The knockout stage of the 2011 Rugby World Cup began on 8 October with a quarter-final between Ireland and Wales and concluded on 23 October with the final at Eden Park in Auckland.
New Zealand were the first team to qualify for the knockout stage, when they beat France 37–17 in their penultimate Pool A game. New Zealand and France re-encountered in the final, that was won by the local team 8–7. This was a rematch of the 1987 final, also in Eden Park and also won by New Zealand. This way, New Zealand got their second title, while France their third final.
For the first time in World Cup history, three teams that finished second in their respective pools qualified for the semi-finals, while South Africa became the second defending champions not to reach the semi-finals after Australia in 1995.
Furthermore, the bottom half of the bracket was entirely composed of the 2012 Rugby Championship teams and the other half was composed of the last four Six Nations champions since the last World Cup.
Bracket[edit]
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 8 October – Wellington | ||||||||||
 Ireland | 10 | |||||||||
| 15 October – Auckland | ||||||||||
 Wales | 22 | |||||||||
| Wales | 8 | |||||||||
| 8 October – Auckland | ||||||||||
 France | 9 | |||||||||
 England | 12 | |||||||||
| 23 October – Auckland | ||||||||||
| France | 19 | |||||||||
| France | 7 | |||||||||
| 9 October – Wellington | ||||||||||
 New Zealand | 8 | |||||||||
 South Africa | 9 | |||||||||
| 16 October – Auckland | ||||||||||
 Australia | 11 | |||||||||
| Australia | 6 | |||||||||
| 9 October – Auckland | ||||||||||
| New Zealand | 20 | Third place | ||||||||
| New Zealand | 33 | |||||||||
| 21 October – Auckland | ||||||||||
 Argentina | 10 | |||||||||
| Wales | 18 | |||||||||
| Australia | 21 | |||||||||
Quarter-finals[edit]
Ireland vs Wales[edit]
| 8 October 2011 18:00 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| Ireland | 10–22 | Wales |
| Try: Earls 45' c Con: O'Gara (1/1) Pen: O'Gara (1/1) 24' | Report[1] | Try: Williams 3' c Phillips 51' m J. Davies 64' c Con: Priestland (2/3) Pen: Halfpenny (1/1) 29' |
| Westpac Stadium, Wellington Attendance: 35,787 Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa) |
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England vs France[edit]
| 8 October 2011 20:30 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| England | 12–19 | France |
| Try: Foden 55' c Cueto 77' m Con: Wilkinson (1/1) | Report[2] | Try: Clerc 22' m Médard 31' m Pen: Yachvili (2/3) 11', 16' Drop: Trinh-Duc (1/1) 73' |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 49,105 Referee: Steve Walsh (Australia) |
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South Africa vs Australia[edit]
| 9 October 2011 18:00 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| South Africa | 9–11 | Australia |
| Pen: Steyn (2/4) 39', 56' Drop: Steyn (1/1) 60' | Report[3] | Try: Horwill 11' m Pen: O'Connor (2/2) 17', 72' |
| Westpac Stadium, Wellington Attendance: 34,914 Referee: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand) |
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New Zealand vs Argentina[edit]
| 9 October 2011 20:30 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| New Zealand | 33–10 | Argentina |
| Try: Read 69' m Thorn 79' c Con: Cruden (1/1) Pen: Weepu (7/7) 13', 26', 36', 40', 50', 59', 73' | Report[4] | Try: Farías Cabello 32' c Con: Contepomi (1/1) Pen: Bosch (1/1) 46' |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 57,192 Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales) |
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Notes
- This was New Zealand fullback Mils Muliaina's 100th test, the second New Zealand player to have reached this milestone.[5]
Semi-finals[edit]
Wales vs France[edit]
| 15 October 2011 21:00 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| Wales | 8–9 | France |
| Try: Phillips 58' m Pen: Hook (1/3) 8' | Report[6] | Pen: Parra (3/3) 22', 35', 51' |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 58,630 Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland) |
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Notes
- The Welsh captain was sent off after committing a tip-tackle, releasing the opponent past the horizontal off the ground in the 18th minute.
Australia vs New Zealand[edit]
| 16 October 2011 21:00 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| Australia | 6–20 | New Zealand |
| Pen: O'Connor (1/1) 16' Drop: Cooper (1/1) 32' | Report[7] | Try: Nonu 6' m Pen: Weepu (4/7) 13', 38', 43', 73' Drop: Cruden (1/1) 22' |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 60,087 Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa) |
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Bronze final[edit]
Wales vs Australia[edit]
| 21 October 2011 20:30 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| Wales | 18–21 | Australia |
| Try: Sh. Williams 50' m Halfpenny 80+' c Con: S. Jones (1/2) Pen: Hook (1/2) 20' S. Jones (1/1) 71' | Tracker | Try: Barnes 12' c McCalman 76' m Con: O'Connor (1/2) Pen: O'Connor (2/4) 54', 58' Drop: Barnes (1/1) 68' |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 53,014 Referee: Wayne Barnes (England) |
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Notes
- This was Australian lock Nathan Sharpe's 100th test, the fifth Australian to reach the milestone.
Final[edit]
France vs New Zealand[edit]
| 23 October 2011 21:00 NZDT (UTC+13) |
| France | 7–8 | New Zealand |
| Try: Dusautoir 47' c Con: Trinh-Duc (1/1) | Report[8] | Try: Woodcock 15' m Pen: Donald (1/1) 46' |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 61,079[9] Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa) |
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References[edit]
- ^ "Fearless Wales repel Irish battering". rugbyworldcup.com. Archived from the original on 10 October 2011.
- ^ "France secure semi spot with flair and power". rugbyworldcup.com. Archived from the original on 9 October 2011.
- ^ "Pocock at the heart of Wallabies win". rugbyworldcup.com. Archived from the original on 26 October 2011.
- ^ "Weepu proves lethal with the boot". rugbyworldcup.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2011.
- ^ Harper, Paul (10 October 2011). "All Blacks: Muliaina's celebration cut out". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 October 2011.
- ^ "Parra punishes 14-man Wales". rugbyworldcup.com. Archived from the original on 17 October 2011.
- ^ "Awesome All Blacks power to 1987 rematch". rugbyworldcup.com. Archived from the original on 17 October 2011.
- ^ "Donald is New Zealand's unlikely hero". rugbyworldcup.com. Archived from the original on 24 October 2011.
- ^ Kilpatrick, Mike (October 2011). "World Cup Glory for the All Blacks". Yahoo. Archived from the original on 26 October 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
- ^ a b c "23 October 2011 - 21:00, Eden Park, Auckland". International Rugby Board. Archived from the original on 22 October 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
