Australia
They come into the tournament as winners of the Rugby Championship, although it was a shortened tournament so not as brilliant as it could have been. While they didn't win emphatically in any of the games, they did figure out how to win, coming from behind against South Africa and brilliantly taking out New Zealand. Against Argentina, they did rack up the four tries but not until the last ten minutes. However after a ground-breaking win against the All Blacks, in which the double open-side system worked with lethal efficiency, they went to Eden Park and got ripped apart by a vengeful All Black side lead by Carter and McCaw.
The big concern is at play-maker for Australia, they still haven't decided who they want a 9, 10 and 12. Nick White the hero who won the game against New Zealand is not included in the squad at all, leaving Phipps and Genia to fight for the shirt and find some form. Coach Cheika seems to prefer the Cooper-Giteau axis, although is hadn't found much success, moving Australia far too laterally, meanwhile Matt Toomua has offered control and direction from the bench. Cooper can provide moments of majestic wonder, however he is lacking in control and goal kicking which could bite them in the arse against England and even Wales.Star Player: Israel Folau
Player to Watch: Henry Speight
England
Were utterly awful one week, next week they were totally fantastic against Ireland. I think the game in Paris can be put down to first team players being rusty, and the French pack being ferocious, something that is less likely to happen in this pool. With England possessing the more fearsome scrum in terms of power, although finesse is something that is lacking. The front row is looking pretty settled with Marler, Youngs and Cole, and with enough competition on the bench to keep them on top form. Although Youngs' lineout ability could be called into questions by the likes of the tall Luke Charteris who reeked havoc against Ireland in the 6 Nations. That can perhaps been remedeed by playing fellow Tiger, Parling in the second row, but it does break up the athletic, dyanmic, paring of Launchbury and Lawes. The competition for places continues into the backrow, Robshaw has the shirt even if he could be outclassed by the likes of Warburton, Hooper, Pocock and Tipuric. At blind-side, Wood vs Haskall will be interesting, Wood offering more in the lineout, and a No. 8 Vunipola vs Morgan will be argued till kick off, Morgan coming back from injury has looked strong while Vunipola has looked less like his former self after a summer of fitness training and slimming down.
The backline finally looks like it's coming good, the back-three of Brown, Watson and May are at peak performance. Brown having come back form his concussion problems to bring solidity at the back, and Anthony Watson with his footwork is a quality finisher which is something that England have been missing. But May is the real star at the moment, he's finally started trusting his insane pace instead of constantly side-stepping inside, and his previous defensive frailties have disappeared almost entirely. In the centre of the park Lancaster seems to know exactly who he wants to play, but they don't have much game time together which could cause some issues, but both Barritt and Joseph are top quality players in defence and attacking respectively. Then there is Sam Burgess waiting in the wings with his imposing presence and mental determination to win, or the classy playmaker Slade.
The halfbacks, while not as shakey as Australia, aren't looking at their best. George Ford has struggled at times during the warm up, unable to run his clever attacking game with his pack struggling, and Ben Youngs isn't exactly lighting up the game. Although to be fair the Youngs he isn't making any mistakes either, that sort of dependability will be crucial. Owen Farrell is apparently pushing hard to reclaim the 10 shirt, and it could be an intelligent decision with his control. And that's without mentioning home advantage of playing at Twickenham.
Star Player: Jonny May
Player to Watch: Henry Slade
Wales
It looked so promising for Wales after playing in Dublin, and then one week later it looks pretty unlikely (to say the least) that Wales will get out of the pool. Missing the terrifying Leigh Halfpenny, and the top scrum half Rhys Webb, Wales are looking sparse in talent. The attacking Liam Williams is still coming back from injury, but could offer Wales a totally different dynamic that could surprise a few teams. Dan Biggar could greatly miss his long term team-mate Webb inside him with the inexperienced Gareth Davies likely to take the shirt.
Hopefully the poor performance against Italy was mostly due to the players in shock and not being able to focus after the departure of Webb (and eventually Halfpenny). If Wales are to perform at peak ability, they need their pack to function but more importantly they need Jamie Roberts to be at his physical best. If Roberts is able to get over the gainline Wales play much better, especially with the glide running Scott Williams playing outside him. North is slowly refinding the form which made him feared globally, but on the opposite wing Alex Cuthbert can't seem to find the thing that made him a test Lion and in defence against the likes of Folau and May will be more than a liability.
In the pack, the scrum has looked like an issue, Samson Lee's return to fitness could not be any more crucial, test rookie Francis has done well but struggles later on in the game. The lock's is an interesting battle, with so many options, Alun Wyn Jones is certain to start, alongside him Charteris provides athleticism and line-out brilliance, while Bradley Davies adds extra weight and ball carrying ability. The back row is the toughest battle, four has to go into three, Tipuric has been Wales' greatest player in the three warm up matches but could still struggle to make it into the side for the big matches.
Wales have got to play at their best, while missing three of their biggest players, to stand any chance of over turning one of Australia or England. Dan Biggar's kicking covers the missing Halfpenny, although at a reduced range, but that could be a blessing in disguise. Wales will now be forced to kick to touch from penalities around halfway, which could potentially see them scoring more tries than in recent memory.
Star Player: Jamie Roberts
Player to Watch: Hallam Amos
Fiji
The danger team of the pool, Fiji stand a good chance of stealing a win against one of the "big three", and therefore deciding the pool. They are unlikely to perform well enough in all games to progress to the knockout stages, but they will give potentially all of the above teams a scare. The backlline is their biggest strength, the likes of Nadolo and Goneva can burst through defences and set up some wonder tries. And their forwards aren't exactly worried to get their hands on the ball and take part in what is essentially a 7's game played with 15 players.
The age old problem for Fiji is their set-piece, unable to consistently retain possession at the scrum and lineouts means that they could struggle to keep a hold on games, or any lead they might produce. It's where the big three will look to twist the screws, but simply keeping possession and playing a calm again, not allow it to break up into the sort of game Fiji want to take part it.
Star Player: Nemani Nadolo
Player to Watch: Leone Nakarawa
Uruguay
Let's face it the South American's are going to be the whipping boys of this pool, they're looking at a heavy points difference in every single game. Especially since all of the teams will be looking to get those extra points in case the final decision for who qualifies comes down to points difference. They'll probably will set themselves some goals and targets along the lines of not being left with no points on the board in any game, or trying not to break the record for most points conceded in a World Cup tournament. Both of which will be very very difficult to accomplish.
Predicted Final Standings
England
Australia
Wales
Fiji
Uruguay
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