Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Autumn Nations Series 2024: Everything you need to know about round two

Dublin , Ireland - 7 November 2024; Bundee Aki during an Ireland Rugby captain's run at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. (Photo By Seb Daly/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Following the amuse-bouche that was the opening weekend of the Autumn Nations Series 2024, the action gets underway in earnest this Friday.

ADVERTISEMENT

A blockbuster encounter between Ireland and New Zealand in Dublin will be followed by a further five mouth-watering matches featuring some of the best teams in the world.

To whet your appetite for the action in Europe, we give you the lowdown on the second weekend of the 2024 Autumn Nations Series.

What is the Autumn Nations Series?

The Autumn Nations Series is the name given to the end-of-year men’s Tests, featuring some of the best teams in the world.

Video Spacer

Louis Rees-Zammit – Walk the Talk trailer | RPTV

Wales try-scoring wizard Louis Rees-Zammit joins Jim Hamilton for an exclusive chat about life in the NFL. Watch the full show on RugbyPass TV

Watch now

Video Spacer

Louis Rees-Zammit – Walk the Talk trailer | RPTV

Wales try-scoring wizard Louis Rees-Zammit joins Jim Hamilton for an exclusive chat about life in the NFL. Watch the full show on RugbyPass TV

Watch now

Between November 2-30, 14 of the top 15 nations in the World Rugby Men’s Rankings will take to the pitch at iconic stadia across Europe.

The second round will kick-off with the All Blacks‘ visit to Dublin, before England take on Australia, Italy face Argentina and France host Japan.

On Sunday, meanwhile, Fiji travel to Cardiff to play Wales and Scotland take on Rugby World Cup 2023 winners South Africa in Edinburgh.

Related

Friday, November 8

Ireland v New Zealand, Aviva Stadium – KO 20:10 GMT

Head-to-head

ADVERTISEMENT

The All Blacks have won 31 of the teams’ 37 meetings, including last year’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final in France, but they have not tasted victory in Dublin since 2016.

It took Ireland 111 years to record their first victory in the fixture, but they have won five of their last nine matches against New Zealand.

That run includes victories in the two most recent matches at the Aviva Stadium, recording a 16-9 win in 2018, their first at home against the All Blacks, and following that up with a 29-20 triumph three years later.

Fixture
Internationals
Ireland
13 - 23
Full-time
New Zealand
All Stats and Data

Form

Ireland’s agonising 28-24 defeat to the All Blacks at Stade de France last October ended their 17-match winning run, but they rebounded to win the 2024 Six Nations, losing only one game along the way.

ADVERTISEMENT

Andy Farrell’s side followed that success up with a 1-1 series draw in South Africa in July, sealed with a last-gasp drop goal from Ciaran Frawley.

New Zealand head into the match on the back of a narrow 24-22 victory against England in Twickenham last Saturday in which they came within the width of the post of defeat.

It was the All Blacks’ third win against England this year but their early results under Scott Robertson have been mixed. They lost three matches during the Rugby Championship.

Related

Rankings

Ireland will retain top spot if they secure a third successive home victory against the All Blacks.

However, New Zealand can climb to the summit for the first time in five years if they win by more than 15 points and South Africa fail to beat Scotland on Sunday.

Can I buy tickets?

Friday’s match at the Aviva Stadium is sold out.

You can check availability for Ireland’s remaining Autumn Nations Series matches here.

Saturday, November 9

England v Australia, Allianz Stadium – KO 15:10 GMT

Head-to-head

Saturday will be the first time the teams have met since July 2022, when England claimed a 2-1 series victory and the inaugural Ella-Mobbs Cup.

Those wins mean that England lead the head-to-head between the teams 28 wins to 26 from the 55 fixtures that have been played.

England have won the last four meetings at home, the Wallabies most recent victory in the fixture in Twickenham coming in the pool stage of Rugby World Cup 2015.

Fixture
Internationals
England
37 - 42
Full-time
Australia
All Stats and Data

Form

England’s frustrating form continued last weekend, as they were beaten by the All Blacks despite leading by eight points with less than 15 minutes to go.

It was their fifth defeat in nine matches in 2024, three of which have come against New Zealand.

The Wallabies began life under Joe Schmidt with a 2-0 series win against Wales and one-off defeat of Georgia in July, but then finished bottom of the Rugby Championship standings with only one win in six matches.

Related

Rankings

England are one of four teams that could finish the weekend in fourth but they would need to beat Australia while hoping Argentina, Scotland and France all lose – the latter by more than 15 points against Japan.

The Wallabies can climb as high as seventh with a victory at Allianz Stadium, a result that could drop England as low as eighth depending on the scoreline and other results.

Can I buy tickets?

A limited number of tickets are still available via the official England Rugby ticketing site.

Italy v Argentina, Bluenergy Stadium – KO 17:40 GMT

Head-to-head

Argentina lead the head-to-head 17 wins to five from the 23 fixtures and have not lost since a 13-12 defeat in Cordoba in June 2008.

Los Pumas have won the last eight, including a 37-16 victory at Saturday’s venue three years ago, and have not tasted defeat on Italian soil in 26 years.

Form

A disappointing defeat to Samoa in Apia in July aside, Italy have made a good start to life under Argentine Gonzalo Quesada.

The Azzurre lost only two of their five matches during the Six Nations, ending the tournament with back-to-back victories against Scotland and Wales. Following their loss against Samoa, Italy beat Tonga and Japan.

Argentina secured a 1-1 series draw against France in July before beating Uruguay comfortably and winning three of their six Rugby Championship matches. South Africa, New Zealand and Australia each lost one match against Los Pumas.

Fixture
Internationals
Italy
18 - 50
Full-time
Argentina
All Stats and Data

Rankings

Argentina can climb to fourth if they beat Italy and France lose to Japan. The hosts cannot improve on eighth place, their highest-ever position.

Can I buy tickets?

A limited number of tickets are still available via the official ticketing website.

France v Japan, Stade de France – KO 20:10 GMT

Head-to-head

France have never lost to Japan in seven previous meetings that were capped matches for both teams, winning six and drawing one.

The teams last met in Toulouse two years ago when Damian Penaud crossed the whitewash twice and Thomas Ramos kicked 15 points in a 35-17 victory for Les Bleus.

The closest Japan have come to recording a victory in the fixture was a 23-23 draw in Nanterre.

Form

Having finished second behind Ireland in the Six Nations, France travelled to South America in July where they secured a 1-1 series draw against Argentina and a midweek win over Uruguay.

That tour was overshadowed by off-field disciplinary issues, however.

Fixture
Internationals
France
52 - 12
Full-time
Japan
All Stats and Data

It took Eddie Jones four matches to record the first win of his second spell in charge of Japan and that was followed by victories against USA and Samoa to reach the final of the Asahi Super Dry Pacific Nations Cup.

The Brave Blossoms lost the final to Fiji, however, and headed to Europe on the back of a 64-19 defeat to the All Blacks.

Rankings

France cannot improve their rating by beating but could fall as low as sixth in defeat, depending on other results.

A surprise Japan win could lift the Brave Blossoms up to 11th if Wales lose at home to Fiji.

Can I buy tickets?

Tickets are still available for Saturday’s match at Stade de France from the official ticketing website.

Sunday, November 10

Wales v Fiji, Principality Stadium – KO 13:40 GMT

Head-to-head

Wales have won 12 of the 14 meetings between the teams ahead of Sunday, including a tense 32-26 victory during the pool stage of last year’s World Cup.

Their sole defeat in the fixture came at the same stage of the 2007 World Cup, which was also played in France, Fiji edging them to a place in the quarter-finals with a famous 38-34 win.

Fiji’s best result in Cardiff remains the 16-16 draw they secured 14 years ago.

Fixture
Internationals
Wales
19 - 24
Full-time
Fiji
All Stats and Data

Form

It’s fair to say Warren Gatland’s return to Wales has not gone as well as he, or the team’s supporters, might have hoped.

On the back of their quarter-final exit at last year’s World Cup, Wales are yet to win a Test match in 2024. They suffered a 2-0 series defeat to Australia in July and needed a last-minute Sam Costelow conversion to win their tour match against Queensland Reds.

Fiji arrived in Europe as Pacific Nations Cup winners but were beaten comfortably by Scotland in Edinburgh last weekend.

Related

Rankings

Wales cannot climb back into the top 10, even with a big win in Cardiff, but can drop to 12th if they lose by more than 15 points and Japan beat France by the same margin.

A big victory for the Flying Fijians could lift them up to eighth.

Can I buy tickets?

A limited number of tickets remain available via the official ticketing website.

Scotland v South Africa, Scottish Gas Murrayfield – KO 16:10 GMT

Head-to-head

Scotland have beaten South Africa only five times in 29 meetings, and not since a 21-17 win at Murrayfield in November 2010.

The Springboks are on an eight-game winning streak against Sunday’s hosts, the most recent of those victories coming in the pool stage of last year’s World Cup.

Second-half tries from Pieter-Steph du Toit and Kurt-Lee Arendse secured an 18-3 win for the Springboks in Marseille 14 months ago.

Fixture
Internationals
Scotland
15 - 32
Full-time
South Africa
All Stats and Data

Form

Scotland will equal their longest ever winning run of six matches if they beat the Springboks in Edinburgh on Sunday.

Gregor Townsend’s side followed up a fourth-placed finish in the Six Nations with four victories on their tour of the Americas and added a fifth against Fiji last weekend.

The Springboks beat Wales and Portugal either side of a 1-1 series draw against Ireland in June and July.

Rassie Erasmus’ world champions then won the Rugby Championship, their only defeat coming in Argentina.

Related

Rankings

The Springboks will return to the No.1 spot if they win on Sunday and Ireland fail to beat the All Blacks. They can fall to third in defeat, however.

Scotland can climb as high as fourth in victory, if France lose to Japan and other results go their way.

Can I buy tickets?

Sunday’s match is sold out.

You can check availability for Scotland’s remaining Autumn Nations Series matches here.

How can I watch the Autumn Nations Series?

All 21 matches in this year’s Autumn Nations Series will be broadcast live on TNT Sports and discovery+ in the UK and Ireland.

Ireland matches will also be available on Virgin Media, with Wales games broadcast on S4C as well.

A full list of global broadcast partners for the Autumn Nations Series can be found here.

Related

Louis Rees-Zammit joins Jim Hamilton for the latest episode of Walk the Talk to discuss his move to the NFL. Watch now on RugbyPass TV

ADVERTISEMENT

LIVE

{{item.title}}

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

0 Comments
Be the first to comment...

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

J
JW 41 minutes ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Ok, managed to read the full article..

... New Zealand’s has only 14 and the professional season is all over within four months. In France, club governance is the responsibility of an independent organisation [the Ligue Nationale de Rugby or LNR] which is entirely separate from the host union [the Fédération Française de Rugby or FFR]. Down south New Zealand Rugby runs the provincial and the national game.

That is the National Provincial Championship, a competition of 14 representative union based teams run through the SH international window and only semi professional (paid only during it's running). It is run by NZR and goes for two and a half months.


Super Rugby is a competition involving 12 fully professional teams, of which 5 are of New Zealand eligibility, and another joint administered team of Pacific Island eligibility, with NZR involvement. It was a 18 week competition this year, so involved (randomly chosen I believe) extra return fixtures (2 or 3 home and away derbys), and is run by Super Rugby Pacific's own independent Board (or organisation). The teams may or may not be independently run and owned (note, this does not necessarily mean what you think of as 'privately owned').


LNR was setup by FFR and the French Government to administer the professional game in France. In New Zealand, the Players Association and Super Rugby franchises agreed last month to not setup their own governance structure for professional rugby and re-aligned themselves with New Zealand Rugby. They had been proposing to do something like the English model, I'm not sure how closely that would have been aligned to the French system but it did not sound like it would have French union executive representation on it like the LNR does.

In the shaky isles the professional pyramid tapers to a point with the almighty All Blacks. In France the feeling for country is no more important than the sense of fierce local identity spawned at myriad clubs concentrated in the southwest. Progress is achieved by a nonchalant shrug and the wide sweep of nuanced negotiation, rather than driven from the top by a single intense focus.

Yes, it is pretty much a 'representative' selection system at every level, but these union's are having to fight for their existence against the regime that is NZR, and are currently going through their own battle, just as France has recently as I understand it. A single focus, ala the French game, might not be the best outcome for rugby as a whole.


For pure theatre, it is a wonderful article so far. I prefer 'Ntamack New Zealand 2022' though.

The young Crusader still struggles to solve the puzzle posed by the shorter, more compact tight-heads at this level but he had no problem at all with Colombe.

It was interesting to listen to Manny during an interview on Maul or Nothing, he citied that after a bit of banter with the All Black's he no longer wanted one of their jersey's after the game. One of those talks was an eye to eye chat with Tamaiti Williams, there appear to be nothing between the lock and prop, just a lot of give and take. I thought TW angled in and caused Taylor to pop a few times, and that NZ were lucky to be rewarded.

f you have a forward of 6ft 8ins and 145kg, and he is not at all disturbed by a dysfunctional set-piece, you are in business.

He talked about the clarity of the leadership that helped alleviate any need for anxiety at the predicaments unfolding before him. The same cannot be said for New Zealand when they had 5 minutes left to retrieve a match winning penalty, I don't believe. Did the team in black have much of a plan at any point in the game? I don't really call an autonomous 10 vehicle they had as innovative. I think Razor needs to go back to the dealer and get a new game driver on that one.

Vaa’i is no match for his power on the ground. Even in reverse, Meafou is like a tractor motoring backwards in low gear, trampling all in its path.

Vaa'i actually stops him in his tracks. He gets what could have been a dubious 'tackle' on him?

A high-level offence will often try to identify and exploit big forwards who can be slower to reload, and therefore vulnerable to two quick plays run at them consecutively.

Yes he was just standing on his haunches wasn't he? He mentioned that in the interview, saying that not only did you just get up and back into the line to find the opposition was already set and running at you they also hit harder than anything he'd experienced in the Top 14. He was referring to New Zealands ultra-physical, burst-based Super style of course, which he was more than a bit surprised about. I don't blame him for being caught out.


He still sent the obstruction back to the repair yard though!

What wouldn’t the New Zealand rugby public give to see the likes of Mauvaka and Meafou up front..

Common now Nick, don't go there! Meafou showed his Toulouse shirt and promptly got his citizenship, New Zealand can't have him, surely?!?


As I have said before with these subjects, really enjoy your enthusiasm for their contribution on the field and I'd love to see more of their shapes running out for Vern Cotter and the like styled teams.

286 Go to comments
LONG READ
LONG READ 'England's blanket of despair feels overdone - they are not a team in freefall' 'England's blanket of despair feels overdone - they are not a team in freefall'
Search