And then there were four    

 THE favoured sides all won through their Rugby World Cup quarterfinals last weekend with mixed degrees of ease, leaving the All Blacks, England, South Africa and Wales to line up in the looming semi-finals.

The 2019 Rugby World Cup has been unprecedented in various ways. What might the semi-finals hold, then? South Africa will face Wales as England take on New Zealand

Steve Hansen’s New Zealanders made short work of an outmatched Irish side in the second of the quarterfinals in Tokyo, crossing for seven tries en route to a 46-14 victory to send a clear message to their rivals hoping to prevent a hat-trick of Webb Ellis Cup triumphs. The road to glory still runs through the All Blacks.

Earlier in Oita Eddie Jones’ England had been no less impressive, mixing defensive fortitude with attacking efficiency to comfortably see off the challenge of Australia 40-16 and end the Wallabies coaching career of Michael Cheika who, as usual, would have plenty to say on that matter.

The two sides meet in the juicy opening semi-final in Yokohama on Saturday their first clash in the RWC knockout stages since Jonah Lomu bestrode the outmatched England backs in 1995.

On Sunday it was not quite so imperious from the two victors, with Wales scraping to an unconvincing 20-19 victory over 14-man France, while South Africa finally found the formula in the second half to overwhelm the gallant hosts 26-3, after leading just 5-3 at the break.

These two will meet in the second semi-final in Yokohama on Sunday, though already talk is that All Blacks-England might be the real final.

Here then are your rankings in order of likelihood of winning the World Cup:

New Zealand              

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Teams rise, others fall, but Hansen’s men just keep on keeping on.

The word was they might be short of a gallop after their typhoon-induced inactivity. Instead they came out firing on all cylinders, producing a defensive masterclass and a typically ruthless display of finishing. They made 74 of 75 first half tackles and finished with a 93 per cent hit-rate on that side of the ball, unsettling the Irish who produced an error-strewn performance.

With their forwards gaining go-forward with ease, the All Blacks backs had a field day, with Aaron Smith, Richie Mo’unga, George Bridge, Sevu Reece, Beauden Barrett and Anton Lienert-Brown all showcasing their class. Ardie Savea remains in the form of his life and Kieran Read has found his A-game too.

The starting New Zealand loose forwards did not miss a tackle the entire contest, with the only negative the shoulder injury suffered by backup No 7 Matt Todd that likely rules him out of a bench spot for the semi.

The New Zealanders have hit the ground running and know the way home blindfolded from here. Any team with any hope of halting their run of seven consecutive knockout victories has to squeeze them up front, knock them over behind the advantage line and deny then turnover pill and ruck speed. England have the recipe; it remains to be seen if they’re good enough to get cooking when it matters.

South Africa

What? Surely England must be next on the basis of that impressive quarterfinal. Eddie’s men have to get past the All Blacks just to make the final; South Africa face the far less daunting proposition of a struggling Wales side in their semi-final.

Advantage Boks.

South Africa struggled for a half to subdue the speedy, committed Japan outfit in Sunday’s quarterfinal in Tokyo, but eventually squeezed the life out of the gallant hosts with some scrum and maul power and a couple of expert finishes.

It was a far from impressive performance and the Boks will have to be a lot tidier with ball in hand from here on in. But that big pack, their defensive organisation and immense physicality stand them in good stead heading into a semi-final against a Welsh outfit struggling for form.

The South Africans could well make the final without hitting top gear, and if they can find a way to merge Damian de Allende’s power in midfield with the speed and finishing ability of their back three, they could yet have a say in this.

Major improvement is needed. But we all know it is well within them.

England

That was a quality performance against the Wallabies and a repeat on Saturday could make them a serious threat to the All Blacks’ three-peat hopes.

The Wallabies ran for twice as many metres, had 64 percent possession, 62 percent territory and forced England to make double the tackles.

Yet Eddie’s men ran in four tries to one and won in a canter in a classic display of defensive might and clinical attack. That sort of efficiency and patience makes them a real threat this weekend.

It remains doubtful whether they have the ability to deal with the All Blacks’ game in full flow, but if their big forwards can win the battle of the set piece and ruck, they will fancy their chances.

There is nothing more dangerous than an England side with its tail up. And after that decisive dismantling of the Wallabies, belief in Camp Eddie is maybe at an all-time high. It’s still a big ask for them, but, make no mistake, they’re in this race.

Wales

Warren Gatland’s men are going to have to complete a dramatic transformation to progress any further after they struggled mightily and needed pretty much every rub of the green to subdue 14-man France by a single point on Ross Moriarty’s dramatic late try.

There was nothing impressive about Wales’ performance, other than their ability to scrape out the victory when it had looked as though Les Bleus were going to complete a famous win after losing lock Sebastien Vahaamahina in the 49th minute to a braindead red card.

Wales missed centre Jonathan Davies badly after he was a late withdrawal and spent vast swathes of this match mired in mediocrity. Any such shortcomings this week will be punished much more mercilessly by the Boks, you would think.

The only thing going for Wales is they almost have nothing to lose now. Even Warren Gatland admitted they were the second best side on Sunday in Oita. You could say they have a free swing this week and that might just make them a danger.

That said, your limitations are your limitations, and on Sunday it appeared as though they were a side with no discernible strengths. Gatland has seven days to work some magic. – stuff.co.nz