The XV of France knows its opponent. After their convincing victory against Fiji (44-0) on Saturday in Whangarei (New Zealand), Maëlle Filopon’s teammates had to wait before knowing their rival in the quarter-finals of the Women’s Rugby World Cup. Fourth qualified (but best second in Group C behind England), the XV of France will be opposed to Italy, fifth qualified (second in Group B behind Canada), thanks to its success against Japan (21-8 ). The match will take place next Saturday at 5:30 a.m. (French time).
“At the end of the group stage, the eight teams which have qualified for the knockout stage are, in order of their ranking, the following: New Zealand (15 points), Canada (15), England (14), France (11), Italy (9), Australia (8), USA (5) and Wales (5),” World Rugby announced in a statement on Sunday. To know the quarter-finals, it was necessary to base oneself on the classification and to follow the following principle: the 1st faces the 8th, the second against the 7th etc. As France finished fourth, they are opposed to fifth.
The sequel promises to be full-bodied
And the daughters of Thomas Darracq have already faced Italy three times this year: France won at the opening of the Six Nations Tournament in Grenoble (39-6) on March 27, then in a friendly in Nice (21-0 ), September 3. They then lost in the second, and last, friendly before the World Cup in Biella (19-26), on September 9.
If they manage to eliminate Italy, Les Bleues can face the New Zealand scarecrow in the semi-finals. The Black Ferns are opposed to the Welsh in quarters. For their part, the English will challenge Australia while Canada will be opposed to the United States.