Is there still a hemisphere gap in rugby?
So far, this has been a very good rugby WC for the northern hemisphere,. Ireland beat SA, France beat NZ and Wales beat Australia.
The Springboks or the All Blacks could still emerge as champions but will have to fight hard to do it.
For most of the time since 1995, the southern hemisphere has been a level above. Super Rugby was once arguably better than the Six Nations and New Zealand have been near unbeatable during their best periods. At the time of writing, the north has only won one world cup out of ten.
Despite adapting much slower to the professional era, Europe has now caught up in terms of player development, fitness and tactics. Recruiting so many southern players and coaches helped to spread best practice. This brain drain has also weakened southern hemisphere rugby. Australia has also declined massively as a rugby nation.
So yeah, the rugby world is now a more even field.
The Springboks or the All Blacks could still emerge as champions but will have to fight hard to do it.
For most of the time since 1995, the southern hemisphere has been a level above. Super Rugby was once arguably better than the Six Nations and New Zealand have been near unbeatable during their best periods. At the time of writing, the north has only won one world cup out of ten.
Despite adapting much slower to the professional era, Europe has now caught up in terms of player development, fitness and tactics. Recruiting so many southern players and coaches helped to spread best practice. This brain drain has also weakened southern hemisphere rugby. Australia has also declined massively as a rugby nation.
So yeah, the rugby world is now a more even field.
41-45, M
