All Blacks to face France in pool-play

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The All Blacks have been drawn to play World Cup nemesis France during the opening rounds of the 2011 tournament.

But aside from the challenge of the French, the side will once again have a reasonably comfortable time in pool-play.

Also drawn in the All Blacks' pool are Tonga and yet to be confirmed qualifiers from Asia and the Americas.

France ended the All Blacks' 2007 World Cup dream in the quarter-finals of last year's tournament.

They also shocked the All Blacks with a stirring comeback when the two sides clashed in the semifinals at the 1999 tournament.

The Rugby World Cup 2011 Pool Allocation Draw took place inside Tourism New Zealand's 'Giant Rugby Ball' facility in the heart of London on early Tuesday morning (New Zealand time).

Should the All Blacks top Pool A, they will face the runners-up of the hotly-contested Pool B, which includes Argentina, England and Scotland, in their quarter-final.

The runners-up of Pool A will also face the winners of Pool B.

A win in pool-play would also set up the potential for a clash against the Robbie Deans-coached Wallabies in the semifinal stages at Eden Park.

Defending champions South Africa find themselves in arguably the toughest pool, where they will face Fiji, the side who nearly derailed their charge to the title in 2007, and Wales, the 2008 Six Nations champions.

The Wallabies, tournament winners in 1991 and 1999, will face three European teams in Pool C, headed by Ireland and Italy.

The RWC 2011 Pool Allocation Draw marks another important milestone in preparations for the tournament in New Zealand.

The venues for the final, bronze final, semifinals and quarter-finals have already been announced, whilst Rugby New Zealand (RNZ) 2011 Ltd has received proposals from regional groups representing 18 regions in New Zealand to host pool matches.

The full match schedule is due to be announced in the second quarter of 2009.

The RWC 2011 pools are:

Pool A: All Blacks, France, Tonga, Americas 1, Asia 1

Pool B: Argentina, England, Scotland, Europe 1, Play-off winner

Pool C: Australia, Ireland, Italy, Europe 2, Americas 2

Pool D: South Africa, Wales, Fiji, Oceania 1, Africa 1

Following the RWC 2011 pool matches, the knockout rounds will follow the same structure as RWC 2003 and RWC 2007. The full structure is as follows:

Quarter-final 1: Winner Pool B v Runner-up Pool A

Quarter-final 2: Winner Pool C v Runner-up Pool D

Quarter-final 3: Winner Pool A v Runner-up Pool B

Semifinal 1: Winner QF1 v Winner QF2

Semifinal 2: Winner QF3 v Winner QF4

Bronze Final: Loser SF1 v Loser SF2

Final: Winner SF1 v Winner SF2