It was little consolation. After the cruel elimination of the French XV against South Africa (28-29) in the quarter-finals, the Blues could count on Damian Penaud to bring home a very small trophy: that of best scorer. With six tries, the French winger was at the top of the rankings before the start of the semi-finals.
Yes, but now, New Zealand and Will Jordan have been there. The ultra-realistic number 14 of the Blacks took advantage of the brilliant domination of the XV de la Fougère against Argentina to score three new tries and supplant Penaud in the rankings. Twice, alone at the end of the line, the All Blacks winger just had to flatten behind the line, without any opposition from the Pumas (11th, 62nd).
World Cup record equaled
His third try, at the end of the match (72nd), was a real demonstration, with two defenders cleared before a kick over the Argentine defense was recovered before diving into the goal. Without being fanciful on the pitch, but rather in the style of a tireless scorer, Will Jordan has now made 31 tries in 30 selections.
More than that, with eight tries, he equals the World Cup record of Jonah Lomu (1999), Bryan Habana (2007), and Julian Savea (2015). In the quarter-finals against Ireland, Jordan scored the break try, in the corner, just after the break to allow the Blacks to get some air on the scoreboard, never to let go of the lead again until the end of the meeting. He still has one match to play to make history forever.
