Who is going to win?

FINAL: England v New Zealand

WINNERS: England My gut feeling is an England v New Zealand final, which is the match-up much of the rugby world would like to see. England need to be fast out of traps and top their pool, and that could result in a quarter-final against Australia and a semi-final against South Africa.

I think the Kiwis might trip up against the Boks in the pool, which would mean a possible quarter-final against Ireland and perhaps a semi against Wales or France. Let’s say Wales!

If this pans out, England would probably have had the toughest route to a final in history, but they have the squad to cope with it and they will be battle-hardened. If they reach the final, I’m backing them to win it.

Nik Simon RUGBY CORRESPONDENT

FINAL: New Zealand v Wales

WINNER: New Zealand Both coaches, Steve Hansen and Warren Gatland, have been involved with their respective teams for more than a decade and have impressive World Cup records. At face value, Wales have an ability to dip deeper into their national patriotism than any other side — often battling through with the underrated stewardship of Dan Biggar. The All Blacks should become Japan’s second team when the hosts are knocked out. They do not have the depth of old, but they still have world-class game-breakers to win it.

QBE Rugby Predictor

QBE Business Insurance has developed a set of predictions based on a formula created by experts whose day job is predicting the impact of earthquakes and floods.

The QBE Rugby Predictor simulated the entire tournament 3,750 times — or 180,000 games. The predicted scores in each game are based on how each team has played against similar ranking opposition, their kickers’ success ratio and the international experience of each captain.

QBE’s prediction is that New Zealand have a 50 per cent probability of winning, with England, Wales and Ireland at least a 90 per cent chance of reaching the quarter-finals, with Scotland 67 per cent.