The World Cup kicked off to a barrage of complaints about the draw for the groups, which was made three years before the start of the tournament.
It meant the pools were lopsided. Two on the one side contained all five of the top ranked sides with the other two made up of teams who were lower down the order.
It meant three of the top five could not make the semi-finals. “It is genuinely a disgrace,” said the former Ireland wing, Tommy Bowe, below. “It is ridiculous to think you have the top five teams in the world rankings all on one side and it is frustrating that only two will make it thro...