Rugby union power rankings: Ireland overtake New Zealand to be top dogs

Our ratings show Ireland are in pole position and New Zealand have slipped back, while Wales and England have made good progress and South Africa and Australia have much work to doSteve Hansen knew what he was doing when anointing Ireland as the world No 1 side, even if the official rankings have not done so, saying: “It’s their turn at the moment so we’ll see how they cope with that.” So far they are not doing a bad job, wasting no time in announcing that Andy Farrell will replace Joe Schmidt after next year’s World Cup, where a first ever last-four berth is the least they will be expecting. …