By David Williams
Wales will take on opponents who have moved three places clear of Warren Gatland’s men in the world rankings when Fiji take the field in France in their World Cup opener on September 10.
The flying Fijians’ stunning victory over England at Twickenham last weekend has seen the South Seas Islanders move up to seventh in the World Rugby listings.
That’s three places higher than Wales who have remained 10th following their most recent game, a heavy defeat to South Africa in their final World Cup warm-up match.
Georgia – who are also in Wales’ pool – are ranked just one spot behind Wales in 11th.
World Cup hosts France have also risen to third after their comfortable victory over Australia, who are back in ninth, one place above Wales.
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If Pool C were to go with current rankings, then Wales would finish third, with Australia second and Fiji top.
England’s troubled build-up to the World Cup is reflected in their descent to eighth.
Steve Borthwick’s side have fallen two places from sixth following their 30-22 defeat by Fiji on Saturday – registering their joint lowest position in the standings’ 20-year history.
Argentina – England’s main pool rivals in France – are up one place to sixth.
Ireland top the rankings ahead of second-placed South Africa with the two heavyweights’ presence in Pool B alongside fifth-placed Scotland highlighting the most lop-sided draw in the competition’s history.
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England are in the easiest group but given their recent run of five defeats in six Tests, their assignments against 12th-placed Samoa and 14th-placed Japan now look like banana skins.
Apart from their form on the field, which is underpinned by a leaky defence, they have suffered from a series of suspensions and injuries that have disrupted their build-up.
While the rankings change after every round of Tests matches, England’s lowly position is symbolic of how far they have fallen and mirrors expectations over how they will perform at the World Cup.
Borthwick himself explained the importance of the rankings heading into the tournament when he announced his 33-man squad on August 7.
“If you could lay it out and say to me ‘what would you want to be right now?’, I’d use (former England coach) Clive Woodward’s words that you want to be the best team in the world,” Borthwick said.
“Ranked number one, the favourites. That’s what Ireland have right now. Why? Because you want to make sure you’re the best team. Now that’s not our situation, our situation is different.”
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