World Rugby has announced that the draw for the 2019 Rugby World Cup will take place in May, 2017.
An exact date and venue for the draw has yet to be set. However, World Rugby say it will be held a full 12 months from now and also prior to the summer internationals in June of next year.
It gives Ireland 12 games in which maintain a top eight position in the rankings. Joe Schmidt's side are currently ranked seventh in the world.
Falling outside of the top eight could be disastrous. It could result in Ireland getting a 'pool of death' scenario similar to Wales at last year's tournament. When the draw took place for the 2015 World Cup, Wales were ranked ninth. They ended up in a group featuring England and Australia, though they would go through at the expense of the hosts.
Ireland's 12 games prior to the draw are as follows:
June 11th: South Africa (A)
June 18th: South Africa (A)
June 25th: South Africa (A)
November 5th: New Zealand (Soldier Field, Chicago)
November 12th: Canada (H)
November 19th: New Zealand (H)
November 26th: Australia (H)
February 4th: Scotland (A)
February 11th: Italy (A)
February 25th: France (H)
March 10th: Wales (A)
March 18th: England (H)
That is a hard run of fixtures heading into a World Cup draw.
One plus is that next year is a favourable year for Ireland in the Six Nations. Two of the toughest games, France and England, are both being played in Dublin.
Picture credit: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE
