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2019 Rugby World Cup – play-off qualifications

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For the 2019 Rugby World Cup, there were several play-off matches during the qualification process in order to determine which nations would compete in the Repechage. Canada, who failed to be one of the three teams to advance from the Americas qualification process, despite being the third highest ranked team in the Americas, emerged from the repechage process in November 2018 to become the final team to qualify for the World Cup.

Format

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Europe/Oceania

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The qualification play-off was a home and away series between Europe 2 and Oceania 3. Europe 2, Germany, was the winner of Round 6 of the European qualification process, while Oceania 3, Samoa, was the third best team of Round 1 of the Oceania qualification process. The winner of this home and away play-off on aggregate qualified to the World Cup as the play-off winner. The loser gained another chance via the World Repechage.

Repechage

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Asia/Oceania

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Prior to the repechage final, Asia 1 and Oceania 4 played-off in a home and away series for the final place. Asia 1 was the winner of Round 3 of the Asian qualification process, while Oceania 4 is Cook Islands. The Cook Islands advanced to the next stage of qualifying for the 2019 Rugby World Cup after Tahiti, the winner of Round 2 of the Oceania qualification process, were found to have breached player eligibility regulations in their Oceania Cup clash the previous year.[1] The winner of this home and away play-off on aggregate, qualified for a place in the World Repechage, while the loser missed out on World Cup qualification.

Final tournament

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The 2019 Rugby World Cup repechage tournament was hosted by a neutral venue: the Pierre-Delort Stadium in Marseille, France. In previous years, the repechage, a last-chance opportunity to qualify for the Rugby World Cup, has followed a knock-out format in line with the rest of the qualification process. The 2019 edition, however, was a round-robin tournament between four teams held during the November test window. Africa and the Americas were guaranteed a repechage place, with the runner-up of the African qualification round 3 (Africa 2) and the losing side of the Americas Repechage play-off gaining positions. The final two places were decided through the above cross-regional play-offs, with the loser of the Europe/Oceania play-off (Europe 2 or Oceania 3) getting another shot at qualification in the repechage, and the winner of the Asia/Oceania play-off for repechage, advancing to the repechage, with no direct place for an Asian team or the lower ranked teams in Oceania. The winner of the World Repechage qualified for the World Cup as the play-off winner (or Repechage 2).

Teams

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Six teams progressed to the regional and Repechage play-offs for the final two non-regional seeds in the World Cup; teams world rankings are as per date progressing to the play-off phase and bold nations denotes teams had previously played in a Rugby World Cup.

Nation Rank Progression date Qualifying status
 Samoa 15 15 July 2017 Qualified on 14 July 2018
 Germany 28 15 May 2018 Eliminated by Canada on 17 November 2018
 Cook Islands 55 23 March 2018 Eliminated by Hong Kong on 7 July 2018
 Hong Kong 22 2 June 2018 Eliminated by Canada on 23 November 2018
 Kenya 28 29 July 2018 Eliminated by Hong Kong on 17 November 2018
 Canada 21 3 February 2018 Qualified on 23 November 2018

Europe/Oceania qualifying play-off

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Samoa played Germany in a Europe/Oceania play-off for direct qualification to the World Cup. Samoa qualified, winning 108–43 on aggregate, while Germany progressed to the Repechage as runners-up.

30 June 2018
15:10 (UTC+13:00)
Samoa 66–15 Germany
Try: Leiua 9' c
Matavao (2) 12' c, 60' c
J. Lam 23' c
Fidow (3) 28' c, 36' c, 79' m
Penalty try 51'
Tekori 71' c
Polataivao 73' m
Con: Tuala (5/5) 10', 13', 24', 29', 37'
Fa'apale (2/4) 62', 72'
ReportTry: Otto (2) 58' m, 66' c
Con: Parkinson (1/2) 67'
Pen: Parkinson (1/1) 11'
Apia Park, Apia
Attendance: 6,100
Referee: Mike Fraser (New Zealand)

14 July 2018
16:00 (UTC+2:00)
Germany 28–42 Samoa
Try: Otto 8' c
Fuchsel 17' m
Els 49' c
Con: Parkinson (1/2) 9'
Hilsenbeck (1/1) 50'
Pen: Hilsenbeck (2/2) 40', 64'
Coetzee (1/2) 66'
ReportTry: Fidow (2) 1' c, 75' c
Matavao (2) 35' c, 46' c
Tuala (2) 69' c, 79' c
Con: Tuala (6/6) 2', 36', 47', 70', 76'. 80'
Fritz-Grunebaum-Sportpark, Heidelberg
Attendance: 3,046
Referee: Matthew Carley (England)

Repechage

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On 12 July 2018, World Rugby announced that the repechage tournament would be hosted at the neutral venue of the Pierre-Delort Stadium in Marseille, France.[2]

Asia/Oceania play-off

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The winner of this home and away play-off, Hong Kong, earned the right to compete in the repechage after winning the series 77–3 on aggregate.

30 June 2018
15:00 (UTC−10:00)
Cook Islands 3–26 Hong Kong
Pen: G. Mullany (1/1) 18'ReportTry: Lamboley 3' m
Slatem 12' m
Hartley 29' m
Woodward 70' m
Pen: Rosslee (2/2) 41', 53'
Avarua Tereora Stadium, Rarotonga
Attendance: 1,500
Referee: Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)

7 July 2018
16:30 HKT (UTC+08)
Hong Kong 51–0 Cook Islands
Try: Yiu 11' c
Woodward 26' c
Hood 54' c
Post (2) 57' c, 67' c
Penalty try 64'
Con: Rosslee (5/5) 12', 27', 55', 58', 69'
Pen: Rosslee (2/2) 22', 46'
Drop: Rimene (1/1) 65'
Report
Hong Kong Football Club Stadium, Hong Kong
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Damon Murphy (Australia)

Repechage final tournament

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Teams and table

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Qualified as repechage winner

Final standings (continental qualifying path of each team and world ranking in brackets):

Place Nation Games Points Bonus
points
Table
points
Played Won Drawn Lost For Against Diff
1  Canada (Americas) (21) 3 3 0 0 121 39 +82 2 14
2  Germany (Europe) (26) 3 2 0 1 79 44 +35 1 9
3  Hong Kong (Asia) (24) 3 1 0 2 61 70 −9 1 5
4  Kenya (Africa) (29) 3 0 0 3 42 150 −108 0 0
Points were awarded to the teams as follows:
4 points for a win, 2 points for a draw, no points for a loss
1 bonus point for scoring 4 or more tries
1 bonus point for a loss by 7 points or under

Fixtures

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Round 1
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11 November 2018
13:00 CET
(1 BP) Canada 65–19 Kenya
Try: Van der Merwe (3) 9' c, 29' m, 76' c
Beukeboom (2) 12' m, 61' c
Sauder (2) 39' c, 54' m
Ardron 50' c
Sheppard 69' c
Evans 70' m
Con: McRorie (5/9) 10', 40', 51', 62', 69'
Sauder (1/1) 77'
Pen: McRorie (1/1) 2'
ReportTry: Onyango 17' m
Owade 32' c
Nyambua 43' c
Con: Mukidza (1/2) 43'
Oliech (1/1) 32'
Pierre-Delort Stadium, Marseille
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)

11 November 2018
16:00 CET (UTC+01)
Hong Kong 9–26 Germany
Pen: Rosslee (3/3) 10', 26', 52'ReportTry: Haupt 66' c
Schösser 77' c
Con: Parkinson (2/2) 67', 78'
Pen: Parkinson (3/4) 23', 49', 60'
Hilsenbeck (1/1) 38'
Pierre-Delort Stadium, Marseille
Referee: Pascal Gaüzère (France)
Round 2
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17 November 2018
13:00 CET (UTC+01)
(1BP) Hong Kong 42–17 Kenya
Try: Denmark 29' c
Hewson 49' c
Fenn 54' c
Lamboley (2) 64' c, 70' c
Warner 81' c
Con: Rimene (4/4) 30', 50', 55', 65'
Rosslee (2/2) 71', 83'
ReportTry: Opondo (2) 16' c, 57' m
Musonye 22' m
Con: Oliech (1/3) 17'
Pierre-Delort Stadium, Marseille
Attendance: 1,500 [3]
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)

17 November 2018
16:00 CET (UTC+01)
(1BP) Canada 29–10 Germany
Try: Rumball 23' c
Ardron 43' c
Evans 68' m
McRorie 72' c
Con: McRorie (3/4) 24', 44', 73'
Pen: McRorie (1/1) 14'
ReportTry: Barber 30' c
Con: Parkinson (1/1) 31'
Pen: Parkinson (1/1) 47'
Pierre-Delort Stadium, Marseille
Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
Round 3
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23 November 2018
18:00 CET (UTC+01)
Kenya 6–43 Germany (1 BP)
Pen: Oliech (2/3) 2', 38'ReportTry: Ferreira 22'c, 58'c, 70'c
Haupt 40+1'm
Otto 45'c
Leibig 50'c
Aounallah 79'c
Con: Parkinson (5/7) 22', 46', 52', 71', 80+1'
Pierre-Delort Stadium, Marseille
Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)
23 November 2018
21:00 CET (UTC+01)
Hong Kong 10–27 Canada
Try: Hartley 53'c
Con: Rosslee (1/1) 54'
Pen: Rosslee (1/1) 31'
ReportTry: Barkwill 18'c
Van De Merwe 32'c, 70'c
Con: McRorie (3/3) 19', 33', 72'
Pen: McRorie (2/3) 62', 67'
Pierre-Delort Stadium, Marseille
Referee: Romain Poite (France)

References

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  1. ^ "Tahiti booted from RWC qualifiers". 23 March 2018.
  2. ^ France to host decisive repechage tournament for Rugby World Cup 2019
  3. ^ "Rugby-Nationalmannschaft: Gewogen und für zu leicht befunden".