1991, 1999)

World ranking : 6

Dangerman : Kurtley Beale

Verdict : Australia made rugby sit up and take note when they stuck 47 points on New Zealand last month, only to then lose the return 36-0 the following week. Twice champions, Wallabies contain a number of the squad which reached 2015 final.

WALES

Coach : Warren Gatland

Captain : Alun Wyn Jones

Odds : 9/1

Best : 3rd (1987)

World ranking : 5

Dangerman : George North

Verdict : Grand Slam winners Wales have high hopes, even if back-to-back defeats by Ireland have tempered expectation a little. Gatland has delivered time and again with Wales and Lions and reckons they can go all the way. Crucially they beat Australia for first time in 14 attempts last season.

GEORGIA

Coach : Milton Haig

Captain : Merab Sharikadze

Odds : 1,000/1

Best : Pool stages

World ranking : 12

Dangerman : Mamuka Gorgodze

Verdict : When ex-England prop Graham Rowntree became forwards coach he said he was more excited than he had been for any job. That’s because the Lelos live to scrummage. With Gorgodze out of retirement, the Six Nations second tier champions will expect to trouble Fiji and Uruguay.

FIJI

Coach : John McKee

Captain : Dominiko Waqaniburotu

Odds : 250/1

Best : Quarter-finals (1987, 2007)

Dangerman : Vereniki Goneva

Verdict : Finest World Cup hour in 2007 when they beat Wales and reached quarter-finals. Last season beat France. However, with Wales a different proposition to 2007 and Australia also in their pool, they will likely fall short.

URUGUAY

Coach : Esteban Meneses

Captain : Juan Manuel Gaminara

Odds : 5,000/1

Best : Pool stages

Dangerman : Agustin Ormaechea

Verdict : With Fiji and Georgia first up, Uruguay must start well if they are to have anything to show. Kept 12 of their squad from 2015, where they lost all four games, conceding 50-plus points to each of England, Wales and Australia.