2023 Rugby World Cup Pool A

Main article: 2023 Rugby World Cup

Pool A of the 2023 Rugby World Cup began on 8 September 2023 and concluded on 6 October 2023. The pool included hosts France and previous three-time champions New Zealand, along with Italy, Uruguay and Namibia.^[1] Hosts France and New Zealand, whom France had defeated in the opening match, qualified from the pool.

Inaugural 2023 Rugby World Cup match between France and New Zealand at Stade de France.

Match between New Zealand and Namibia in Toulouse.

Teams

Pos.	Team	Band	Confederation	Method of qualification	Date of qualification	Apps.	Last	Previous best performance	World Rugby Rankings[2]
									1 January 2020[nb 1]	4 September 2023
A1	New Zealand	1	Oceania	Top 3 in 2019 RWC pool	6 October 2019	10th	2019	Winners (1987, 2011, 2015)	2	4
A2	France	2	Europe	Hosts	15 November 2017	10th	2019	Runners-up (1987, 1999, 2011)	7	3
A3	Italy	3	Europe	Top 3 in 2019 RWC pool	8 October 2019	10th	2019	Pool stage (1987, 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019)	12	13
A4	Uruguay	4[nb 2]	South America	Americas 1	9 October 2021	5th	2019	Pool stage (1999, 2003, 2015, 2019	18[nb 2]	17
A5	Namibia	5[nb 3]	Africa	Africa 1	10 July 2022	7th	2019	Pool stage (1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019)	23[nb 3]	21

Notes

1. The rankings of 1 January 2020 were used for seeding for the final draw.
2. As the identity of the Americas 1 winners was not known at the time of the final draw, positions in the World Rugby Rankings were not taken into account, and the placeholder in the draw was automatically seeded into band 4.^[3]
3. As the identity of the Africa 1 winners was not known at the time of the final draw, positions in the World Rugby Rankings were not taken into account, and the placeholder in the draw was automatically seeded into band 5.^[3]

Overview

The opening match of the 2023 Rugby World Cup was played between hosts France and three-time champions New Zealand. France won 27–13, courtesy of tries from Damian Penaud and Melvyn Jaminet. Mark Tele'a scored the first try of the tournament for New Zealand after less than two minutes, making it the quickest try in an opening match of a Rugby World Cup.^[4] The loss was New Zealand's first ever in the pool stages of a Rugby World Cup.^[5] The next day, Italy won their opening match against Namibia by a score of 52–8.^[6] On 14 September, Uruguay played their first match of the tournament against hosts France, which France came out victorious with a scoreline of 27–12.^[7] The next day, New Zealand bounced back from their opening day defeat against France with 11 tries over Namibia in a 71–3 victory, despite losing Ethan de Groot to a red card for a dangerous collision.^[8] Five days later, Italy recorded a 38–17 bonus point victory over Uruguay, following a second-half comeback which previously saw them trail 17–7.^[9] The next day, France recorded their largest ever victory in a 96–0 victory over Namibia to move them on the brink of qualification to the knockout stage, while officially eliminating Namibia from the tournament. Thirteen tries were scored by France, who lost captain and key player Antoine Dupont to an injury from the match.^[10]

Namibia played their final match of the tournament against Uruguay in Décines-Charpieu. Namibia went ahead with two early tries from Gerswin Mouton and J. C. Greyling, along with successful penalties and conversions from Tiaan Swanepoel. However, Uruguay turned it around in the second half with tries from Baltazar Amaya, Santiago Arata and Bautista Basso to earn the Uruguayans their first victory of the tournament in a 36–26 victory and deny Namibia their first ever victory in a Rugby World Cup.^[11] Two days later, New Zealand faced Italy knowing that a defeat would mean that they would be eliminated from the World Cup at the pool stage for the first time ever. However, the All Blacks came out comfortable winners in the end as they starred in a fourteen-try show in Décines-Charpieu to move to the brink of qualification to the quarter-finals. Aaron Smith scored a hat-trick of tries after just 34 minutes in the bonus-point victory.^[12]

In the final matchweek of the pool, New Zealand and Uruguay faced off in Décines-Charpieu for their final matches to try and push for a place in the knockout stage. The All Blacks ran out comfortable winners, inspired by Damian McKenzie who scored two tries and kicked two conversions, in a 73–0 victory that officially saw them qualify for the quarter-finals while officially eliminating Uruguay from the tournament. All that remained in Pool A was the final match between hosts France and Italy to officially decide who would join New Zealand in the knockout stage. Both sides were assured to finish in the top three, meaning they were both assured a place in the 2027 Rugby World Cup, along with the All Blacks.^[13] The final match of Pool A took place the following day, with France sweeping aside Italy with a 60–7 scoreline in Décines-Charpieu with eight tries in a match to ensure that France qualified as they topped Group A, New Zealand qualified in second and Italy suffered elimination from the tournament as they finished third, but qualified for the 2027 Rugby World Cup.^[14]

Standings

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	TF	TA	B	Pts	Qualification
1	France (H)	4	4	0	0	210	32	+178	27	5	2	18	Advance to knockout stage, and qualification to the 2027 Men's Rugby World Cup
2	New Zealand	4	3	0	1	253	47	+206	38	4	3	15
3	Italy	4	2	0	2	114	181	−67	15	25	2	10	Qualification to the 2027 Men's Rugby World Cup
4	Uruguay	4	1	0	3	65	164	−99	9	21	1	5
5	Namibia	4	0	0	4	37	255	−218	3	37	0	0

Source: World Rugby
Rules for classification: Pool stage tiebreakers
(H) Host

Matches

France vs New Zealand

8 September 2023 21:15 CEST (UTC+2)

France	27–13	New Zealand
Try: Penaud 55' c Jaminet 78' m Con: Ramos (1/1) 57' Pen: Ramos (5/7) 5', 20', 29', 65', 74'	Report	Try: Tele'a (2) 2' m, 43' m Pen: Mo'unga (1/1) 25'

Stade de France, Saint-Denis Attendance: 78,680[15] Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)[16]

France

New Zealand

FB 15 Thomas Ramos  76' RW 14 Damian Penaud OC 13 Gaël Fickou IC 12 Yoram Moefana  58' LW 11 Gabin Villière FH 10 Matthieu Jalibert SH 9 Antoine Dupont (c)  76' N8 8 Grégory Alldritt OF 7 Charles Ollivon BF 6 François Cros  63' RL 5 Thibaud Flament LL 4 Cameron Woki  49' TP 3 Uini Atonio  53' HK 2 Julien Marchand  12' LP 1 Reda Wardi  53' Replacements: HK 16 Peato Mauvaka  12' PR 17 Jean-Baptiste Gros  53' PR 18 Dorian Aldegheri  53' LK 19 Romain Taofifénua  49' FL 20 Paul Boudehent  63' SH 21 Maxime Lucu  76' CE 22 Arthur Vincent  58' FB 23 Melvyn Jaminet  76' Coach: Fabien Galthié

FB 15 Beauden Barrett RW 14 Will Jordan  58' OC 13 Rieko Ioane IC 12 Anton Lienert-Brown  63' LW 11 Mark Tele'a  71' FH 10 Richie Mo'unga SH 9 Aaron Smith  63' N8 8 Ardie Savea (c) OF 7 Dalton Papalii BF 6 Tupou Vaa'i  58' RL 5 Scott Barrett LL 4 Sam Whitelock  69' TP 3 Nepo Laulala  53' HK 2 Codie Taylor  63' LP 1 Ethan de Groot  53' Replacements: HK 16 Samisoni Taukei'aho  63' PR 17 Ofa Tuʻungafasi  53' PR 18 Fletcher Newell  53' LK 19 Brodie Retallick  69' FL 20 Luke Jacobson  58' SH 21 Finlay Christie  63' CE 22 David Havili  63' WG 23 Leicester Fainga'anuku  71' Coach: Ian Foster

Player of the Match: Grégory Alldritt (France)[17] Assistant referees: Karl Dickson (England)[16] Christophe Ridley (England)[16] Television match official: Tom Foley (England)[16]

Notes:

• Antoine Dupont (France) and Nepo Laulala (New Zealand) earned their 50th test caps.^[18]
• Sam Cane was originally named in the New Zealand starting XV as captain, but withdrew prior to the match after sustaining an injury in the team's final training session. He was replaced by Tupou Vaa'i, whose place on the bench was taken by Brodie Retallick, while the captaincy was handed over to Ardie Savea.^[19]
• This was New Zealand's first defeat in a Rugby World Cup pool stage fixture, and their heaviest defeat in a World Cup match.^[20][21]
• Mark Tele'a (New Zealand) scored the fastest try in a Rugby World Cup opening match, at 91 seconds.^[22]

Italy vs Namibia

9 September 2023 13:00 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) Italy	52–8	Namibia
Try: L. Cannone 11' c P. Garbisi 15' c Lamb 46' c Capuozzo 55' c Faiva 74' c Zuliani 78' c Odogwu 80+3' c Con: Allan (7/7) 12', 16', 48', 57', 75', 79', 80+4' Pen: Allan (1/1) 8'	Report	Try: Mouton 21' m Pen: Swanepoel (1/2) 4'

Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Étienne Attendance: 35,515 Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)

Italy

Namibia

FB 15 Tommaso Allan RW 14 Ange Capuozzo OC 13 Ignacio Brex  62' IC 12 Luca Morisi  48' LW 11 Monty Ioane FH 10 Paolo Garbisi SH 9 Stephen Varney  48' N8 8 Lorenzo Cannone OF 7 Michele Lamaro (c) BF 6 Sebastian Negri  48' RL 5 Federico Ruzza 12' to 16' LL 4 Dino Lamb  57' TP 3 Simone Ferrari  50' HK 2 Giacomo Nicotera  50' LP 1 Danilo Fischetti  57' Replacements: HK 16 Hame Faiva  50' PR 17 Ivan Nemer  57' PR 18 Marco Riccioni  50' LK 19 Dave Sisi  12'  16'  57' FL 20 Manuel Zuliani  48' SH 21 Martin Page-Relo  48' CE 22 Paolo Odogwu  62' WG 23 Pierre Bruno  48' Coach: Kieran Crowley

FB 15 Divan Rossouw RW 14 Gerswin Mouton  62' OC 13 Johan Deysel (c) IC 12 Danco Burger  57' LW 11 J. C. Greyling FH 10 Tiaan Swanepoel SH 9 Damian Stevens  57' N8 8 Richard Hardwick OF 7 Johan Retief BF 6 Wian Conradie 12' to 16'  18'  21'  62' RL 5 Tjiuee Uanivi LL 4 Adriaan Ludick  48' TP 3 Aranos Coetzee  50' HK 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld  11'  52' LP 1 Des Sethie  36' Replacements: HK 16 Louis van der Westhuizen  18'  21'  52' PR 17 Jason Benade  36' PR 18 Casper Viviers  50' LK 19 Tiaan de Klerk  48' FL 20 Prince ǃGaoseb  12'  16'  62' SH 21 Jacques Theron  57' FH 22 André van den Berg  62' CE 23 Le Roux Malan  57' Coach: Allister Coetzee

Player of the Match: Lorenzo Cannone (Italy)[23] Assistant referees: Paul Williams (New Zealand) Chris Busby (Ireland) Television match official: Joy Neville (Ireland)

Notes:

• This was Italy's largest victory (by margin) at the World Cup, surpassing their previous best of 41 points over Canada at the 2019 Rugby World Cup, and also their largest victory over Namibia.^[24]

France vs Uruguay

14 September 2023 21:00 CEST (UTC+2)

France	27–12	Uruguay
Try: Hastoy 10' c Mauvaka 55' c Bielle-Biarrey 74' c Con: Jaminet (3/3) 11', 56', 75' Pen: Jaminet (2/3) 3', 14'	Report	Try: Freitas 6' m Amaya 53' c Con: Etcheverry (1/2) 54'

Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq Attendance: 48,821 Referee: Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)[16]

France

Uruguay

FB 15 Melvyn Jaminet RW 14 Louis Bielle-Biarrey OC 13 Arthur Vincent IC 12 Yoram Moefana LW 11 Gabin Villière FH 10 Antoine Hastoy SH 9 Maxime Lucu  64' N8 8 Anthony Jelonch (c)  50' OF 7 Sekou Macalou BF 6 Paul Boudehent RL 5 Romain Taofifénua  27'  50' LL 4 Cameron Woki  58' TP 3 Dorian Aldegheri  50' HK 2 Pierre Bourgarit  50' LP 1 Jean-Baptiste Gros  50' Replacements: HK 16 Peato Mauvaka  50' PR 17 Reda Wardi  50' PR 18 Sipili Falatea  50' LK 19 Bastien Chalureau  50' LK 20 Thibaud Flament  58' FL 21 François Cros  50' SH 22 Baptiste Couilloud  64' FB 23 Thomas Ramos Coach: Fabien Galthié

FB 15 Baltazar Amaya RW 14 Bautista Basso OC 13 Tomás Inciarte IC 12 Andrés Vilaseca (c) LW 11 Nicolás Freitas FH 10 Felipe Etcheverry  58' SH 9 Santiago Arata  58' N8 8 Manuel Diana  54' OF 7 Santiago Civetta BF 6 Manuel Ardao  54' RL 5 Manuel Leindekar LL 4 Felipe Aliaga  58' TP 3 Ignacio Péculo  50' HK 2 Guillermo Pujadas  50' LP 1 Mateo Sanguinetti  50' Replacements: HK 16 Facundo Gattas  50' PR 17 Matías Benítez  50' PR 18 Reinaldo Piussi  50' LK 19 Ignacio Dotti  58' FL 20 Lucas Bianchi  54' FL 21 Carlos Deus  54' SH 22 Agustín Ormaechea  58' FH 23 Felipe Berchesi  58' Coach: Esteban Meneses

Player of the Match: Maxime Lucu (France)[25] Assistant referees: Paul Williams (New Zealand)[16] James Doleman (New Zealand)[16] Television match official: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)[16]

Notes:

• This was the first ever meeting between these two sides at the Rugby World Cup.

New Zealand vs Namibia

15 September 2023 21:00 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) New Zealand	71–3	Namibia
Try: Roigard (2) 2' c, 7' m McKenzie (2) 20' c, 39' c Fainga'anuku 25' m Lienert-Brown 35' c De Groot 49' m Papalii 55' c Havili 58' c Clarke 67' c Ioane 77' c Con: McKenzie (8/11) 3', 20', 36', 40', 55', 59', 68', 78'	Report	Pen: Swanepoel (1/1) 11'

Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse Attendance: 31,996 Referee: Luke Pearce (England)[16]

New Zealand

Namibia

FB 15 Beauden Barrett  59' RW 14 Caleb Clarke OC 13 Anton Lienert-Brown IC 12 David Havili  68' LW 11 Leicester Fainga'anuku FH 10 Damian McKenzie SH 9 Cam Roigard  68' N8 8 Ardie Savea (c)  64' OF 7 Dalton Papalii BF 6 Luke Jacobson  74' RL 5 Sam Whitelock LL 4 Brodie Retallick  58' TP 3 Nepo Laulala  48' HK 2 Samisoni Taukei'aho  52' LP 1 Ofa Tuʻungafasi  48'  74' Replacements: HK 16 Dane Coles  52' PR 17 Ethan de Groot  72'  48' PR 18 Fletcher Newell  48' LK 19 Scott Barrett  58' FL 20 Tupou Vaa'i  64' SH 21 Aaron Smith  68' FH 22 Richie Mo'unga  59' CE 23 Rieko Ioane  68' Coach: Ian Foster

FB 15 Cliven Loubser RW 14 Gerswin Mouton OC 13 Johan Deysel (c) IC 12 Le Roux Malan  18' LW 11 Divan Rossouw FH 10 Tiaan Swanepoel SH 9 Damian Stevens  72' N8 8 Richard Hardwick  59' OF 7 Prince ǃGaoseb  68' BF 6 Wian Conradie  50' RL 5 Tjiuee Uanivi LL 4 Johan Retief TP 3 Aranos Coetzee  74' HK 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld  50' LP 1 Jason Benade  50' Replacements: HK 16 Louis van der Westhuizen  50' PR 17 Des Sethie  50' PR 18 Haitembu Shikufa  74' LK 19 P. J. van Lill  50' FL 20 Adriaan Booysen  59' FL 21 Max Katjijeko  68' SH 22 Jacques Theron  72' CE 23 J. C. Greyling  18' Coach: Allister Coetzee

Player of the Match: Cam Roigard (New Zealand)[26] Assistant referees: Andrew Brace (Ireland)[16] Jordan Way (Australia)[16] Television match official: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)[16]

Notes:

• This was the first ever match which New Zealand performed Kapa o Pango against a Tier 2 nation.
• Sam Whitelock equalled the New Zealand test cap record, with 148 caps, drawing level with Richie McCaw.^[27]

Italy vs Uruguay

20 September 2023 17:45 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) Italy	38–17	Uruguay
Try: Pani 7' c Lamaro 46' c Ioane 52' c L. Cannone 56' c Brex 61' c Con: Allan (5/5) 8', 47', 53', 57', 62' Pen: P. Garbisi (1/1) 70'	Report	Try: Penalty try 27' Freitas 37' c Con: Etcheverry (1/1) 38' Drop: Etcheverry (1/1) 42'

Allianz Riviera, Nice Attendance: 28,627 Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)[16]

Italy

Uruguay

FB 15 Ange Capuozzo RW 14 Lorenzo Pani  30'  37' OC 13 Ignacio Brex IC 12 Paolo Garbisi LW 11 Monty Ioane FH 10 Tommaso Allan  68' SH 9 Alessandro Garbisi  60' N8 8 Lorenzo Cannone  25'  63' OF 7 Michele Lamaro (c) BF 6 Sebastian Negri  60' RL 5 Federico Ruzza LL 4 Niccolò Cannone  50' TP 3 Marco Riccioni  50' HK 2 Giacomo Nicotera  68' LP 1 Danilo Fischetti  27'  68' Replacements: PR 16 Federico Zani  68' PR 17 Ivan Nemer  30'  37'  68' PR 18 Pietro Ceccarelli  50' LK 19 Dino Lamb  50' FL 20 Manuel Zuliani  60' SH 21 Giovanni Pettinelli  63' CE 22 Alessandro Fusco  60' WG 23 Paolo Odogwu  68' Coach: Kieran Crowley

FB 15 Baltazar Amaya  63' RW 14 Gastón Mieres OC 13 Tomás Inciarte IC 12 Andrés Vilaseca (c)  43' LW 11 Nicolás Freitas  67' FH 10 Felipe Etcheverry SH 9 Santiago Arata  67' N8 8 Manuel Diana  57' OF 7 Santiago Civetta BF 6 Manuel Ardao RL 5 Manuel Leindekar LL 4 Felipe Aliaga  63' TP 3 Ignacio Péculo  60' HK 2 Germán Kessler  57' LP 1 Mateo Sanguinetti  57' Replacements: HK 16 Guillermo Pujadas  57' PR 17 Facundo Gattas  57' PR 18 Diego Arbelo  60' LK 19 Ignacio Dotti  63' FL 20 Carlos Deus  57' SH 21 Agustín Ormaechea  67' FH 22 Felipe Berchesi  63' CE 23 Bautista Basso  67' Coach: Esteban Meneses

Player of the Match: Michele Lamaro (Italy)[28] Assistant referees: Andrew Brace (Ireland)[16] Jordan Way (Australia)[16] Television match official: Tom Foley (England)[16]

Notes:

• This was the first ever meeting between these two sides at a World Cup.
• Sebastian Negri (Italy) earned his 50th test cap.^[29]
• Luca Bigi was originally named as the replacement hooker on the Italy bench, but withdrew prior to the match due to injury. He was replaced by Ivan Nemer, who took the position of substitute loosehead prop, while Federico Zani shifted across to the role of hooker.^[30]

France vs Namibia

21 September 2023 21:00 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) France	96–0	Namibia
Try: Penaud (3) 6' m, 21' c, 55' c Danty (2) 9' c, 26' c Ollivon (2) 18' c, 68' c Flament 33' c Dupont 38' c Bielle-Biarrey (2) 40+1' c, 64' c Couilloud 47' c Jaminet 76' c Penalty try 80' Con: Ramos (12/13) 10', 18', 22', 27', 34', 39', 40+2', 48', 56', 65', 70', 77'	Report

Stade Vélodrome, Marseille Attendance: 63,486 Referee: Matthew Carley (England)[16]

France

Namibia

FB 15 Thomas Ramos RW 14 Damian Penaud OC 13 Gaël Fickou IC 12 Jonathan Danty LW 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey FH 10 Matthieu Jalibert  54' SH 9 Antoine Dupont (c)  46' N8 8 Anthony Jelonch  54' OF 7 Charles Ollivon BF 6 François Cros RL 5 Thibaud Flament LL 4 Cameron Woki  41'  57'  65' TP 3 Uini Atonio  41' HK 2 Peato Mauvaka  54' LP 1 Cyril Baille  41' Replacements: HK 16 Pierre Bourgarit  54' PR 17 Reda Wardi  41' PR 18 Dorian Aldegheri  41' LK 19 Romain Taofifénua  41' FL 20 Paul Boudehent  54'  57' SH 21 Baptiste Couilloud  46' CE 22 Yoram Moefana  65' FB 23 Melvyn Jaminet  54' Coach: Fabien Galthié

FB 15 André van den Berg  41' RW 14 Gerswin Mouton  56' OC 13 Johan Deysel (c)  45' IC 12 Danco Burger LW 11 J. C. Greyling FH 10 Cliven Loubser SH 9 Jacques Theron  59' N8 8 Prince ǃGaoseb  41' OF 7 Johan Retief BF 6 Max Katjijeko RL 5 Adriaan Ludick LL 4 Mahepisa Tjeriko  41' TP 3 Aranos Coetzee  74' HK 2 Louis van der Westhuizen  65' LP 1 Des Sethie  51' Replacements: HK 16 Obert Nortje  65' PR 17 Jason Benade  80'  51' PR 18 Haitembu Shifuka  74' LK 19 P. J. van Lill  41' FL 20 Richard Hardwick  41' SH 21 Oela Blaauw  59' CE 22 Alcino Izaacs  56' WG 23 Divan Rossouw  41' Coach: Allister Coetzee

Player of the Match: Damian Penaud (France)[31] Assistant referees: Andrew Brace (Ireland)[16] Craig Evans (Wales)[16] Television match official: Joy Neville (Ireland)[16]

Notes:

• This was France's largest victory in test match history, and also their largest victory at the World Cup – surpassing their 87–10 win, also against Namibia, at the 2007 Rugby World Cup.^[32][33]
• Oela Blaauw (Namibia) made his international debut.^[34]

Uruguay vs Namibia

27 September 2023 17:45 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) Uruguay	36–26	Namibia
Try: Amaya (2) 19' m, 49' c Kessler 28' c Arata 54' c Basso 66' c Con: Etcheverry (3/4) 29', 51', 55' Berchesi (1/1) 67' Pen: Berchesi (1/1) 74'	Report	Try: Mouton 1' c Greyling 11' c Con: Swanepoel (2/2) 2', 12' Pen: Swanepoel (4/4) 25', 35', 43', 69'

Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Décines-Charpieu Attendance: 49,342 Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France)[16]

Uruguay

Namibia

FB 15 Baltazar Amaya RW 14 Bautista Basso OC 13 Felipe Arcos Pérez IC 12 Andrés Vilaseca (c) LW 11 Nicolás Freitas  60' FH 10 Felipe Etcheverry  60' SH 9 Santiago Arata  68' N8 8 Carlos Deus OF 7 Santiago Civetta  61' BF 6 Manuel Ardao RL 5 Manuel Leindekar LL 4 Felipe Aliaga  69' TP 3 Diego Arbelo  61' HK 2 Germán Kessler  61' LP 1 Mateo Sanguinetti  61'  65' Replacements: HK 16 Guillermo Pujadas  61' PR 17 Facundo Gattas  61'  65' PR 18 Reinaldo Piussi  61' LK 19 Juan Manuel Rodríguez  69' FL 20 Eric Dosantos  76'  61' SH 21 Agustín Ormaechea  68' FH 22 Felipe Berchesi  60' WG 23 Juan Manuel Alonso  60' Coach: Esteban Meneses

FB 15 Cliven Loubser RW 14 Gerswin Mouton  72' OC 13 Alcino Izaacs IC 12 Danco Burger LW 11 J. C. Greyling  64' FH 10 Tiaan Swanepoel SH 9 Damian Stevens  74' N8 8 Richard Hardwick  60' OF 7 Tjiuee Uanivi (c)  61' BF 6 Prince ǃGaoseb  48'  57' RL 5 Tiaan de Klerk  72' LL 4 Adriaan Ludick  55' TP 3 Aranos Coetzee  48' HK 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld  61' LP 1 Jason Benade  57'  64' Replacements: HK 16 Louis van der Westhuizen  61' PR 17 Desiderius Sethie  63'  57' PR 18 Haitembu Shifuka  48'  57' LK 19 P. J. van Lill  55' FL 20 Adriaan Booysen  60' FL 21 Max Katjijeko  72' SH 22 Jacques Theron  74' FH 23 André van den Berg  72' Coach: Allister Coetzee

Player of the Match: Santiago Arata (Uruguay)[35] Assistant referees: Nic Berry (Australia)[16] Chris Busby (Ireland)[16] Television match official: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)[16]

Notes:

• This was the first ever meeting between these two sides at a World Cup.
• Namibia achieved their highest points total in a World Cup match, surpassing the 25 points scored against Fiji in 2011.
• Uruguay achieved their highest points total in a World Cup march, surpassing the 30 points scored against Fiji in 2019.

New Zealand vs Italy

29 September 2023 21:00 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) New Zealand	96–17	Italy
Try: Jordan (2) 7' c, 70' c Smith (3) 17' c, 27' c, 34' c Tele'a 19' c Savea (2) 22' c, 40+5' c Retallick 50' c Papalii 55' c Coles (2) 61' m, 73' c McKenzie 67' c Lienert-Brown 76' c Con: Mo'unga (9/10) 8', 18', 20, 23', 28', 35', 40+6', 51', 57' McKenzie (4/4) 69', 71', 74', 77'	Report	Try: Capuozzo 48' c Ioane 80+1' c Con: Allan (1/1) 49' P. Garbisi (1/1) 80+3' Pen: Allan (1/1) 10'

Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Décines-Charpieu Attendance: 57,083 Referee: Matthew Carley (England)[16]

New Zealand

Italy

FB 15 Beauden Barrett RW 14 Will Jordan OC 13 Rieko Ioane IC 12 Jordie Barrett  64' LW 11 Mark Tele'a FH 10 Richie Mo'unga  64' SH 9 Aaron Smith  49' N8 8 Ardie Savea (c) OF 7 Dalton Papalii  57' BF 6 Shannon Frizell  49' RL 5 Scott Barrett LL 4 Brodie Retallick TP 3 Nepo Laulala  49' HK 2 Codie Taylor  57' LP 1 Ofa Tuʻungafasi  49' Replacements: HK 16 Dane Coles  57' PR 17 Tamaiti Williams  49' PR 18 Tyrel Lomax  49' LK 19 Sam Whitelock  49' FL 20 Sam Cane  57' SH 21 Cam Roigard  49' FH 22 Damian McKenzie  64' CE 23 Anton Lienert-Brown  64' Coach: Ian Foster

FB 15 Tommaso Allan  60' RW 14 Ange Capuozzo OC 13 Ignacio Brex IC 12 Luca Morisi LW 11 Monty Ioane FH 10 Paolo Garbisi SH 9 Stephen Varney  49' N8 8 Lorenzo Cannone OF 7 Michele Lamaro (c)  65' BF 6 Sebastian Negri  49' RL 5 Federico Ruzza LL 4 Dino Lamb  41' TP 3 Marco Riccioni 45' to 56'  65' HK 2 Giacomo Nicotera  49' LP 1 Danilo Fischetti  18' Replacements: HK 16 Hame Faiva  49' PR 17 Ivan Nemer  18' PR 18 Simone Ferrari  45'  56'  65' LK 19 Niccolò Cannone  41' FL 20 Manuel Zuliani  49' N8 21 Toa Halafihi  65' SH 22 Martin Page-Relo  49' WG 23 Paolo Odogwu  60' Coach: Kieran Crowley

Player of the Match: Ardie Savea (New Zealand)[36] Assistant referees: Nic Berry (Australia)[16] Christophe Ridley (England)[16] Television match official: Brett Cronan (Australia)[16]

Notes:

• Sam Whitelock became the most capped New Zealand player in test history, with 149 appearances, and the second most capped test player overall, behind only Wales international Alun Wyn Jones.^[37]

New Zealand vs Uruguay

5 October 2023 21:00 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) New Zealand	73–0	Uruguay
Try: McKenzie (2) 20' c, 53' c Mo'unga 25' c Jordan (2) 33' c, 65' c Roigard 38' m Newell 45' m Fainga'anuku (3) 49' c, 68' c, 77' c Williams 73' c Con: Mo'unga (5/7) 21', 26', 34', 50', 54' McKenzie (2/2) 66', 69' B. Barrett (2/2) 74', 78'	Report

Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Décines-Charpieu Attendance: 57,672 Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)[16]

New Zealand

Uruguay

FB 15 Damian McKenzie RW 14 Will Jordan OC 13 Anton Lienert-Brown IC 12 Jordie Barrett  53' LW 11 Leicester Fainga'anuku FH 10 Richie Mo'unga  63' SH 9 Cam Roigard  53' N8 8 Luke Jacobson OF 7 Sam Cane (c) BF 6 Shannon Frizell  54' RL 5 Tupou Vaa'i LL 4 Sam Whitelock  63' TP 3 Tyrel Lomax  9' HK 2 Codie Taylor  46' LP 1 Ofa Tuʻungafasi  46'  74' Replacements: HK 16 Samisoni Taukei'aho  46'  74' PR 17 Tamaiti Williams  46' PR 18 Fletcher Newell  9' LK 19 Scott Barrett  63' FL 20 Ethan Blackadder  54' SH 21 Finlay Christie  53' FH 22 Beauden Barrett  63' WG 23 Caleb Clarke  53' Coach: Ian Foster

FB 15 Rodrigo Silva RW 14 Gastón Mieres  58' OC 13 Tomás Inciarte IC 12 Andrés Vilaseca (c) LW 11 Nicolás Freitas FH 10 Felipe Etcheverry  50' SH 9 Santiago Arata  60' N8 8 Manuel Diana  55' OF 7 Lucas Bianchi BF 6 Manuel Ardao RL 5 Manuel Leindekar LL 4 Ignacio Dotti  47' TP 3 Diego Arbelo  58' HK 2 Germán Kessler  63' LP 1 Mateo Sanguinetti  64' Replacements: HK 16 Guillermo Pujadas  63' PR 17 Matías Benítez  64' PR 18 Ignacio Péculo  58' LK 19 Juan Manuel Rodríguez  47' FL 20 Santiago Civetta  55' SH 21 Agustín Ormaechea  60' FH 22 Felipe Berchesi  50' WG 23 Juan Manuel Alonso  58' Coach: Esteban Meneses

Player of the Match: Damian McKenzie (New Zealand)[38] Assistant referees: Matthew Carley (England)[16] Jordan Way (Australia)[16] Television match official: Marius Jonker (South Africa)[16]

Notes:

• This was the first ever meeting between these two sides.
• Sam Whitelock (New Zealand) became only the second player in history to earn 150 test caps. He also became the most capped player at the World Cup, with 23 appearances across four tournaments, surpassing Jason Leonard and Richie McCaw.
• This was the fifth match at the 2023 World Cup where the losing team failed to score any points – a new record for a single tournament, surpassing 2007 and 2019.

France vs Italy

6 October 2023 21:00 CEST (UTC+2)

(1 BP) France	60–7	Italy
Try: Penaud (2) 2' c, 38' c Bielle-Biarrey 13' c Ramos 22' c Jalibert 47' c Mauvaka 54' c Moefana (2) 64' c, 76' m Con: Ramos (6/6) 4', 14', 23', 39', 48', 55' Jaminet (1/2) 65' Pen: Ramos (1/2) 7' Jaminet (1/1) 80+1'	Report	Try: Zuliani 71' c Con: Allan (1/1) 72'

Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Décines-Charpieu Attendance: 58,102 Referee: Karl Dickson (England)[16]

France

Italy

FB 15 Thomas Ramos  61' RW 14 Damian Penaud OC 13 Gaël Fickou  61' IC 12 Jonathan Danty LW 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey FH 10 Matthieu Jalibert SH 9 Maxime Lucu  55' N8 8 Grégory Alldritt OF 7 Charles Ollivon (c)  55' BF 6 Anthony Jelonch RL 5 Thibaud Flament  45' LL 4 Cameron Woki TP 3 Uini Atonio  45' HK 2 Peato Mauvaka  55' LP 1 Cyril Baille  55' Replacements: HK 16 Pierre Bourgarit  55' PR 17 Reda Wardi  55' PR 18 Dorian Aldegheri  45' LK 19 Romain Taofifénua  45' FL 20 François Cros  55' SH 21 Baptiste Couilloud  55' CE 22 Yoram Moefana  61' FB 23 Melvyn Jaminet  61' Coach: Fabien Galthié

FB 15 Ange Capuozzo  31' RW 14 Pierre Bruno  65' OC 13 Ignacio Brex IC 12 Paolo Garbisi LW 11 Monty Ioane FH 10 Tommaso Allan SH 9 Stephen Varney  44' N8 8 Lorenzo Cannone OF 7 Michele Lamaro (c)  44' BF 6 Sebastian Negri RL 5 Federico Ruzza LL 4 Niccolò Cannone  57' TP 3 Pietro Ceccarelli  55' HK 2 Hame Faiva  61' LP 1 Simone Ferrari  61' Replacements: HK 16 Marco Manfredi  61' PR 17 Federico Zani  61' PR 18 Marco Riccioni  55' LK 19 Dave Sisi  57' FL 20 Manuel Zuliani  44' SH 21 Alessandro Fusco  44' CE 22 Luca Morisi  65' FB 23 Lorenzo Pani  31' Coach: Kieran Crowley

Player of the Match: Grégory Alldritt (France)[39] Assistant referees: Luke Pearce (England)[16] Craig Evans (Wales)[16] Television match official: Marius Jonker (South Africa)[16]

Notes:

• Simone Ferrari and Luca Morisi (Italy) earned their 50th test caps.
• This was France's biggest ever win over Italy (by margin).