World Cup Pools Set.

The pools for the Women's Rugby World Cup 2010 have been set. The World Cup, which will be played from August 20 to September 5, will feature three pools of four teams with defending champions New Zealand, hosts and 2006 runners-up England and 2006 bronze medalists France all ranked top seeds in their pool.
Given that there are only 12 teams at the Women’s Rugby World Cup, it was inevitable that each pool would be extremely tough for the sides ranked outside the top three and so that has proved to be with even top seeds New Zealand facing potentially tricky games against Australia and Wales while second seeds England will have to overcome a recently resurgent USA and a battling Irish side.
The qualification process was completed recently when Kazakhstan defeated Japan 43-5 to claim a place in Pool B, while Sweden join Pool C in their first appearance on the Women's Rugby World Cup stage since 1998.
New Zealand, England, France, Canada, USA and South Africa all qualified directly, with Wales and Ireland qualifying through the Six Nations, Sweden and Scotland from the European qualifiers in May, Australia as the Oceania qualifier and Kazakhstan from Asia.
Further Women's Rugby World Cup 2010 announcements, including format and match schedule, broadcast and the legacy programme will be made at the official tournament launch on Monday, November 23.
Players from six of the participating nations will also attend the launch. England captain Catherine Spencer and her New Zealand counterpart Victoria Heighway will be joined by Canada's Mandy Marchuk, Non Evans of Wales, Ireland's Joy Neville and Sarah Gill of Scotland.
Pool A: New Zealand, Wales, Australia, South Africa
Pool B: England, USA, Ireland, Kazakhstan
Pool C: France, Canada, Scotland, Sweden