(Photo Ana Demetrashvili)
The World Rugby Nations Cup returns this weekend with the USA and Georgia currently topping the pools as the only unbeaten teams after four rounds and could both confirm themselves as champions.
The men’s Eagles only need to win, while Georgia must win and wait to see what happens in Spain and Portugal.
The action begins in Tbilisi when the high-flying Lelos will hope to mark their 300th international match with a victory against Tonga and will conclude with Romania and USA meeting in Bucharest.
Georgia v Tonga
Georgia are in buoyant mood as they bid to celebrate their 300th international match in their 37-year history with a fifth straight win in the World Rugby Nations Cup 2026.
The Lelos resumed their campaign in style last weekend after dispatching Canada 59-14 in Tbilisi in a ringing endorsement of their title pedigree.
For the visit of Tonga at the Avchala Stadium in Tbilisi, they have made five changes to their starting XV, four of them in the forwards and the promotion of Giorgi Shvelidze to partner Tornike Kakhoidze in midfield.
In the front row, hooker Vano Karkadze has similarly been promoted from the bench, while there is a completely new second-row partnership with last weekend’s debutant Gagui Margvelashvili joining veteran Kote Mikautadze.
In the back row, Beka Gorgadze returns to the starting line-up for the first time since the Rugby Europe Men’s Championship final defeat to Portugal in March.
Tonga prop Ben Tameifuna comes into the side as captain, while the other changes see Halaleva Fifita earn a start in the second row and centre Malakai Fekitoa also promoted from the bench.
Georgia have won their last five matches against Tonga, a run which started with a pool stage victory at Rugby World Cup 2015 and saw them meet most recently in November 2024.
Fly-half Luka Matkava is the tournament’s current leading points scorer with 61 over four games, but Tonga should not be short of self-belief having overcome Romania 43-38 last Friday.
They are now aiming to win back-to-back fixtures for the first time since 2023 when they beat Canada in consecutive fixtures ahead of that year’s Rugby World Cup.
Hong Kong China v Canada
Canada will look to bounce back from the heavy defeat to Georgia in Tbilisi when they take on Hong Kong China in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of south-eastern France.
Head coach Stephen Meehan has made 10 changes to the squad and drafted in a number of players who were unavailable last weekend, including France-based Andrew Quattrin, Evan Olmstead, Cole Keith and Matthew Oworu. However, Josh McIndoe, Liam James and Kyle Tremblay have been ruled out through injury.
Josh Thiel, whose last appearance for Canada was against Namibia in 2022, has been named among the replacements after joining the squad in Chambéry.
Demetri Patterson, who made his debut for Canada’s sevens team at HSBC SVNS 2 in Nairobi in February, is set to make his 15s debut from the start on the wing.
Captain Lucas Rumball is unavailable for selection this week due to personal reasons, so Ben LeSage will lead Canada for the first time, with named as vice-captain.
Hong Kong China pushed unbeaten USA all the way in Bourg-en-Bresse last Sunday, conceding a late try to go down 28-26, and will be eager to beat North American opposition this weekend.
Flanker Dana Fourie comes in for Callum McCullough in the only change to their starting pack, while Paul Altier replaces Seb Brien on the wing in the only other change to the starting line-up.
Hong Kong China and Canada have met seven times before with Canada winning six of those previous encounters, including the last two, the most recent of which was on French soil in the RWC 2019 Final Qualification Tournament in Marseille in November 2018.
No players made more tackles in round four than Canada trio Tyler Ardron (21), Daragh Doyle (19) and Matt Beukeboom (18, also Tinotenda Mavesere of Zimbabwe), while Hong Kong China’s Marcus Ramage was the only player to make multiple turnover-winning tackles last time out (two).
Portugal v Samoa
Long-serving Portugal centre Tomás Appleton, who made his international debut against Namibia in 2014, will earn his 90th cap after being picked to continue in midfield.
Os Lobos are also boosted by the return of Racing 92 flanker Nicolas Martins for what will be his first international outing since the Rugby Europe Men’s Championship final victory in March.
This will be the first-ever meeting between Portugal and Samoa and what a mouthwatering encounter it promises to be at the Estadio do Restelo, Lisbon.
Os Lobos have won 10 of their last 11 matches, with the exception being a narrow 30-29 defeat against USA in the first round of the World Rugby Nations Cup in July.
They have scored 30 points in each of their three outings since then and have won each of their last five test matches on home soil.
The 36-15 win over Chile last week underlined Portugal’s quality but Samoa have lost just two of their last seven matches and they ran in seven tries during the 43-7 win over Zimbabwe in Wakefield, England.
Latrell Ah Kiong scored a hat-trick for a Samoa side who have the best gainline success rate (64%) of any side in the Nations Cup, as well as the best tackle evasion rate (28%).
Samoa have kept with the same starting XV in a ringing endorsement of those currently in possession of the jersey, but former All Black Akira Ioane could become their latest debutant after being named on the bench.
Zimbabwe v Uruguay
This will be the first time Zimbabwe and Uruguay have met and just the second time the Sables have played a South American side, having beaten Brazil back in 2021.
Prop Bornwell Gwinji replaces Cleopas Kundiona, who suffered a broken arm against Samoa, as the only change to the Zimbabwe pack for the match at the Trailfinders Sports Ground in Ealing, England
There is a new half-back combination as Tyrone Gombe and Jason Robertson are paired together, replacing captain Hilton Mudariki and Ian Prior.
Robertson moves from full-back, while Dion Khumalo earns a start in the centres and Matthew McNab on the wing.
Uruguay’s Fausto Etchegorry comes into the starting XV at prop to make his test debut, while Felipe Aliaga earns a start in the second row.
In the backline there is a minor reshuffle which sees another debutant in Manuel Parodi drafted in at full-back and Ignacio Alvarez Akiki move to the wing.
Spain v Chile
Spain will look to enjoy home comforts again after edging out Uruguay 18-12 in a compelling encounter at the Estadio Nacional Universidad Complutense in Madrid last weekend.
Tries from Alejandro Laforga and Gauthier Minguillon, plus eight points from the boot of Inaki Mateu, gave Los Leones their second win of the tournament.
They have named an entirely new front row with Hugo Pirlet, captain Alvaro Garcia Albo and Joel Merkler replacing Thierry Futeu Youtcheu, Santiago Ovejero and Jon Zabala.
Gabriel Velez earns a start at flanker at the Estadio Ontime Butarque de Leganés, Madrid , replacing Manex Ariceta, while fly-half Luciano Richardis takes the place of Bautista Guemes to partner Estanislao Bay at half-back.
Alberto Carmona replaces Laforga on the wing, while Alvar Gimeno comes into the centres in place of Yago Fernandez Vilar.
For Chile, Diego Escobar starts at hooker in place of Augusto Bohme to join his brother Alfonso in the back, while Ernesto Tchimino is promoted from the bench to start in the back row at blindside flanker. In the backline, Nicolas Saab and Inaki Ayarza come into the starting line-up.
Spain have won all four previous meetings with Chile this century, notching up wins in 2007, 2013, 2015 and most recently in 2019, and have lost just one of their last five matches.
Chile have only lost six of their 19 matches since RWC 2023, although two of those losses have come against Georgia and Portugal in the Nations Cup, in their only consecutive defeats in that spell.
Romania v USA
USA will look to make it make five wins from five to be crowned champions of Pool A, following their hard-earned 28-26 success over Hong Kong China at Stade Marcel-Verchère in Bourg-en-Bresse, France.
Jack Iscaro, Kapeli Pifeleti, Paddy Ryan and Nafi Ma’afu come into the Eagles’ starting pack but the backline is unchanged. Kaleb Geiger, who scored the late match-winning try against Hong Kong China, has to settle again for a place on the bench at the Stadionul National Arcul de Triumf, Bucharest
Romania bring in Andrei Mahu in the second row and Adrian Emanuel Mitu at number eight, while Gabriel Rupanu takes Alin Conache’s role as the starting scrum-half and Atila Septar is promoted from the bench to start at outside centre.
Romania will be able to call on 122kg Ospreys prop Gheorge Gajion, who scored two tries in the narrow defeat by Tonga last weekend, off the bench again.
The match will be a repeat of the RWC 1999 thriller between the two in Dublin, won 27-25 by Romania. USA have won nine of their 12 previous encounters with Romania and and seven of their last nine test matches on European soil.
The Eagles have the highest rate of both possession (55.5%) and territory (55.4%) of any side in the Nations Cup.
