World Rugby Chief Executive Brett Gosper said: “Technology is an important component of the rugby performance and fan engagement environments and Rugby World Cup 2015 is set to showcase innovation and performance to a record global audience”.
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“There are a lot of competitive teams in the tournament but the top two who come through our pool are capable of going all the way to the final”.
Police said they were obliged to “try and ensure the impact on local residents and the community was kept to a minimum following the match”, and added that their plans for matches during the World Cup were still being formed.
The seedings for World Cup pool draws are based on world rankings at the time, and Wales’ winless November in 2012 had a big hand in the creation of such a daunting line-up.
The rankings are very different now, with Australia at No.3, England No. 4 and Wales No.6.
Although it was available on Saturday night, Hawk-Eye was not used during the England-France game, so we may have to wait until next month and the Rugby World Cup’s opening match on September 18th to see how it will work during a game.
“We have a series of sanctions at our disposal to act as a deterrent against non-compliance”, Gosper said Tuesday.
England know full well any slip-ups will mean early elimination and red faces when as hosts they ought to be plotting their course to the competition’s latter stages.
“We are delighted to be part of the team working to make this a fantastic tournament for everyone involved”. Were the draw to take place tomorrow, for example, the PoolA rivals England, Wales and Fiji would all be seeded higher than they were three years ago. ‘You want it to be a true reflection of the position at the time of the tournament.
“You’ve got to balance the proximity of the tournament with all of the planning that goes into it. We’ll look at that next time to see if it’s possible to make the draw closer to the tournament”.
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Gosper also sought to demonstrate how seriously World Rugby was taking the threat of concussion at the tournament by warning that any team flouting its new protocols risked punishment.
