Georgia head coach Milton Haig has said that his side have made their first step towards their aim of creating history at the Rugby World Cup.
The Lelos began their 2015 campaign with a famous 17-10 victory over Tonga at Kingsholm Stadium this afternoon, putting them in pole position to finish behind New Zealand and Argentina in Pool C.
Only the top two teams in each group will reach the quarter-finals, but the top three will earn automatic qualification spots for the 2019 World Cup in Japan - something Georgia have never achieved before.
"It's been four years of planning, it's been four years of work from everybody involved, and largely the squad has been together for a certain amount of time with me," Haig told reporters.
"It's obviously a focus we've had in the last two years since we qualified in Pool C. We knew we were going to have a chance of creating history for Georgia and Georgian rugby. We knew we had to win this game today. We've taken the first step. There's still obviously a fair bit to go in this tournament, but we were pretty pleased after the match.
"[A top-three finish is] certainly the goal we talked about two years ago. If we do that, it would be the first time that Georgia have ever qualified directly, so that in itself has got to be historic. Winning today's game was an absolute must if we were to get anywhere near that, and the boys knew that. We've talked about it for some time now, and I'm pretty pleased that we were able to do the job."
Haig's side next face Argentina in Gloucester on September 25.
Barney Corkhill
