Finland are up to 71st place in the World Rugby Men’s Rankings powered by Capgemini after securing promotion to the Rugby Europe Conference 1 North on Saturday with a 31-23 win against Andorra.
By winning the first-ever meeting between the teams, Finland gained seven places in the rankings and are now at the highest position they have ever been.
Finland built up a 21-0 lead in their final Rugby Europe Conference 2 North fixture, but Andorra never gave up the fight and became the first team to breach Finland’s line, not once but twice in a spirited second-half performance.
Even so, the defeat cost them just over a point in the ratings and they have been replaced in 88th position by Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In Conference 1 South, Israel enjoyed a record 50-7 win over Slovenia, which has given them a four-point lead over Malta at the top of the standings as well as improving their rating and position in the rankings.
Gal Aviram scored a hat-trick and Yotam Shulman grabbed a brace in starring roles for Israel.
With just over a quarter of a point gained for the win, Israel have climbed two places above the United Arab Emirates and Luxembourg and are now in 60th.
Austria’s 95-3 win over Kosovo in the Rugby Europe Development league did not count towards the rankings as Kosovo are not full members of World Rugby.