Rugby World Cup Teams - Pool D

The Rugby World Cup 2011 starts on the 9 September until the 23 October 2011. The following article is an outline of the teams that will be featuring from pool D.

South Africa- Springboks

The South African rugby team is the current holder of the Rugby World Cup, beating England 15 -6 to lift the Webb Ellis Cup for a record equaling second time in 2007. Since the last World Cup the Springboks results range from all time highs to some indifferent results, they are however still one of the best teams on the planet. The South African team is renowned for scrummaging aggressively with a high level of technical excellence, a ball-in-hand style that often works very well against opponents. Expect a traditional high-pressure, attritional game plan at the 2011 World Cup; this approach is likely to see the Springboks get to the later stages of the competition and if like 2007 could see a successful defense of the Web Ellis. The Springboks possess quality in-depth and are renowned for being extremely difficult to break down over 80 minutes, they have also been drawn in a favorable group consisting of teams that shouldn't prove too much of a problem; complacency will be South Africa's biggest problem but once out of the group stage expect a charge towards the final in Auckland. Star Player: Bryan Habana, Head coach: Peter de Villiers

Fiji - The Palms

Fiji is one of the few countries where rugby union is the national sport, as a team they are very strong and definitely the strongest from the Oceania region. The 2007 World Cup was a great success for the Fijians who got knocked out at the quarter-final stage by future winners South Africa, prior to this they overcame Wales in the second round 38-31; this put Fiji in the top 8 teams in world rugby, no small feat for this pacific island. The Fijian style is very off the cuff and proves to be highly entertaining, their ball handling is generally excellent and is more akin to basketball at times. The Fijian free-flowing style does however expose a defensive fragility that the better teams capitalise on but on their day the Palms are a handful for any team. Group D throws up the mouth-watering repeat of the 2007 game against Wales, described by some as one of the best matches ever. The winner of this match will very likely progress to the next round behind South Africa but the game against neighbours Samoa will be tough and definitely one to watch. Star Player: Sisaro Koyamaibole, Head Coach: Sam Domoni

Samoa- Manu Samoa

Rugby was introduced to Samoa in the early 1920s; the first international was played as Western Samoa against Fiji in August 1924. Samoa did not compete at the first World Cup but have qualified for every tournament since. Samoa in the early years of the World Cup were an unknown, this worked exceptional well for the team and help them to progress to the quarter-final stages in the first three tournaments that they participated in; since these early highs Samoa have failed to get out of the group stages. There are strong links between Samoa and New Zealand even sharing a pre match challenge similar to the Haka called the Siva Tau. Many players switch nationalities between the two nations, often Samoan player's trying to realise a dream of playing for the All Blacks. Manu Samoa is a naturally strong, physical side, who will go toe to toe with any opponent. Group D represents a great opportunity for the side to get out of the group, the games against Wales and Fiji are vital to this - expect a great encounter when these teams meet each other. Star Player: Alesana Tuilagi, Head Coach: Fuimaono Tafua

Namibia- Welwitschias

The Rugby World Cup 2011 starts on the 9 September until the 23 October 2011. The following article is an outline of the teams that will be featuring from pool D.

South Africa- Springboks

The South African rugby team is the current holder of the Rugby World Cup, beating England 15 -6 to lift the Webb Ellis Cup for a record equaling second time in 2007. Since the last World Cup the Springboks results range from all time highs to some indifferent results, they are however still one of the best teams on the planet. The South African team is renowned for scrummaging aggressively with a high level of technical excellence, a ball-in-hand style that often works very well against opponents. Expect a traditional high-pressure, attritional game plan at the 2011 World Cup; this approach is likely to see the Springboks get to the later stages of the competition and if like 2007 could see a successful defense of the Web Ellis. The Springboks possess quality in-depth and are renowned for being extremely difficult to break down over 80 minutes, they have also been drawn in a favorable group consisting of teams that shouldn't prove too much of a problem; complacency will be South Africa's biggest problem but once out of the group stage expect a charge towards the final in Auckland. Star Player: Bryan Habana, Head coach: Peter de Villiers

Fiji - The Palms

Fiji is one of the few countries where rugby union is the national sport, as a team they are very strong and definitely the strongest from the Oceania region. The 2007 World Cup was a great success for the Fijians who got knocked out at the quarter-final stage by future winners South Africa, prior to this they overcame Wales in the second round 38-31; this put Fiji in the top 8 teams in world rugby, no small feat for this pacific island. The Fijian style is very off the cuff and proves to be highly entertaining, their ball handling is generally excellent and is more akin to basketball at times. The Fijian free-flowing style does however expose a defensive fragility that the better teams capitalise on but on their day the Palms are a handful for any team. Group D throws up the mouth-watering repeat of the 2007 game against Wales, described by some as one of the best matches ever. The winner of this match will very likely progress to the next round behind South Africa but the game against neighbours Samoa will be tough and definitely one to watch. Star Player: Sisaro Koyamaibole, Head Coach: Sam Domoni

Samoa- Manu Samoa

Rugby was introduced to Samoa in the early 1920s; the first international was played as Western Samoa against Fiji in August 1924. Samoa did not compete at the first World Cup but have qualified for every tournament since. Samoa in the early years of the World Cup were an unknown, this worked exceptional well for the team and help them to progress to the quarter-final stages in the first three tournaments that they participated in; since these early highs Samoa have failed to get out of the group stages. There are strong links between Samoa and New Zealand even sharing a pre match challenge similar to the Haka called the Siva Tau. Many players switch nationalities between the two nations, often Samoan player's trying to realise a dream of playing for the All Blacks. Manu Samoa is a naturally strong, physical side, who will go toe to toe with any opponent. Group D represents a great opportunity for the side to get out of the group, the games against Wales and Fiji are vital to this - expect a great encounter when these teams meet each other. Star Player: Alesana Tuilagi, Head Coach: Fuimaono Tafua

Namibia- Welwitschias

The Rugby World Cup 2011 starts on the 9 September until the 23 October 2011. The following article is an outline of the teams that will be featuring from pool D.

South Africa- Springboks

The South African rugby team is the current holder of the Rugby World Cup, beating England 15 -6 to lift the Webb Ellis Cup for a record equaling second time in 2007. Since the last World Cup the Springboks results range from all time highs to some indifferent results, they are however still one of the best teams on the planet. The South African team is renowned for scrummaging aggressively with a high level of technical excellence, a ball-in-hand style that often works very well against opponents. Expect a traditional high-pressure, attritional game plan at the 2011 World Cup; this approach is likely to see the Springboks get to the later stages of the competition and if like 2007 could see a successful defense of the Web Ellis. The Springboks possess quality in-depth and are renowned for being extremely difficult to break down over 80 minutes, they have also been drawn in a favorable group consisting of teams that shouldn't prove too much of a problem; complacency will be South Africa's biggest problem but once out of the group stage expect a charge towards the final in Auckland. Star Player: Bryan Habana, Head coach: Peter de Villiers

Fiji - The Palms

Fiji is one of the few countries where rugby union is the national sport, as a team they are very strong and definitely the strongest from the Oceania region. The 2007 World Cup was a great success for the Fijians who got knocked out at the quarter-final stage by future winners South Africa, prior to this they overcame Wales in the second round 38-31; this put Fiji in the top 8 teams in world rugby, no small feat for this pacific island. The Fijian style is very off the cuff and proves to be highly entertaining, their ball handling is generally excellent and is more akin to basketball at times. The Fijian free-flowing style does however expose a defensive fragility that the better teams capitalise on but on their day the Palms are a handful for any team. Group D throws up the mouth-watering repeat of the 2007 game against Wales, described by some as one of the best matches ever. The winner of this match will very likely progress to the next round behind South Africa but the game against neighbours Samoa will be tough and definitely one to watch. Star Player: Sisaro Koyamaibole, Head Coach: Sam Domoni

Samoa- Manu Samoa

Rugby was introduced to Samoa in the early 1920s; the first international was played as Western Samoa against Fiji in August 1924. Samoa did not compete at the first World Cup but have qualified for every tournament since. Samoa in the early years of the World Cup were an unknown, this worked exceptional well for the team and help them to progress to the quarter-final stages in the first three tournaments that they participated in; since these early highs Samoa have failed to get out of the group stages. There are strong links between Samoa and New Zealand even sharing a pre match challenge similar to the Haka called the Siva Tau. Many players switch nationalities between the two nations, often Samoan player's trying to realise a dream of playing for the All Blacks. Manu Samoa is a naturally strong, physical side, who will go toe to toe with any opponent. Group D represents a great opportunity for the side to get out of the group, the games against Wales and Fiji are vital to this - expect a great encounter when these teams meet each other. Star Player: Alesana Tuilagi, Head Coach: Fuimaono Tafua

Namibia- Welwitschias

The Rugby World Cup 2011 starts on the 9 September until the 23 October 2011. The following article is an outline of the teams that will be featuring from pool D.

South Africa- Springboks

The South African rugby team is the current holder of the Rugby World Cup, beating England 15 -6 to lift the Webb Ellis Cup for a record equaling second time in 2007. Since the last World Cup the Springboks results range from all time highs to some indifferent results, they are however still one of the best teams on the planet. The South African team is renowned for scrummaging aggressively with a high level of technical excellence, a ball-in-hand style that often works very well against opponents. Expect a traditional high-pressure, attritional game plan at the 2011 World Cup; this approach is likely to see the Springboks get to the later stages of the competition and if like 2007 could see a successful defense of the Web Ellis. The Springboks possess quality in-depth and are renowned for being extremely difficult to break down over 80 minutes, they have also been drawn in a favorable group consisting of teams that shouldn't prove too much of a problem; complacency will be South Africa's biggest problem but once out of the group stage expect a charge towards the final in Auckland. Star Player: Bryan Habana, Head coach: Peter de Villiers

Fiji - The Palms

Fiji is one of the few countries where rugby union is the national sport, as a team they are very strong and definitely the strongest from the Oceania region. The 2007 World Cup was a great success for the Fijians who got knocked out at the quarter-final stage by future winners South Africa, prior to this they overcame Wales in the second round 38-31; this put Fiji in the top 8 teams in world rugby, no small feat for this pacific island. The Fijian style is very off the cuff and proves to be highly entertaining, their ball handling is generally excellent and is more akin to basketball at times. The Fijian free-flowing style does however expose a defensive fragility that the better teams capitalise on but on their day the Palms are a handful for any team. Group D throws up the mouth-watering repeat of the 2007 game against Wales, described by some as one of the best matches ever. The winner of this match will very likely progress to the next round behind South Africa but the game against neighbours Samoa will be tough and definitely one to watch. Star Player: Sisaro Koyamaibole, Head Coach: Sam Domoni

Samoa- Manu Samoa

Rugby was introduced to Samoa in the early 1920s; the first international was played as Western Samoa against Fiji in August 1924. Samoa did not compete at the first World Cup but have qualified for every tournament since. Samoa in the early years of the World Cup were an unknown, this worked exceptional well for the team and help them to progress to the quarter-final stages in the first three tournaments that they participated in; since these early highs Samoa have failed to get out of the group stages. There are strong links between Samoa and New Zealand even sharing a pre match challenge similar to the Haka called the Siva Tau. Many players switch nationalities between the two nations, often Samoan player's trying to realise a dream of playing for the All Blacks. Manu Samoa is a naturally strong, physical side, who will go toe to toe with any opponent. Group D represents a great opportunity for the side to get out of the group, the games against Wales and Fiji are vital to this - expect a great encounter when these teams meet each other. Star Player: Alesana Tuilagi, Head Coach: Fuimaono Tafua

Namibia- Welwitschias