Aside from being the most dramatic upset of the RWC 2007 tournament thus far, the Fijian 38-34 victory over the Welsh was a thriller from beginning to end. Among the highest scoring games of the tournament and yet featuring the bonus point for the loser (4 point difference), this game swung from a Fiji walkover (leading 25-3 at one point) to a brilliant come from behind by the Welsh (leading 34-31 with only 6 minutes left), only to see Fiji snatch victory with a final score in the last three minutes. The Welsh had greater possession and were more present in the opponent’s 25. But to no avail. The Fiji victory is the biggest upset of the tournament thus far. We’ll have to see what happens between the Italians and Scotland to see if another upset (currently the Italians are leading 10-6) is in store today. The milder than expected shellacking (37-6) of the Canadians at the hands of the Wallabies was a little bit of a surprise. Two notable statistics: Wallabies were 47/47 for tackles (vs 89/113 for the Canadians) but had 16 handling errors.

Anyway, it’s a sad end for the team that once featured my all-time favourite fullback, JPR. Gareth Jenkins’ position is likely to be under tight scrutiny. But truth be told, the Welsh weren’t sufficiently strong to be real competitors. See the BBC Report. Other reports/blogs N-Z TV3 and Rugby World Cup News.

I am waiting with baited breath for tomorrow’s Ireland v Argentina match and will also be interested in the France v Georgia.