A Pat on the back for the hosts

How nice is it to see international rugby being played at the smaller club venues? packed houses of genuine fans getting out to support the game and cheer on the underdog?

How great is it to see rugby temporarily taking over Wembley and the olympic stadium?

The support for the cup right across the host nation, (and nations!) has been quite spectacular.

England and the supporting host unions deserve a giant pat on the back for a spectacularly well organised and attended cup.

Let's not get bogged down with the video pedantry and "special focus areas" dictated by World Rugby, the ugly sides of special rivalries and take a moment to appreciate a genuinely superb tournament.

Well done England!

It's also been described as one of the most (if not the most) expensive sporting tournaments of all time by some. Club rugby grounds have generally been snubbed in favour of football grounds who have gone on to hike their prices up far beyond their usual prices. Areas with strong rugby support have been asked to pay much more for tickets than other areas have paid for comparable fixtures. Oh, and that Paloma Faith song.

On the whole though I'd say they've done a good job, I just wanted to add some balance.

Great post, have been thinking the same but lack the skills to have put it so eloquently.

Its good for teams like the ABs to get about England a bit and make contact with the local people outside of London. Usually they just fly in, play at twickenham then disappear.