France vs South Africa

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On Sunday evening in Paris, there will be an intense quarter-final match that promises to be as competitive and high-quality as a championship final. It will feature the host nation, France, facing off against the current Webb Ellis Cup holders, South Africa.

France performed exceptionally well in the pool stages, maintaining a perfect record. They kicked off the tournament with a resounding victory over the All Blacks in Paris. Although they had a surprisingly close win against Uruguay, it didn't deter them. They finished the pool stage with a remarkable 96-0 win against Namibia, marking their largest-ever Test victory against Italy, a fellow Six Nations rival.

South Africa won three out of their four pool games, with their only loss coming in a closely fought match against Ireland, which is considered one of the standout contests of the tournament so far. Despite the defeat, South Africa's physicality was on full display, as they made 30 dominant tackles in that game, the highest in a Tier 1 match since Opta started recording such data in 2010.

In their recent quarter-final appearances, France has faced setbacks, losing in the past two (against New Zealand in 2015 and Wales in 2019), while the Springboks emerged victorious in both of their last quarter-final encounters (against Wales in 2015 and Japan in 2019). Home advantage could play a pivotal role, as France is currently on an unprecedented 18-game winning streak on their home turf. However, it's worth noting that South Africa has won each of their last three Tests against France at the Stade de France.

A brief examination of the scoring statistics highlights the pivotal roles played by two key players from France. Thomas Ramos stands out as the top scorer in the pool stages, accumulating an impressive 61 points. Meanwhile, Damian Penaud leads the competition as the highest try scorer, with a total of six. The absence of Romain Ntamack was a significant topic of discussion leading up to the tournament. However, Matthieu Jalibert has proven to be a more than capable replacement, contributing five try assists in the pool stages, which is tied for the third highest among all players.

Jalibert will once again be partnered with his half-back colleague, Antoine Dupont, who needs little introduction at this point. Dupont has outperformed all other Tier 1 scrum-halves in Test rugby this year, gaining over 100 more meters (342) and providing at least five more try assists (11). There were doubts about Dupont's availability for this match and the rest of the tournament following a fractured cheekbone sustained against Namibia. However, he has managed to recover in time to start this crucial showdown, much to the delight of both French fans and neutrals.

Cobus Reinach, lining up on the South African side, will be facing off against Dupont. Reinach has been chosen to start ahead of Faf de Klerk. He leads as the top-scoring scrum-half in this year’s Rugby World Cup, having crossed the try line four times, including an impressive three times in the opening 24 minutes against Romania in their Pool B encounter, which stands as the second-quickest hat-trick in World Cup history. In case you’re curious, the only person to have scored a hat-trick faster was Reinach himself, achieving it against Canada in 2019 in just 21 minutes. Reinach exhibits exceptional proficiency in both distributing the ball and carrying it forward; his pass accuracy rate of 99% is second only to players who have attempted 40 or more passes in the tournament.

In the second row, Eben Etzebeth aims to disrupt play both in the air and on the ground. Among locks in the quarter-finals, only Georgia’s Tornike Jalagonia has executed more dominant tackles. Deon Fourie and Kwagga Smith are both anticipated to play critical roles as part of South Africa’s renowned "bomb squad". They are likely to pose significant challenges for France in the later stages, as they have each secured four jackal turnovers so far, which surpasses any other players from quarter-final teams.

A brief examination of the scoring statistics highlights the pivotal roles played by two key players from France. Thomas Ramos stands out as the top scorer in the pool stages, accumulating an impressive 61 points. Meanwhile, Damian Penaud leads the competition as the highest try scorer, with a total of six. The absence of Romain Ntamack was a significant topic of discussion leading up to the tournament. However, Matthieu Jalibert has proven to be a more than capable replacement, contributing five try assists in the pool stages, which is tied for the third highest among all players.

Jalibert will once again be partnered with his half-back colleague, Antoine Dupont, who needs little introduction at this point. Dupont has outperformed all other Tier 1 scrum-halves in Test rugby this year, gaining over 100 more meters (342) and providing at least five more try assists (11). There were doubts about Dupont's availability for this match and the rest of the tournament following a fractured cheekbone sustained against Namibia. However, he has managed to recover in time to start this crucial showdown, much to the delight of both French fans and neutrals.

Cobus Reinach, lining up on the South African side, will be facing off against Dupont. Reinach has been chosen to start ahead of Faf de Klerk. He leads as the top-scoring scrum-half in this year’s Rugby World Cup, having crossed the try line four times, including an impressive three times in the opening 24 minutes against Romania in their Pool B encounter, which stands as the second-quickest hat-trick in World Cup history. In case you’re curious, the only person to have scored a hat-trick faster was Reinach himself, achieving it against Canada in 2019 in just 21 minutes. Reinach exhibits exceptional proficiency in both distributing the ball and carrying it forward; his pass accuracy rate of 99% is second only to players who have attempted 40 or more passes in the tournament.

In the second row, Eben Etzebeth aims to disrupt play both in the air and on the ground. Among locks in the quarter-finals, only Georgia’s Tornike Jalagonia has executed more dominant tackles. Deon Fourie and Kwagga Smith are both anticipated to play critical roles as part of South Africa’s renowned "bomb squad". They are likely to pose significant challenges for France in the later stages, as they have each secured four jackal turnovers so far, which surpasses any other players from quarter-final teams.

The final match of the quarter-finals in the 2023 Rugby World Cup promises to be a thrilling encounter as France faces South Africa at Stade de France on Sunday evening. In this pivotal showdown, France aims to achieve what no Northern Hemisphere team has done before - defeating South Africa in the knockout stages of a Rugby World Cup.

Entering the 2023 RWC, France was considered the favorites to claim the Webb Ellis Cup for the first time, despite losing their Six Nations title to Ireland earlier in the year. Their performance has lived up to the high expectations, securing the top spot in Pool A. They kicked off the tournament with a solid 27-13 victory over New Zealand. Subsequently, Fabien Galthie's squad showcased their strength, defeating Uruguay 27-12 with a second-string team and achieving the tournament's most significant win, a dominant 96-0 triumph over Namibia.

France's momentum continued as they dispatched Italy 60-7 in their final group stage match, cementing their place in the quarter-finals. Their confidence is high, especially since they ended a seven-match losing streak by defeating the Springboks last November in a Test match at Stade Velodrome.

While France settled for the runner-up position in the Six Nations, South Africa had a similar fate in the Southern Hemisphere's Rugby Championship, where they were narrowly edged out by New Zealand. Nevertheless, they quickly sought revenge by defeating the All Blacks 35-7 in a warm-up match at Twickenham.

Jacques Nienaber's team carried this momentum into the Rugby World Cup, commencing with an 18-3 victory over Scotland and a resounding 76-0 win against Romania. Their unbeaten streak faced a challenge when they encountered Ireland, who claimed a hard-fought 13-8 victory in what many consider the standout game of the tournament.

In their final group stage match, South Africa secured a 49-18 win against Tonga, but the path to the quarter-finals was far from easy, with Scotland pushing them to the limit.

South Africa has special memories at this venue, where they clinched their second World Cup title in 2007 by defeating England in the final. Despite being considered underdogs in this match, their status as three-time champions makes them a formidable opponent that can never be underestimated.