2023 Rugby World Cup Pool C

Pool C got underway with Australia facing Georgia, in which Australia came out victorious with a 35–15 win. Ben Donaldson earned himself two tries while also succeeding in 3 conversions and 3 penalties, earning him player of the match.{{cite web|first=Mike|last=Henson|title=Wallabies begin World Cup bid with first win since Eddie Jones' return After a six day rest in the pool, action returned with Georgia facing Portugal in Toulouse. After trailing 13–0, Portugal staged a comeback with two tries from Raffaele Storti, before a late try from Tengiz Zamtaradze drew Georgia level and denied Portugal a famous first World Cup victory, with Nuno Sousa Guedes missing a last minute penalty for the Portuguese as the match finished with a scoreline of 18–18.{{cite web|first=Tom|last=Rostance|title=Portugal miss out on historic Rugby World Cup win in dramatic finish The following weekend, on 30 September, Fiji and Georgia locked horns in Bordeaux with both sides still fighting to join Wales in the knockout stage. Despite trailing to first half penalties from Luka Matkava and Davit Niniashvili, Fiji fought back in the second half with tries from Waisea Nayacalevu and Vinaya Habosi to move to the brink of qualifying for the quarter-finals, while Georgia were confirmed elimination from the tournament despite Matkava's late penalty providing Georgia a losing bonus point.{{cite web|first=Mantej|last=Mann|title=Below-par Pacific Islanders close in on World Cup quarter-finals Ahead of the final matchweek in the pool, which Australia would not play, Fiji needed just a point from their match against Portugal to advance to the knockout stage alongside Wales and ahead of Australia. On 7 October, Wales played their final match of the pool against Georgia in which they came out with a 43–19 victory, courtesy of a hat-trick from Louis Rees-Zammit, to officially secure the Welsh top spot in Pool C.{{cite web|first=Ceri|last=Coleman-Phillips|title=Wales top Pool C after Louis Rees-Zammit hat-trick ==Standings==

Australia vs Georgia Notes: • Taniela Tupou (Australia) earned his 50th test cap. Wales vs Fiji Wales vs Portugal Notes: • This was the first ever meeting between these two nations at a World Cup. However, they did previously meet in a World Cup qualifying competition. • Tomos Williams (Wales) earned his 50th test cap. • Tommy Reffell (Wales) was originally named in the starting line-up, but withdrew during the match-day warm-up because of injury. He was replaced by Jac Morgan. • José Madeira (Portugal) was originally named in the starting line-up, but withdrew the day before the match because of injury. He was replaced by Martim Belo, whose place on the bench was taken by Thibault de Freitas. Australia vs Fiji Notes: • Captain Will Skelton was originally named at lock for Australia, but failed a fitness test prior to the match. He was replaced in the starting line-up by Richie Arnold, whose place on the bench was taken by Matt Philip. The Wallabies captaincy was handed over to Dave Porecki. • This was Fiji's first victory over Australia at the Rugby World Cup, and their first since an 18–16 away win in 1954. • This was Fiji's largest victory over Australia. Georgia vs Portugal Notes: • This was the first ever meeting between these two nations at a World Cup. • This was the fourth draw in a World Cup match, and the first since Canada and Japan drew 23–23 in 2011. Wales vs Australia Notes: • This was Wales' largest ever victory over Australia, for both total points scored and overall winning margin. • This was Australia's largest defeat in a World Cup match (by margin). It was also the first time they had lost two matches in the World Cup pool stages. • Adam Beard (Wales) earned his 50th test cap. • With this loss, Australia dropped to 10th place in the World Rugby Rankings – their lowest placement in history. Fiji vs Georgia Notes: • Irakli Aptsiauri (Georgia) made his international debut. Australia vs Portugal Notes: • This was the first ever meeting between these two nations at a World Cup. • Carter Gordon was originally named on the bench for Australia, but withdrew prior to the match because of injury. He was replaced by Samu Kerevi. Wales vs Georgia Notes: • Gareth Anscombe was originally named to start at fly-half for Wales, but withdrew after sustaining a groin injury during the pre-match warm-up. He was replaced by Sam Costelow, whose place on the bench was taken by Dan Biggar. • Wales finished top of their pool for the second World Cup in a row – the first time they have achieved this feat in consecutive tournaments. Fiji vs Portugal Notes: • This was the first ever meeting between these two nations at a World Cup. • This was Portugal's first ever World Cup victory, and their first ever victory over Fiji or any other Pacific Island nation. • Portugal achieved their highest points total (24) and most tries scored (3) in a World Cup match. • Fiji qualified for the knockout stage of the World Cup for the first time since 2007, and just the third time in their history. • Fiji became the first team since France in 2011 to progress to the knockout stage with only two wins in the pool stage. • With this result, Australia were eliminated at the pool stage of the World Cup for the first time. ==References==