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What eliminated teams can be happy with their World Cup performances?

The quarter finals of the Rugby World Cup take place this weekend as the eight remaining teams tr...



What eliminated teams can be h...
Rugby

What eliminated teams can be happy with their World Cup performances?

The quarter finals of the Rugby World Cup take place this weekend as the eight remaining teams try and fight to reach the semi finals.

While South Africa, Wales, New Zealand, France, Ireland, Argentina, Australia and Scotland are all preparing for this weekend, what about the 12 teams that have already been eliminated? Who were the winners and losers of the eliminated teams?

England

This was supposed to be their tournament. Years of preparation built up to the 2015 World Cup and their tournament was over within 15 days. While Stuart Lancaster's side were outclassed by Australia, it is the loss the Wales that will haunt the English side for years to come. In hindsight, Chris Robshaw's decision not to try and take three points for a draw against Wales late in the game proved to be costly.

Fiji

The Fijians were probably the unluckiest of teams with the Pool draw. Always capable of beating one of the stronger sides in the pool, they could not overcome England, Australia or Wales in their pool. Only the English scored four tries against Fiji as their defence held solid. Vereniki Goneva's try against Wales may be voted the try of the tournament.

Uruguay

The South American side came to the tournament knowing they were not going to win a game. Scoring a try would have been seen a success for Los Teros. They came close on numerous occasions against Australia in Villa Park, but scored two tries against Fiji. The reaction of their coach Pablo Lemoine after scoring the first of those tries showed how much it meant to the team.

Japan

Eddie Jones' side were undoubtedly the story of the pool stages. Their historic win over South Africa will remain one of the sporting moments of the year. Their only loss came to Scotland, after a short turn around from the South African win. Victories over Samoa and United States meant the Blossoms finished in third place, becoming the first team to do so by winning three games. With Japan hosting the tournament in four years time, their performance was a welcome boost.

Samoa

Samoa were one of the tournament's most disappointing sides sadly. Their only win came against the United States. They showed what they were capable of in their final pool game. Scotland were given a proper fright in Newcastle by the Samoans, before coming through unscathed.

United States

Four games and four losses for the Eagles at the World Cup, meant they have gone backwards from the progess made in New Zealand in 2011. The Eagles were they only team not to score a point in the pool stages during one of their matches. They lost 64-0 to South Africa in the Olympic Stadium. The Samoa and Japanese games would have been targeted but they lost both by a combined 19 points.

Georgia

Along with the Japanese, Georgia's performances were among the highlights of the pool stages. They shocked Tonga in their opening game and book-ended their tournament with a win over Namibia in Exeter, Their performance against New Zealand was immense despite losing in Cardiff. Beka Tsiklauri's try got the loudest cheer that night in the Welsh capital. The best side in Europe outside the Six Nations can now look forward to Japan 2019 after qualifying automatically.

Tonga

The Tongans only recorded one win in the tournament, against Namibia. They were on the back foot after the opening weekend loss to Georgia, but restored their pride against New Zealand. Like the Pacific rivals, Samoa and Fiji, they will have to qualify for the next World Cup in 2019.

Namibia

The Namibians quest for their first ever World Cup victory. The African side have played now in four World Cups and have lost all 15 of their games. In Jacques Burger they had one of the tournaments most recognisable players but his side came closest to victory against Georgia before losing by a point.

Italy

The Italians aim was to beat one of Ireland and France and try and reach the quarter finals for the first time. They tested Ireland in the Olympic Stadium, and were very lucky to defeat Canada in Leeds. A forgettable tournament sadly to Jacques Brunel's side

Romania

One of the matches of the tournament involved the Romanians as the came from 15 points down to beat Canada. It was the biggest comeback in the history of the World Cup. It was also a memorable tournament for Romania Florian Surugiu who got engaged on the Wembley turf after their loss to Ireland.

Canada

It was a weird tournament for the Canadians. No wins in four games but should have won twice. They threw away the chance to beat Italy in Leeds before squandering a 15-0 second half lead against Romania to lose by two points. In DTH van der Merwe, they have a star who scored a try in all four matches.

Canada's DTH Van Der Merwe scores a try despite the tackle from Romania's Madalin Lemnaru. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)

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