Fiji slips to 10th spot
20-Nov-2009 09:05 AM

THE Flying Fijians have slipped even before facing Ireland this weekend in Dublin for their second match on tour in the Northern Hemisphere.

The national side has dropped a place in the latest International Rugby Board (IRB) world ranking and is now placed tenth from ninth ever since their heroics at the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France.

Their opponents, the Irish, though holding the Wallabies to a 20-all draw last weekend have also slipped to fifth from fourth.

New Zealand has taken pole position, a position they once held before the last world cup displacing world champions South Africa to second spot.

Scotland’s 23-10 win over Fiji has pushed them to ninth while other movers include France to fourth from fifth; England to sixth from eighth; Argentina to seventh from sixth and Wales from seventh to eighth.

The Wallabies retain third spot.

Meanwhile, Leinster and Ireland winger Luke Fitzgerald will miss the Fiji game this weekend after being ruled out for four to six months after sustaining a ruptured lateral collateral ligament in his left knee against Australia last weekend.

By MAIKA KASAMI