Top ten rugby teams as of 2018
Once the dust had settled after the November rugby internationals, the official World Rugby rankings showed that little had changed among the Top Ten rugby teams.
In fact, the only difference in the table compared with the start of November is that Fiji had moved up from 10th place to 8th, pushing down France and Argentina by one spot each.
This was no surprise, as Fiji had beaten France for the first time ever in a mighty upset to finish their tour on a high. The Fijians had lost to Scotland two weeks previously, however. So they quite rightly sit one spot behind the Scots.
All in all, then, all is as they should be. France are above Argentina, whom they beat; Fiji are above France; Scotland above Fiji; and England are higher than South Africa and Australia, both of whom they vanquished.
Ditto with Wales, who beat Australia and South Africa en route to their first clean sweep (they also beat Scotland and Tonga).
All is right, except for one: Ireland beat New Zealand for the first time in Dublin. But that was not enough to displace the All Blacks from top spot in the rankings. However, New Zealand coach Steve Hansen does concede that, at the moment, the Irish are top dogs and have the bragging rights.
Watch the videos below to see how the top teams finished their autumn series and sealed their ranking spots. (Click on arrow at top-right to play video)
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Nice sports article that made me aware of the present rankings in Rugby.
Though I neither play nor watch this, it seems I’d been watching the game the way you have presented this.
Though there maybe a problem technically with the video, I enjoyed reading it and feel like watching a whole play to really witness the physicality aside from learning the mechanics and rulings of the game.
Thanks for sharing this sports.
-jules
Thanks for alerting me about the technical issue. However, I had a look and could not see any problems with it. Please let me know if you encounter the problem again, and the exact issue that you are seeing.
As far as I could remember, New Zealand ended the season for the ninth straight time at the top of the rankings. Fijian rugby concluded what had already been a splendid year for them with another high in Paris on Saturday evening. It was a good November series for the Six Nations teams, England also. Outside of the top 10, Georgia were the biggest climbers, moving up two places to 13th. Great Show!
It’s good to see some smaller nations making progress, as Fiji and Georgia have done. Interestingly, the two teams will play each other at the 2019 Rugby World Cup — what a game that promises to be.
Rugby, what a brutal sport, I love it. I am not a player myself, but love to watch. To be honest I don’t really understand the rules all that much. It’s time to start learning more about the sport and it looks like I have arrived at the right place. Where would be the best place to start?
Many people don’t give rugby a chance because they find it hard to follow, and that’s true — if you don’t know the rules, it can be difficult to watch.
As with other complicated sports, it’s best to understand at least the basic rules. That will truly enhance your experience. Try this article, for a start: Rugby Union Rules for Beginners