The opening round of the inaugural Nations Championship showcased some of the best that the world of rugby union has to offer. Victories were split evenly between the two hemispheres, with three Northern Hemisphere and three Southern Hemisphere teams all picking up wins.

Scotland and South Africa currently sit top of the ‘most tries scored’ list with 7 apiece, with the Northern Hemisphere teams scoring 26 tries between them whilst the Southern nations scored 28.

Match 1: New Zealand vs France

New Zealand clinched victory over France in a tight inaugural Nations Championship match. Despite the lead switching between the two sides throughout the match, New Zealand, who scored five tries, managed to hold off France’s valiant fight back to limit them to four tries.

Full-time: New Zealand 34-32 France

Match 2: Japan vs Italy

Japan claimed a somewhat more convincing win over Italy as they crossed over for three tries whilst limiting the Northern nations to one try in the opening five minutes of the game. Both teams also finished the match with a 100% conversion rate, which included two penalties for Japan and one for Italy.

Full-time: Japan 27-10 Italy

Match 3: Australia vs Ireland

5 tries were scored by both nations as Ireland claimed their 13th win over Australia. The difference between the two evenly matched teams proved to be their goal kicking, with Ireland’s Prendergast kicking 4/5 whilst Australia’s Gordon kicked 3/5.

Full-time: Australia 31-33 Ireland

Match 4: Fiji vs Wales

Wales ran in 6 tries against Fiji as they recorded only their 4th win in 29 internationals. The bonus point win means that despite Fiji’s three tries, Wales picked up an unexpected win to start their championship campaign.

Full-time: Fiji 24-39 Wales

Match 5: South Africa vs England

South Africa cemented their selves as one of the most exciting attacking teams for this tournament after they scored 3 tries within the opening fifteen minutes of this match. England, who scored three tries to South Africa’s 7, were unable to stop the dynamic attack of the springboks which saw seven different players score.

Full-time: South Africa 45-21 England

Match 6: Argentina vs Scotland

Scotland defeated Argentina in a 12-try thriller to round off the opening set of Nations Championship fixtures. Scotland crossed over for 7 tries, all scored by different players, and managed to hold off a late surge from Argentina to claim a bonus point win.

Full-time: Argentina 38-47 Scotland

Northern Hemisphere table (after round 1)

Rank	Team	Played	Won	Lost	Points
1	Wales	1	1	0	5
2	Scotland	1	1	0	5
3	Ireland	1	1	0	5
4	France	1	0	1	2
5	Italy	1	0	1	0
6	England	1	0	1	0

Southern Hemisphere table (after round 1)

Rank	Team	Played	Won	Lost	Points
1	South Africa	1	1	0	5
2	New Zealand	1	1	0	5
3	Japan	1	1	0	4
4	Australia	1	0	1	2
5	Argentina	1	0	1	1
6	Fiji	1	0	1	0