Uruguay caused a huge upset by stunning Fiji 30-27 at the Rugby World Cup on Wednesday.

The South Americans claimed just their third win in tournament history by shocking Fiji in the Pool D clash in Kamaishi.

Uruguay crossed for three first-half tries as they punished an error-riddled display by Fiji, while they got 15 points from the boot of Felipe Berchesi.

Fiji had won their previous three Tests against Uruguay by an average of 36 points but fell to an unlikely defeat on this occasion.

A much-changed Fiji needed just seven minutes to take the lead, Mesu Dolokoto touching down in the corner after a line-out, brilliant play from Alivereti Veitokani having put his side in a good position.

However, Uruguay hit back through Santiago Arata, who easily stepped through some soft Fijian defending to score under the posts after a German Kessler pass.

Eroni Mawi crashed over to restore Fiji's lead, only for Manuel Diana to respond once more for Uruguay, who led 14-12 after 22 minutes.

Fiji were being punished for their mistakes and another allowed the South Americans to stunningly stretch their lead.

A high kick from Arata was allowed to bounce, Uruguay spreading the ball to the left before Rodrigo Silva threw a pass inside for Juan Manuel Cat to score.

Fiji piled on the pressure to begin the second half and they were rewarded when Api Ratuniyarawa went over.

Both teams encountered goal-kicking woes before Berchesi extended Uruguay's lead to 27-17 with 20 minutes to go.

A dummy from Nikola Matawalu allowed him to dive over from a metre out and bring Fiji back to within five, but a Berchesi penalty pushed Uruguay clear as they held on despite the scrum-half scoring again.

Fiji made to pay for mistakes

Fiji were far too loose in the first half and Uruguay made them pay on every occasion, opening up a 24-12 lead at the break. They played with less risk to begin the second half, only for the errors to resume as they got desperate.

Famous win for Uruguay

Ranked 19th in the world, this was Uruguay's first win at the Rugby World Cup since 2003. In 2015, they scored just 30 points and conceded 226, showing just how much progress they have made in four years.

What's next?

Both teams' next games are against Georgia. Uruguay face Georgia on Sunday, while Fiji's next outing is on October 3.