Rugby World Cup Fitness
After just one round of the Rugby World Cup many are talking about how far the "minnow" nations have come.
But what would have happened if they were able to maintain their first half performances into the final quarter of play?
Argentina scared the English, Romania scared the Scottish, Japan performed well against France, Italy had a good first half against Australia and USA had great moments against the Irish, but in every match the favoured team finished the strongest and won.
Fitter and More Skillful
The only game where a favoured team dominated from the start of the match, showing a completely different level of skill, was the All Blacks vs Tonga, but even that didn't go the way New Zealand fans were expecting. Tonga came out of the sheds looking fresh in the second half and managed to hold their own, scoring a good forwards push over try, only to fade away in the last quarter.
Backing up Against Fresh Opposition
Canada, playing their first game of the tournament beat Tonga who were playing their second game, in a match they would usually be expected to lose. Scotland have had another tough second game against Georgia who were playing their first, winning by just 9 points and unable to dot down over the Georgian line when they were also favoured to win by a big margin.
The Effects of Fatigue
If any of the minnows mentioned above were able to maintain the performance they displayed when fresh, the Rugby World Cup would be a much tighter competition. In each of the games there was a stage in the second half when the under dog nation's players started to slow down. Whether expressed with mass outnumbering on defense or guys stopping to stretch out cramps.
Players stretching their calf and hamstring muscles is a tell tail sign that they're struggling to keep up with the fitness demands being placed on their legs. The more players from minnow nations get into high level proffesional rugby the better prepared their teams will be for the physical demands of International rugby and the more upsets we'll see in future world cups.
Back to Status Quo
As for this Rugby World Cup, you can expect to see less convincing performances from the underdogs in their second and third games against the top tear. Russia, playing their first game, will push the USA but results will start to go back to what was originally expected as the minnows incur more injuries and are forced to play their top team game after game to avoid embarrassment.
After just one round of the Rugby World Cup many are talking about how far the "minnow" nations have come.
But what would have happened if they were able to maintain their first half performances into the final quarter of play?
Argentina scared the English, Romania scared the Scottish, Japan performed well against France, Italy had a good first half against Australia and USA had great moments against the Irish, but in every match the favoured team finished the strongest and won.
Fitter and More Skillful
The only game where a favoured team dominated from the start of the match, showing a completely different level of skill, was the All Blacks vs Tonga, but even that didn't go the way New Zealand fans were expecting. Tonga came out of the sheds looking fresh in the second half and managed to hold their own, scoring a good forwards push over try, only to fade away in the last quarter.
Backing up Against Fresh Opposition
Canada, playing their first game of the tournament beat Tonga who were playing their second game, in a match they would usually be expected to lose. Scotland have had another tough second game against Georgia who were playing their first, winning by just 9 points and unable to dot down over the Georgian line when they were also favoured to win by a big margin.
The Effects of Fatigue
If any of the minnows mentioned above were able to maintain the performance they displayed when fresh, the Rugby World Cup would be a much tighter competition. In each of the games there was a stage in the second half when the under dog nation's players started to slow down. Whether expressed with mass outnumbering on defense or guys stopping to stretch out cramps.
Players stretching their calf and hamstring muscles is a tell tail sign that they're struggling to keep up with the fitness demands being placed on their legs. The more players from minnow nations get into high level proffesional rugby the better prepared their teams will be for the physical demands of International rugby and the more upsets we'll see in future world cups.
Back to Status Quo
As for this Rugby World Cup, you can expect to see less convincing performances from the underdogs in their second and third games against the top tear. Russia, playing their first game, will push the USA but results will start to go back to what was originally expected as the minnows incur more injuries and are forced to play their top team game after game to avoid embarrassment.
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