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A Tragic Ending (Argentina vs Scotland)
Lucas Gonzalez Amorosino scored the only try of the match with Scotland celebrating second earlier after a Dan Parks drop goal. Settling for the 3 points instead of going for the try or eating up the clock eventually doomed the Scottish side, losing 13-12, now in a must win situation before facing England.
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A Sort of Revenge (All Blacks vs France)
Israel Dagg scored two tries for the All Blacks as they comfortably beat their big Group A rivals, France, 37-17 at Eden Park, with a brilliant first half (especially Dan Carter and Ma’a Nonu) allowing some relaxation time in the next 40 minutes as the French fought for some respect.
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Adam Ashley-Cooper Shines in Try-Fest (Wallabies vs USA)
The Wallabies scored 11 tries in their 67-5 demolition of the USA, as Adam Ashely-Cooper scored three of his own and the Australians got back on the winning track, punishing the out of their league Americans for every turnover and mistake, which were plentiful.
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Kicking and Scrumming Enough for Upset (Ireland vs Wallabies)
Jonathan Sexton’s kicking wasn’t brilliant, but along with Ronan O’Gara later on it was just enough to complement Ireland’s brilliant Scrumming en route to a 15-6 win over the Wallabies, putting them on top of Group C in the Rugby World Cup.
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The Crushing We’ve Been Waiting For (All Blacks vs Japan)
This is what All Blacks have been waiting for – a good hard thumping of small (Rugby) nation. Japan haven’t won a World Cup match since 1991 and were out of this game three minutes in, after Conrad Smith opened the scoring. It ended with a 83-7 win, with Richard Kahui and Sonny Bill Williams, to the pleasure of the ladies, both scoring two tries.
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Hougaard, Experience and Luck (Springboks vs Wales)
The Springboks had their hands full at Wellington against a very good and fun to watch Welsh side, but a bit of luck, a bit of controversial officiating, great defense and one Francois Hougaard try were enough to hand them an opening match 17-16 win in their title defense campaign.
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Ben Youngs Just About Enough (England vs Argentina)
This wasn’t the performance Martin Johnson expected from his 2011 Six Nations winning side. No one expected Jonny Wilkinson to miss so much. Argentina were the more physical, dominant side for the first 60 minutes, but Ben Youngs’ entrance to Scrum-Half shifted momentum and also got England the only try of the match, enough for a 13-9 opening match win.
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A Less Than Brilliant Opening (All Blacks vs Tonga)
A 41-10 win with the bonus point already earned in the first half, with both Israel Dagg and Richard Kahui scoring two tries in the first half is certainly a good way to open the Rugby World Cup, but failing to get too much going in the second half as Tonga finally found a way to waste some time with the ball and even score will probably get some worried minds in the New Zealand camp.