The Rugby World Cup Pool A features the mighty New Zealand whose toughest opponent will be France, with Tonga facing Les Bleus in the final game
There has rarely been so much pressure on a side to win a World Cup than that which rests on the All Blacks (4/7 World Cup 2011 outright) squad ahead of the major competition on their home soil.
New Zealand will have their eyes firmly set on the Webb Ellis Trophy, which they have not lifted since the tournament began back in 1987, but first they will have to get through Pool A which includes France, Tonga, Japan and Tonga.
The All Blacks are 1/8 favourites to top this group but they will have to make sure complacency does not get in the way of their World Cup dream in the early stages of the competition.
With Graham Henry in charge, that is unlikely this time around, as the Kiwis have been accused of complacency in previous tournaments when they have been fancied to lift the Webb Ellis trophy.
Captain Richie McCaw and fly-half Dan Carter are widely regarded as two of the best players in the game and they will have to be on their guard if the All Blacks are to avoid a potential banana skin.
However with the likes of Cory Jane and Zac Guildford (8/1 top tournament tryscorer winner) on the wings, New Zealand should have the firepower out wide to come top of Pool A.
The rest of the teams will probably have to be battling for the second spot if they want to progress to the quarter-finals of the competition.
France (4/1 Pool A outright) have always been the dark horses when it comes to the World Cup and once again they could cause some more upsets this year, with the All Blacks having slipped up against Les Bleus in the past.
The French had to settle for second in this year’s RBS 6 Nations after defeats to England and a shock loss to wooden spoon winners Italy but go into this tournament with back-to-back wins over Ireland.
With the likes of Imanol Harinordoquy, Francois Trinh-Duc and Vincent Clerc in their ranks, France (14/1 World Cup 2011 outright) will pose problems for any side, but they will have to fend off the challenge from Tonga.
The Pacific Islanders bring a physical aspect to the game that can be tough for northern hemisphere sides, who are more accustomed to a structured game, to cope with.
Tonga have the toughest start to the competition, against New Zealand, but will face France in their crucial final group game, which could be the decider as to which nation will reach the quarter-finals.
Meanwhile, Japan head into another World Cup alongside Canada with both teams hoping to pull off upsets in Pool A.
Ultimately neither side will want to finish bottom of the group and their clash on September 27 could be the decider as to who will finish rock bottom of the Pool.
