Rugby World Cup news LIVE: Argentina and New Zealand name line-ups for semi-final clash

The Rugby World Cup’s final four have been decided after a thrilling quarter-final weekend in France.

Ireland and France, who topped our rankings last week, are out of the tournament, their dreams dashed by New Zealand and South Africa in two outstanding matches in Paris.

How do the four remaining nations stack up in our power rankings? Here, The Independent assesses the semi-finalists:

4. Argentina

Argentina celebrated their quarter-final win over Wales wildly, perhaps recognising that a last four berth makes this tournament a success.

But the Pumas will be in the mix against the All Blacks, a side they beat twice during the four-year cycle before this tournament and who perhaps have a few physical frailties that Argentina’s gainline winners are capable of exploiting.

New Zealand’s Ben O’Keeffe has been appointed to referee the Rugby World Cup semi-final between England and South Africa despite criticism of his performance on quarter-final weekend.

France captain Antoine Dupont suggested that the officiating “wasn’t up to the level” required as the hosts exited the tournament at the hands of the Springboks at the Stade de France.

World Rugby have nonetheless backed their official, with O’Keeffe given another marquee appointment.

France crashed out of a home Rugby World Cup in heartbreaking fashion as they went down to South Africa in one of the greatest matches of all time and Antoine Dupont slammed the refereeing in the aftermath of the loss.

A thrilling quarter-final at the Stade de France ended with the Springboks triumphing 29-28 as France’s last-gasp stand to try and find the single score that would have led them to victory came up agonisingly short, in an excruciatingly similar manner to Ireland 24 hours earlier at the same stadium.

In a match decided by the finest of margins, Les Bleus captain Dupont – whose recovery from a fractured cheekbone suffered just 24 hours prior had dominated the build-up to the game –was unhappy with referee Ben O’Keeffe and let rip in his post-match press conference.

Ireland and New Zealand played out the greatest Rugby World Cup quarter-final of all time, which ended with 37 phases of Irish agony, and yet it took just 24 hours for that game to be bettered by France and South Africa.

It may not have been quite 37 phases, but France’s own final stand – desperately, fruitlessly searching for that decisive score to overcome the inevitable as the clock turns red – ended the same, heartbreaking way. French bodies dropped to the turf in despair, almost exactly mirroring their Irish counterparts from 24 hours earlier, and a southern hemisphere nation celebrated the ongoing World Cup domination over a northern hemisphere titan.

It’s safe to say that no stadium in history has hosted two better games of rugby in the space of one weekend than we’ve been treated to at the Stade de France. It’s also highly likely that no venue has ever witnessed two such incredible occasions, regardless of the sport, in as many days.

It had to be him. At a ground where his great mate George Ford had produced one of the special individual World Cup performances just weeks ago, Owen Farrell fashioned his own version of a Marseille masterpiece, silencing the critics with a 20-point tally and his best showing in an England shirt for years.

And how England needed their captain. This was eventually an incredibly tight game against a valiant Fiji, so nearly victorious after summoning a second-half comeback seemingly from nowhere. It may have lacked the pure accuracy and ingenuity of Ireland vs New Zealand, but this was a compelling contest all the same, played with a hellacious physicality throughout.

At various stages, England looked to be roaring into the semi-finals but found a 14-point second-half lead eroded quickly by a fabulous Fijian fightback, Levani Botia and Semi Radradra threatening to bend the game to their will. Certainly neither deserves to be exiting the World Cup at this stage.

Andy Farrell admits that this Ireland team have reached ‘the end’ of their journey after a gut-wrenching defeat to New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals.

While trying to end Ireland’s quarter-final hoodoo at World Cups, the class of 2023 instead endured perhaps the most heartbreaking loss of all as a 37-phase final attack failed and the All Blacks prevailed 28-24 for an eighth defeat at the last-eight stage in the tournament’s history.

The defeat marked the final game for captain Johnny Sexton, who goes into retirement as perhaps Ireland’s greatest-ever player, while Keith Earls will also hang up his boots and the likes of Peter O’Mahony, Conor Murray and Bundee Aki – all in their mid-30s – would also appear unlikely to make the next World Cup in four years’ time.

Louis Rees-Zammit leapt for the corner and came down with an anguished cry. A scrappy contest always looked likely to be a game of inches – and the Wales wing had come up agonisingly short.

By the end, there were bodies strewn all around the Stade Velodrome, the damage of a demolition derby all too clear to see. Argentina won’t remotely care. Their win was made secure at the death, replacement fly half Nicolas Sanchez plucking an intercept score from opposite number Sam Costelow to take Argentina out of sight. Ireland or New Zealand await in the World Cup semi-finals – the challenge is mighty but Los Pumas live to fight another day; Wales are going home.

Earlier in the day, the travelling Welsh fans had brought Marseille’s Vieux Port to a standstill with a most harmonious warbling of “Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau”; but there was little mellifluous about a discordant contest that most would have expected from two sides with such obvious flaws. When eyes were not turned to the sky, they were often focused on the floor as the two sides took chunks out of one another in a brutal battle on the gain line.

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of the Rugby World Cup.

We’ll bring you all the latest news and updates from France as the final four teams continue their preparations for this weekend’s semi-finals.

Argentina and New Zealand face off on Friday night and are scheduled to announce their starting XVs between 4pm-5pm this afternoon.

England meanwhile have a tricky task against the current World Champions South Africa but a confident performance against Fiji last time out will buoy up Steve Borthwick’s side ahead of their semi-final encounter on Saturday.