2015 Rugby World Cup – Africa qualification

The Africa section of 2015 Rugby World Cup qualifying saw thirteen teams competing for one direct qualification spot into the final tournament in England, and one spot in the Repechage play-offs.[1]

Format

The Africa Cup, run by the Confederation of African Rugby (CAR), was the regional qualification tournament for Rugby World Cup 2015, with Divisions 1A, 1B and 1C involved in the process. The 2012 Divisions 1B and 1C acted as the qualification matches in Round 1, with the Division 1C winner being promoted to Division 1B for the second round in 2013, while the bottom placed team in Division 1B was relegated to 1C and eliminated from Rugby World Cup contention. 2013 saw Divisions 1A and 1B act as the qualification matches in Round 2. The top three teams of Division 1A remained in that same division for the final round in 2014, to be joined by the winner of Division 1B in 2013. The teams that did not win Division 1B or were relegated out of 1A were eliminated from Rugby World Cup qualification. Namibia, the winner of Round 3, or Division 1A, in 2014 qualified for the 2015 Rugby World Cup as Africa 1, while the runner-up, Zimbabwe, entered the Repechage for a second chance to qualify.[2]

Entrants

Thirteen teams competed for the 2015 Rugby World Cup – Africa qualification. Shown in parentheses are the teams' world rankings prior to the first African qualification match on 4 July 2012.

Qualified nations

Round 1

Main article: 2012 Africa Cup

The first round consisted of nine matches between nine teams. The winner of the Africa Cup Division 1C (Round 1B), advanced to the second round and was promoted to Division 1B for 2013, while the top three teams in CAR Division 1B (Round 1A), also advanced into the second round.

Round 1A: 2012 Africa Cup Division 1B

The 2012 Africa Cup Division 1B took place in Madagascar at Mahamasina Stadium in Antananarivo on 4 July and 8 July. The champion, Madagascar, was promoted up to Division 1A thus advancing to Round 2B. Namibia and Senegal remained in Division 1B for 2013, advancing to Round 2A. Morocco was eliminated from Rugby World Cup, by virtue of being relegated to Division 1C for 2013.

Semi-finals Final
July 4, 2012 – Antananarivo
  Madagascar  35  
  Morocco  28  
 
July 8, 2012 – Antananarivo
      Madagascar  57
    Namibia  54
Third place play-off
July 4, 2012 – Antananarivo July 8, 2012 – Antananarivo
  Namibia  20   Morocco  25
  Senegal  18     Senegal  26

Round 1B: 2012 Africa Cup Division 1C

The 2012 Africa Cup Division 1C took place in Botswana at UB Stadium in Gaborone from 22 July to 28 July. The champions, Botswana, were promoted up to Division 1B for 2013, thus advancing to Round 2A. Ivory Coast, Mauritius, Zambia and Nigeria were eliminated from Rugby World Cup qualifying.

Advances to Round 2A
Place Nation Games Points Bonus
points		 Table
points
played won drawn lost for against difference
1 Botswana22004829+1908
2 Ivory Coast22005335+1808
3 Mauritius21014047−704
4 Zambia20023347−1400
5 Nigeria20023955−1600
Points were awarded to the teams as follows:
Win - 4 points
Draw - 2 points
4 or more tries - 1 point
Loss within 7 points - 1 point
Loss greater than 7 points - 0 points

Round 2

Main article: 2013 Africa Cup

The second round consisted of eight matches featuring the top eight teams in Africa outside of South Africa. The top three teams of CAR Division 1A advanced to the third round, while the winner of CAR Division 1B was promoted to Division 1A thus advancing to the third round.

Round 2A: 2013 Africa Cup Division 1B

The 2013 Africa Cup Division 1B took place in Senegal at Stade Iba Mar Diop in Dakar on 11 June and 15 June. The champions, Namibia, were promoted to Division 1A to Round 3, while Botswana, Senegal and Tunisia were eliminated from Rugby World Cup qualifying.

Semi-finals Final
June 11, 2013 – Dakar
  Tunisia  43  
  Botswana  12  
 
June 15, 2013 – Dakar
      Tunisia  13
    Namibia  45
Third place
June 11, 2013 – Dakar June 15, 2013 – Dakar
  Senegal  12   Botswana  5
  Namibia  35     Senegal  41

Round 2B: 2013 Africa Cup Division 1A

The 2013 Africa Cup Division 1A took place in Madagascar at Mahamasina Stadium in Antananarivo on 10 July and 14 July. The top three teams, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Madagascar, remained in Division 1A for 2014, thus advancing to Round 3, while Uganda were eliminated from Rugby World Cup Qualifying.

Semi-finals Final
July 10, 2013 – Antananarivo
  Uganda  11  
  Kenya  51  
 
July 14, 2013 – Antananarivo
      Kenya  29
    Zimbabwe  17
Third place
July 10, 2013 – Antananarivo July 14, 2013 – Antananarivo
  Zimbabwe  38   Uganda  32
  Madagascar  18     Madagascar  48

Round 3: 2014 Africa Cup Division 1A

Main article: 2014 Africa Cup

The third and final round consisted of 6 matches, featuring the top 4 ranked teams in Africa in a Round-robin format, and doubled as the 2014 Africa Cup Division 1A. The winner, Namibia, qualified for Pool C of the 2015 Rugby World Cup as Africa 1. The runner up, Zimbabwe, advanced to the repechage playoff against Russia.

The 2014 Africa Cup Division 1A took place in Madagascar at Mahamasina Stadium in Antananarivo, between 28 June and 6 July.

Qualified as Africa 1
Advances to Repechage
Place Nation Games Points Bonus
points		 Table
points
played won drawn lost for against difference
1 Namibia320113559+76210
2 Zimbabwe320110556+49210
3 Kenya32017350+23210
4 Madagascar300332180−14800
Points were awarded to the teams as follows:
Win - 4 points
Draw - 2 points
4 or more tries - 1 point
Loss within 7 points - 1 point
Loss greater than 7 points - 0 points

References

  1. ↑ "Africa Qualification". RWC 2015. Retrieved 2012-09-22.
  2. ↑ "RWC 2015 qualifying underway in Africa". RWC 2015. 2012-07-04. Retrieved 2012-09-22.

External links

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