The history of the Rugby World Cup is strongly associated with the rivalry between nations from the southern and northern hemispheres.
It is the only competition that all the nations in the world properly prepare for and from which you can get an idea of the balance of power between nations from the two hemispheres.
But is there more to this rivalry than just geography?
Since mid-2004, only national teams from the southern hemisphere (New Zealand and South Africa) have been ranked first in World Rugby rankings, with New Zealand being at the top for most of the time.
So, it is interesting to look at the balance in terms of representation of national teams from the southern versus northern hemispheres at the different stages of the Rugby World Cup.
It goes from 40 per cent (southern) versus 60 per cent (northern) during the pool phases, to 47 per cent versus 53 per cent during the quarter-finals, to 60 per cent versus 40 per cent during the semi-finals, and 63 per cent versus 37 per cent in the finals (for first and third place).
The trend clearly shows that over the past eight World Cups, the relative representation of the southern teams increases as the competition progresses.
Now if we look at the matches that took place between national teams from the two hemispheres, the statistics are moving. It is a success rate of 67 per cent (for a total of 21 matches) at the quarter-finals level, 50 per cent at the semi-finals level (for a total of six matches), and 90 per cent (for a total of 10 matches) at the finals level for the southern national teams.
No surprise then that teams in the semi-finals this year are all from the southern hemisphere: Australia faced Argentina and New Zealand faced South Africa. So once again another southern team is taking home the Webb Ellis Cup!
During the 1995 World Cup in South Africa, the world of rugby union witnessed the rise of a young player from the southern hemisphere, Jonah Lomu, who scored an epic try for New Zealand during the semi-final against England in Cape Town.
From this day it became clear that being powerful, tall and heavy were important features of a rugby union player.
With rugby becoming professional in that same year, players and coaches started to focus on developing taller and heavier players who could run fast, break tackles or stop attacking opponents. That seemed to be the way towards victory… but at the time, national teams from the northern hemisphere did not really have these kinds of players: they had players with flair and good technique.
From then on, all the national teams started to turn their back on those who were not considered big and powerful enough. It was decided that flair and technique could not compensate for a deficit in terms of watts, centimetres and kilograms.
So far, the 2003 World Cup is the only event that was won by a national team from the northern hemisphere, with England beating Australia in the final (20-17) while New Zealand took third place from France (40-13).
During the 2007 World Cup, the national teams from the northern hemisphere did pretty well during the quarter-finals with France winning against the All Blacks (ranked number one at the time) while England took the game against Australia.
But in the end, both teams lost against southern teams during the final – South Africa won against England, 15-6 – and for third place – Argentina won against France, 34-10.
In the 2011 World Cup, the matches played between New Zealand and France for first place – 8-7 – and between Australia and Wales – 21-18 – for second place were both taken by southern nations, reflecting the superiority of that hemisphere.
The 2015 World Cup, currently being played in the United Kingdom, is interesting as it shows the flair may have travelled across the northern hemisphere, with Japanese players shining during their victory against South Africa during the pool phases. Japan showed that rugby union is not all about power, tallness and heaviness of the players.
New Zealand’s Julian Savea scores a try against France in their Kiwi’s winning quarter final game at Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales.
Reuters/Andrew Boyers
Now, the match between New Zealand and France seems to provide a few lessons. When you put together physicality (powerful, tall and heavy players), flair and technique you get flying Kiwis.
At the opposite end, when you try to sacrifice flair and technique to develop more powerful, taller and heavier players (or use the naturalisation process to be able to select them in the national team), you seem to obtain roosters stuck to the ground.
At this point in time, it simply looks like the national teams from the southern hemisphere have managed to develop players with serious physical abilities who also demonstrate superior technical skills and flair compared to players from the northern hemisphere.
Though seeing the national teams from the southern hemisphere being successful is not a bad thing for any fan of rugby. Players and coaches from the southern hemisphere are offering a fantastic show to all the fans who truly value the game.
By doing that, they are playing a key role in the promotion of this football code.
That also means that rugby federations, coaches and players from the national teams of the northern hemisphere should all increase their efforts to identify how they can quickly bridge the gap with the national teams from the southern hemisphere.
One thing seems quite obvious at this stage: the power balance between the clubs and the rugby federations seems to be quite different between the nations of the two hemispheres.
Australia’s Bernard Foley kicks a penalty to win the quarter final game against Scotland, at Twickenham Stadium, London, England.
Reuters/Henry Browne
Nations from the southern hemisphere seem to prioritise the success of their national teams. At the opposite end, the interest of the national teams seems to come after the interests of the professional clubs in the nations of the northern hemisphere.
Interestingly, former New Zealand head coach Sir Graham Henry reportedly believes that the French Top 14 competition is poorly coached and its obsession with big salaries and high-profile foreign recruits has had a disastrous effect on the national side.
Current New Zealand head coach Steve Hansen has also blamed the French Top 14, indicating that the competition has been badly affected by a search for physicality that led French players to lose the flair that used to be feared by all the nations of the southern hemisphere.
Fortunately, for the players coming from the southern hemisphere to play – attracted by very decent salaries – in the Top 14 French clubs, their coaches can quickly revive their technical skills and flair so that they can perform optimally with their national teams.
By doing so, they offer a great show for all the fans of rugby to enjoy, wherever they are from, southern or northern hemisphere!
David Rouffet, Assistant Professor , Victoria University
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.
Scotland coach Gregor Townsend has picked ten uncapped players for a tour of the Americas - but former Waratah Mosese Tuipulotu has missed the…
On May 30th a process was started to change the way rugby in NZ is governed, one with significant implications for NZ rugby's relationship…
Following a bronze-placed finish in the 2024 Six Nations, Steve Borthwick has made several changes to his national squad - announced for their upcoming…
All Blacks forwards Scott Barrett and Codie Taylor have committed to New Zealand rugby through to the 2027 World Cup in a boost for…
Well, it’s that time of the year again. How this season has flown by. With the final week approaching for the regular season of…
The Crusaders and Hurricanes provided timely reminders of why most of us are interested in rugby. I’ll freely admit I didn’t tip either to…
