By Tournament / Rugby World Cup

Rugby in 2008 has had its fair share of firsts with two Welsh Heineken Cup quarter-finalists and South Africa pipping New Zealand to the Adelaide Sevens trophy, but the Caribbean kicking off Rugby World Cup qualification for 2011 beats them all.

It begins on April 20 where the Cayman Islands host Trinidad & Tobago in a six-day knockout qualifying tournament featuring such celebrated sides from Barbados, Bermuda, Guyana, Jamaica and Mexico.

Tony Spreadbury, who refereed the opening France v Argentina game in Rugby World Cup 2007, has been persuaded out of retirement to officiate the opening game.


April 20

Cayman Islands v Trinidad & Tobago
Guyana v Jamaica
Bahamas v Bermuda
Barbados v Mexico

April 23

Semi-finals

April 26

Final

New Zealand rugby's financial suspicions have been exposed to the world after official papers alerted that Rugby World Cup 2011 organisers feared losing the hosting rights.

New Zealand lost joint ownership of the World Cup in 2003 for failing to assure advertising free stadiums and the debacle surrounding the main Eden Park venue being moved to the ARC owned Mt Smart Stadium has thrown open a whole new pot of confusion.

Even contemplating a move, so late in the day, has sounded the alarm bells and brought into question New Zealand's capacity for hosting an even of such enormity.

The clocks ticking and if any future fears are exposed not only will the countries authority be brought before the IRB but the concession of entertaining the rugby world could be confiscated.

The International Rugby Board (IRB) world rankings will be used to seed teams at the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand.

The 12 automatic qualifiers from Rugby World Cup 2007 will be drawn into pools on December 1st 2008, in the hope of creating closer matches in 2011 according to Syd Millar, the Rugby World Cup Ltd chairman.

Defensively, Millar shirked all responsibility that it was indeed his preference to allocate the pools in 2008, but undue pressure from the host nation, New Zealand, who by coincidence will probably be top of the rankings by December, forced him to confirm the date.

The 2007 World Cup saw spectator figures break the 2million barrier for the first time in its 20 year history according to the sport's ruling body the International Rugby Board (IRB).

The number of people attending the tournament reached 2.25 million, meaning there was an average match attendance of 47,000 across the 48 Tournament matches in France, Scotland and Wales.

Television viewing figures were also higher, especially in France where RWC 2007 matches were the top six viewed programmes of any description during 2007.

Over 20 million viewers tuned in to watch the France versus England semi-final at Stade de France, bettering the figure achieved for the football World Cup final involving France at the same stadium in 1998.

While coverage England's final defeat to South Africa attracted the highest viewing figures for a single programme in the UK in 2007 with nearly 17 million tuning in.

While Auckland's money-men are trying to figure out ways to raise the cash to finance the Rugby World Cup redevelopment of the Eden Park Stadium and it's surroundings, Bernard Lapasset and Rugby World Cup Limited officials will travel to New Zealand to check out the operational planning as preparations step up a gear.

Lapasset is keen to strengthen relations with Rugby New Zealand and to build up 2007s French success.