All Blacks v Ireland in a Rugby World Cup final. It seems the destined fixture for rugby's top two nations but how about an early meeting in the quarter-finals? It's not too far-fetched of a prospect.
All it would take would be for the All Blacks or Ireland to suffer a pool game defeat and one of the sides will be eliminated in the first week of the knockout phase.
The All Blacks have never lost a pool game at the World Cup, the only nation to do so, but Steve Hansen's men face a big encounter in their opening game at next year's tournament against South Africa.
The All Blacks should go into the Springboks test as favourites but we've seen this season South Africa are not only capable of going toe-to-toe with New Zealand but will have the confidence to cause an upset following their win in Wellington.
Ireland's biggest threat in pool play should be Scotland, a side they lost to last year. The two Six Nations rivals face off a day after the All Blacks-Springboks encounter, at the same ground in Yokohama.
