The Latest at the Rugby World Cup (all times local):
9:52 p.m.
Australia has bundled the host team out of Rugby World Cup contention with a 33-13 win over England at Twickenham.
Flyhalf Bernard Foley scored the first 26 points for Australia and converted Matt Giteau's try in the 79th from the sideline for a personal haul of 28.
After losing last weekend to Wales, England needed to beat two-time champion Australia to maintain a chance of progressing to the quarterfinals from the difficult Pool A.
It didn't start well, with Foley crossing for two tries, converting them both, and adding a penalty to give the Wallabies a 17-3 lead at halftime.
He extended the lead to 17 points with a penalty soon after, before Anthony Watson got England back into the game with a strong try in the 56th. Owen Farrell converted and added a penalty goal to make it 20-13.
Farrell was given a yellow card in the 71st for a shoulder charge on Matt Giteau, leaving England a man short and conceding another three points to Foley.
Foley added another penalty and Giteau touched down in the right corner seconds before fulltime to ruin England's party.
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8:45 p.m.
Bernard Foley converted his two tries and kicked a penalty to give Australia a 17-3 lead over England at halftime in the crucial Rugby World Cup Pool A match at Twickenham.
England needs to beat the two-time champion Australians to stay in the quarterfinals hunt, and was intent on attack but was unable to convert any chances into points except for Owen Farrell's penalty goal, which levelled the score at 3-3 in the 13th minute.
Flyhalf Foley scurried over from close range in the 20th minute after a sustained attacking period and converted from out wide to make it 10-3.
He crossed again in the 35th after a neat one-two passing combination with replacement winger Kurtley Beale, and converted to extend Australia's margin to 14.
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7:30 p.m.
Thousands of fans lined the pathway as the England squad walked from the bus into the stadium at Twickenham ahead of the host teams must-win Pool A game against Australia.
The noise levels went up another notch after an opera-style version of "Waltzing Matilda" — the unofficial Australian anthem — was followed by an up-tempo version of "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" as the players warmed up on the field.
After a narrow loss to Wales last weekend, England needs to beat two-time champion Australia to stay in quarterfinal contention from the group.
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6.40 p.m.
South Africa continued its recovery from the stunning opening loss to Japan by beating Scotland 34-16 for a second straight win at the Rugby World Cup, moving the Springboks into first place in Pool B.
First-half tries from flanker Schalk Burger and winger J.P. Pietersen helped forge a 20-3 halftime lead for the South Africans, who repelled a brief fightback from Scotland early in the second half by scoring a third try through winger Bryan Habana to run out comfortable winners in Newcastle.
Flyhalf Handre Pollard kicked 19 points, missing just one of his seven shots at goal.
Qualification in first place looks likely now for South Africa, whose last pool match is against the United States.
Scotland drops to second place and may need to beat Samoa next weekend to advance.
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5.35 p.m.
South Africa used sheer physicality to forge a 20-3 lead over Scotland at halftime of their Rugby World Cup game in Newcastle and is on course to move into first place in Pool B.
Continuing their recovery from a stunning opening-weekend loss to Japan, the Springboks have dominated up front at St. James' Park with their powerful forwards setting up tries for flanker Schalk Burger and winger J.P. Pietersen. Flyhalf Handre Pollard has kicked the rest of South Africa's points through two conversions and two penalties.
Scotland, which started the day on top of the pool, has just a penalty from Greig Laidlaw and hasn't threatened its opponent's try line in a kick-dominated match. South Africa finished the half with 14 men after prop Jannie du Plessis was yellow-carded for not tackling with his arms, but scored its second try — through Pietersen — while a man down.
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4.45 p.m.
The late South Africa President Nelson Mandela has been inducted into World Rugby's Hall of Fame.
The induction took place at a ceremony in Newcastle ahead of the Springboks' Rugby World Cup match against Scotland.
Former South Africa captain Francois Pienaar also received a Hall of Fame cap in Mandela's honour on the field before kickoff. Pienaar was captain when the Springboks won the 1995 World Cup, and was handed the trophy from Mandela in what has become an enduring sporting image.
Mandela died in 2013.
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4:35 p.m.
St. James' Park, the home of Newcastle United football club, has grown used to hosting relegation battles in the English Premier League of late. Today, it will be staging a top-of-the-table game in the Rugby World Cup between South Africa and Scotland in Pool B.
Located in the middle of the vibrant northeast city, the area around the stadium is teeming with fans in Springbok and Scottish dark blue jerseys. Bagpipes and vuvuzelas provide the soundtrack under an overcast sky.
Scotland will qualify for the quarterfinals with a third straight victory, but has lost 11 of its last 12 meetings with South Africa. The Springboks will go top with a win, and will be odds-on to advance as they have the United States to play last.
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4:25 p.m.
Japan kept its chances of reaching the Rugby World Cup quarterfinals alive with a comprehensive 26-5 win against Samoa in their Pool B match.
Fullback Ayumu Goromaru's clinical kicking kept the scoreboard ticking over all game for Japan as he took his tournament-leading points tally to 45.
The only sour note for Japan was an apparent head injury to right winger Akihito Yamada, the scorer of Japan's second try.
He went off early in the second half after taking a knee to the head when making a brave wraparound tackle on centre Paul Perez as he surged down the left.
He looked to be knocked out cold, lying motionless on the ground for several minutes as he was treated by medical staff, and then taken off the field on a stretcher.
It took 63 minutes for Samoa to score.
Following a turnover inside Samoa's 22, a fine sweeping move was finished emphatically by Perez in the left corner.
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3:20 p.m.
Japan leads Samoa 20-0 at halftime in their Rugby World Cup Pool B match, and it has been one-way traffic in Milton Keynes.
Right winger Akihito Yamada dived over into the right corner right on the buzzer to reward incessant pressure, and fullback Ayumu Goromaru nailed a difficult conversion from wide right.
Goromaru had already converted a penalty try, and added two penalties to punish Samoa's indiscipline.
At one stage it was 15 vs. 13 with two Samoans sin-binned.
No. 8 Faifili Levave was penalized for a late shoulder charge in the 16th minute, and referee Craig Joubert sent prop Sakaria Taulafo to the sin-bin in the 19th after Samoa conceded two defensive penalties in two minutes.
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3:05 p.m.
Samoa gave up a two-man advantage during the first half of the Rugby World Cup Pool B match against Japan after two forwards were sent to the sin-bin for receiving yellow cards within four minutes of each other.
No. 8 Faifili Levave was penalized for a late shoulder charge in the 16th minute, and referee Craig Joubert sent prop Sakaria Taulafo to the sin-bin in the 19th after Samoa conceded two penalties in two minutes.
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2:45 p.m.
Ireland lock Paul O'Connell has played and watched a lot of rugby during his long international career, and is a decent judge of where the game is at.
He was asked on the eve of Ireland's Rugby World Cup Pool D match against Italy if rugby was a better "product" two decades after becoming a professional sport.
"I think so. This World Cup has been pretty incredible to watch," he said. "Some of the lesser teams have played incredible rugby and improved their standards so much. If you go by this World Cup, then yes, it's a better product."
Japan's upset win over two-time champion South Africa on the second day of the tournament was an inspirational start for the lower-ranked teams.
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2:20 p.m.
Fiji prop Manasa Saulo has been cited for stamping against Wales during their Rugby World Cup Pool A match on Thursday.
Saulo's hearing will take place Sunday morning in London.
Wales beat Fiji 23-13 at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium to record its third straight win and move closer to the quarterfinals.
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2 p.m.
Flag-waving Japanese fans are starting to fill the stadium at Milton Keynes with 30 minutes to go until their must-win Rugby World Cup match against Samoa.
Outside the stadium, Japanese fans got into the spirit of the occasion, daubing their faces and bare chests with red and white paint — the national team colours.
Inside, a brass band is getting the fans in the mood.
Both sides are level in Pool B with four points and need to keep their quarterfinal hopes alive, with group leader Scotland facing South Africa later Saturday in Newcastle.
The day's biggest game will be in London, where a fired-up England side has to beat traditional rival Australia at Twickenham to avoid going out after losing to Wales.
This content appears as provided to The Globe by the originating wire service. It has not been edited by Globe staff.