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2003 Rugby World Cup final

April 12, 2024

The 2003 Rugby World Cup Final was the final match of the 2003 Rugby World Cup, the fifth edition of the Rugby World Cup competition organised by the International Rugby Board (IRB) for national rugby union teams. The match was played at Stadium Australia in Sydney on 22 November 2003, and was contested by Australia (the tournament hosts) and England. The 20-team competition consisted of a group stage, from which eight squads qualified for the knockout stage. En route to the final, Australia finished first in Pool A with four wins and no losses or draws before defeating Scotland in the quarter-final and New Zealand in the semi-final. England finished on top of Pool C and, like Australia, went undefeated with four victories and no draws before beating Wales in the quarter-final and France in the semi-final.

2003 Rugby World Cup Final
Stadium Australia, the match venue
Event2003 Rugby World Cup
After extra time
Date22 November 2003
VenueStadium Australia, Sydney
Man of the MatchJonny Wilkinson (England)
RefereeAndré Watson (South Africa)[1]
Attendance82,957
Weatherslightly wet
← 1999
2007 →

The final was played in front of a Rugby World Cup record crowd of 82,957, with 22 to 30 million television viewers, and was refereed by André Watson of South Africa. Australia scored first when Lote Tuqiri scored a try in the sixth minute, but Elton Flatley failed to score the resulting conversion. England's first points were through a penalty goal scored by Jonny Wilkinson at 11 minutes; Wilkinson scored a second penalty nine minutes later to put his side ahead of Australia. A third Wilkinson penalty goal after 28 minutes and a 38th-minute try by Jason Robinson (which Wilkinson was unable to convert) gave England a 14–5 lead at half-time. The second half saw Flatley score three penalty goals in succession; regular time ended with both teams tied 14–14, and the match went into extra time. Wilkinson scored a fourth penalty goal to put England back ahead of Australia in the second minute of extra time before Flatley equalised again with his fourth penalty goal with two minutes of extra time to play. With 28 seconds remaining, Wilkinson scored a drop goal with his right foot to secure a 20–17 victory for England.

England's win was their first Rugby World Cup title. They were the first Northern Hemisphere team to win the tournament, ending 16 years of dominance by Southern Hemisphere teams. They are currently the only Northern Hemisphere team to have won a Rugby World Cup title. Wilkinson was named man of the match, and the England playing and senior coaching team were appointed to the Order of the British Empire in the 2004 New Year Honours. England failed to defend their trophy at the following 2007 Rugby World Cup (hosted by France), losing 15–6 to South Africa in the final. Australia reached the tournament's quarter-final stage, where they were defeated by England.

Background edit

The 2003 Rugby World Cup, the fifth edition of the Rugby World Cup (the International Rugby Board's (IRB) leading quadrennial rugby union tournament for national teams), was held in Australia from 10 October to 22 November 2003.[a][3][4] In the finals, 20 teams played a total of 48 matches.[4] The eight quarter-finalists in the 1999 Rugby World Cup automatically qualified for the tournament; the remaining twelve spots were decided in qualifying rounds played between 23 September 2000 and 27 April 2003 by teams from a record 81 nations.[2][5]

Teams were divided into four groups of five in the finals, with each team playing each other once in a round-robin format. The two top teams from each group advanced to a knockout stage.[4] Rights to host the final were awarded to Stadium Australia, a purpose-built venue for the 2000 Summer Olympics and the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney Olympic Park (an urban renewal project in the mid-west suburb of Homebush Bay).[6] The stadium played host to six other matches in the World Cup.[7]

Australia had won the World Cup on two previous occasions, in 1991 and 1999. Although England had never won the tournament before, they reached the 1991 final (losing to Australia, 12–6).[3] The 2003 final was the 29th match between Australia and England.[8] Since Australia and England first played each other in 1909, England won 16 of those meetings (including the previous four), Australia won 11 and drew once, in November 1997.[9] The teams had played each other in three of the past four World Cups,[10] and the 2003 final was their fourth meeting in the competition's history.[8] The most recent match between them before the 2003 World Cup was played at Docklands Stadium in Melbourne on 21 June 2003, a 29–14 victory for England.[9] England had won 21 of their previous 22 test matches, and Australia had lost four matches before the competition began.[11] At the start of the tournament, England were ranked first in the inaugural IRB World Rugby Rankings; Australia were ranked fourth.[12]

Route to the final edit

Australia edit

Australia's route to the final
Opponent Result
1 Argentina 24–8
2 Romania 90–8
3 Namibia 142–0
4 Ireland 17–16
QF Scotland 33–16
SF New Zealand 22–10

Australia qualified for the tournament as defending champions, and were drawn in Pool A with Argentina, Ireland, Namibia and Romania. Their first match, against Argentina on 10 October at Stadium Australia, was the tournament's opening game.[4] Australia led 11–0 after two Elton Flatley penalties and Wendell Sailor's try at 20 minutes which Flatley failed to convert. Felipe Contepomi scored Argentina's only penalty seven minutes later, before a third Flatley penalty put Australia ahead 13–3 at half-time. Flatley scored his final penalty to extend Australia's lead before Ignacio Corleto scored a 72nd-minute try. A Joe Roff try converted by Flatley two minutes later, however, gave Australia a 24–8 win.[13][14] Australia's second pool match was against Romania at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on 18 October.[4] They won 90–8, scoring three tries by Mat Rogers, two tries each by Matt Burke, Stephen Larkham and one try each by Flatley, Stirling Mortlock, Roff, Matt Giteau, Lote Tuqiri and George Smith; Flatley adding 11 conversions and a penalty. Romania's eight points came from a Petrișor Toderașc try and a Ionuț Tofan penalty. At 18 seconds, Flatley scored the earliest World Cup try.[15]

The team's third group fixture was against Namibia at Adelaide Oval on 25 October.[4] Australia won by a World Cup-record margin of 142–0, with a tournament-record 22 tries: five by Chris Latham, three each by Giteau and Tuqiri, two each by Rogers and Morgan Turinui and one each by David Lyons, Mortlock, Jeremy Paul, Nathan Grey, Matt Burke, John Roe. Rogers had one penalty try and 16 conversions.[b][17] Australia concluded their pool matches against Ireland on 1 November at Melbourne's Docklands Stadium. George Gregan gave Australia the lead with a drop goal, followed with a try by Smith. Ronan O'Gara's penalty put Ireland five points behind before a Flatley penalty restored Australia's eight-point lead. A second penalty goal by O'Gara gave Australia an 11–6 lead at half-time. Four minutes into the second half, Flatley scored a second penalty before a Brian O'Driscoll try (converted by O'Gara) put Ireland one point behind. Australia went four points ahead after Flatley's third penalty and, despite an O'Driscoll drop goal, advanced to the quarter-finals 17–16 as pool winners.[18]

Their quarter-final was against Scotland at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium on 8 November.[4] The sides were tied 9–9 at half-time, after three penalties by Flatley and two penalties and a drop goal by Chris Paterson. Tries by Mortlock, Gregan and Lyons were converted by Flatley, who scored his fourth penalty in the second half to put Australia 24 points ahead of Scotland. A last-minute Robbie Russell try (converted by Paterson) gave Scotland seven extra points, but Australia won the match 33–16 for a place in the semi-final.[19] They returned to Sydney's Stadium Australia to play New Zealand in their semi-final on 15 November. Australia opened the scoring at nine minutes, when Mortlock scored a try which Flatley converted. Flatley scored two penalties to increase Australia's lead before a try by New Zealand's Reuben Thorne, converted by Leon MacDonald, cut Australia's lead to 13–7 at half-time. Flatley scored three more penalties in the second half and, although MacDonald scored a late penalty for New Zealand, Australia held on to win the match 22–10 and a berth in the final.[20]

England edit

England's route to the final
Opponent Result
1 Georgia 84–6
2 South Africa 25–6
3 Samoa 35–22
4 Uruguay 111–13
QF Wales 28–17
SF France 24–7

England qualified for the finals by reaching the quarter-finals of the 1999 World Cup, and were placed in Pool C with Georgia, Samoa, South Africa and Uruguay. Their finals campaign began on 12 October at Subiaco Oval in Perth against Georgia.[4] The team secured a 84–6 victory with one try each by Mike Tindall, Matt Dawson, Steve Thompson, Neil Back, Lawrence Dallaglio, Mark Regan, Dan Luger and Jason Robinson, two tries by Will Greenwood and Ben Cohen, and conversions by Jonny Wilkinson and Paul Grayson; Wilkinson added two penalties. Georgia's six points were penalties by Malkhaz Urjukashvili and Paliko Jimsheladze.[21] Six days later, England played South Africa at Subiaco Oval.[22] The teams were tied 6–6 at half-time, with two Louis Koen penalties for South Africa and two penalties by England's Wilkinson. Two more penalties by Wilkinson followed, before he converted a Greenwood try and scored two drop goals to put England at the top of their pool with a 25–6 win.[23]

Their third group game was against Samoa at Docklands Stadium in Melbourne on 26 October.[4] Samoa went ten points ahead with a penalty and a converted try by Earl Va'a before England levelled with a Neil Back try (converted by Wilkinson), after which Wilkinson scored a penalty. Two more penalties by Va'a and a second penalty by Wilkinson gave Samoa a 16–13 lead at half-time. England earned a penalty try after Samoa conceded a scrum, and Wilkinson converted it to return England to the lead. Va'a's two subsequent penalties put Samoa back in the lead, but England won 35–22 with tries by Wilkinson, Iain Balshaw and Vickery; Wilkinson converted a second try.[24] England's final group match was against Uruguay at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium on 2 November. They had a team World Cup record victory of 111–13, with a national-record-equalling 17 tries scored by Lewis Moody, Josh Lewsey, Balshaw, Andy Gomarsall, Luger, Grayson, Stuart Abbott and Robinson (converted by Grayson or Mike Catt) to qualify for the quarter-finals as pool winners. Uruguay's points came from two first-half Juan Menchaca penalties and a second-half Pablo Lemoine try converted by Menchaca.[25]

In the quarter-finals, England faced Wales at Suncorp Stadium on 9 November.[26] England scored the game's first points with a Wilkinson penalty, but Wales led 10–3 at half-time after tries by Stephen Jones and Colin Charvis (which Jones failed to convert). England moved 15 points ahead of Wales with a Greenwood try (converted by Wilkinson), followed by five successive penalties by Wilkinson. Martyn Williams scored a try (converted by Iestyn Harris) to put Wales eight points behind before a last-minute Wilkinson drop goal advanced England to the semi-finals, 28–17.[27] England then faced France in the semi-finals in wet, cold conditions at Stadium Australia on 16 November. Wilkinson gave England the lead with a ninth-minute penalty before an England line-out error allowed Serge Betsen to score a try, converted by Frédéric Michalak to give France a 7–3 advantage. England retook the lead when Wilkinson scored two drop goals and two penalties to give them a 12–7 lead at half-time. In the second half, Wilkinson scored a second drop goal and three more penalties to put England through to the final with a 24–7 victory.[28]

Match edit

Before the match edit

André Watson, a 45-year-old retired civil engineer and school rugby fly-half from South Africa, was selected as referee for the final.[29] Watson had refereed two 2003 World Cup matches: the New Zealand–Wales and Argentina–Ireland matches in the group stage.[30] He also refereed the 1999 Rugby World Cup Final and a number of Currie Cup and Super 12 finals.[29] Watson was assisted by Paddy O'Brien and Paul Honiss of New Zealand, the two touch judges. Joël Jutge and Alain Rolland of France and Ireland were named the fourth and fifth officials, respectively, and South Africa's Jonathan Kaplan was the television match official.[1] Tickets for the final sold out on 22 August 2003.[31] The IRB returned an additional 2,000 tickets for the match to the Australian Rugby Union which it sold to the public since 13 November.[32] Several Australian and British bookmakers cited England as the favourite to win the match.[33][34]

Australia coach Eddie Jones noted that World Cup finals were generally disorganised, and said that it would be good if the match was contested "with a good balance between the important ingredients of rugby, and that is contest versus continuity": "Our responsibility is to play naturally and with freedom and our natural game is to attack, so we'll be keeping our part of the bargain. If we can get England to, and the referee to contribute, we should have a great spectacle. It could be the world's great game of rugby."[11] England coach Clive Woodward was pleased with Australia for their organisation of the tournament and the quality of their players and said about his team's chances for the final, "My only goal when I left my business to take his job six years ago was to make England the best team in the world and win this thing. Now we have a real chance of doing exactly that."[35] Woodward added, "When the tournament began, I would have said this was my dream final. We have one objective and we're now one game away from achieving it. We certainly haven't come out here to finish second."[35]

 
Martin Johnson (pictured in 2015) played his last international match for England in the final.

A closing ceremony was held before the match. It began with the release of 18 of 20 inflatable cylindrical figures (representing the 20 qualifying teams), placed in a circle outside the pitch.[36] Kate Ceberano performed Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors", the competition's official song, replacing Kasey Chambers, who had withdrawn.[37][38] Three young children from the Sydney Children's Choir sang the rugby anthem, "World in Union", as part of the Rugby World Choir.[39] The Australian national anthem, "Advance Australia Fair", was performed by Alice Girle and performing-arts student Akos Miszlai[40] before the English national anthem "God Save the Queen" was played by Rugby World Choir members Belinda Evans and James Laing.[36]

The match was broadcast live on television by the Seven Network in Australia,[41] Sportsnet in Canada,[42] and on ITV1 and S4C in the United Kingdom.[43] The Theatre Broadcasting System of the Department of Defence carried coverage of the final for Australian troops stationed in Baghdad.[44] Radio coverage was by ABC Radio on the non-commercial programme ABC Radio Grandstand and the commercial Macquarie Network in Australia and by BBC Radio 5 Live in the United Kingdom.[45][46] Live sites were set up across Australia and London, with large screens to enable the public to watch the final.[47] Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer cautioned Australian citizens watching the final abroad to be mindful of their safety after the Istanbul bombings in Turkey.[48] The New South Wales Police adjusted its security measures to stop pitch invasions by spectators during the final.[49] The British government was represented at the match by Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell.[50]

Both teams' coaches released their line-ups on 19 November.[51] Australia were without prop Ben Darwin, who sustained a prolapsed disc in his neck (contacting his spinal cord) during a scrum in the team's semi-final with New Zealand.[52] Coach Eddie Jones replaced Darwin with Al Baxter at the tight head prop position.[51] Jones also made Matt Dunning a prop reserve, and utility back Giteau replaced Grey as a substitute after Giteau's recovery from an ankle injury in Australia's quarter-final with Scotland.[53] England coach Clive Woodward made one change to the side which began their semi-final against France; Tindall replaced Catt (who was made a substitute) to counter Mortlock's running ability, and indicating that England wanted to run more with the ball, and not rely on Catt and Wilkinson's dual kicking strategy.[51] The final was the last time that captain Martin Johnson and Back represented England; both players retired the following year.[54]

First half edit

 
Lote Tuqiri scored the first points of the match with a try for Australia in the sixth minute.

Low cloud cover and sporadic downpours fell in Sydney on the morning of the match; it tapered off to a drizzle,[35] making the pitch damp.[55] The match began before a World Cup record crowd of 82,957[36] at 20:00 local time with Wilkinson kicking the ball into Australia's right-hand defence, where it was collected by Nathan Sharpe.[56][57] At two minutes, Rogers threw to Tuqiri; it threatened to overlap, but went into touch.[57][58] A touch judge noticed that Woodman's right fist went outside at the back of a maul, and he was reprimanded by Watson.[55][59] A penalty on England's 10-yard (9.1 m) line was awarded to Australia,[56] but the team decided that it was too far for their players and Rogers should kick into touch. Australia earned a free kick when England had too many players in a line-out, but opted for a scrum.[55][57] Gregan passed the ball to Larkham, whose high shot was directed from right to left.[35][55] The taller Tuqiri out-jumped Robinson,[36][60] and gathered the ball to score a try in the corner after a short run. Flatley's attempt to convert the try from the right-hand touchline struck the inside of the left-hand post, preserving Australia's 5–0 lead.[35][55][56] Robinson passed some Australian players;[55] Lyons committed an infraction in a tackle, earning England a penalty kick.[58] Wilkinson made it 5–3 after 11 minutes, scoring the penalty from 47 m (154 ft).[59] Australia got a penalty kick two minutes later when Back held the ball too long in a line-out.[57][58] England gained possession with breaks by Lewsey, but both teams had difficulty handing the ball and were cautioned by Watson.[55]

At 20 minutes, England got a penalty kick when Cohen was tackled by Larkham without the ball.[56][57] Larkham sustained a lip injury for which he received medical attention, and Giteau was brought in as a blood replacement.[56][60] Wilkinson scored the penalty from outside the Australia half to put England ahead, 6–5.[56][57] At 23 minutes, Wilkinson's long drop-goal attempt with his left foot went wide.[57][59] Two minutes later, Ben Kay gathered the ball after Richard Hill kicked it through Australia's defence when Giteau dropped it after a Wilkinson tackle; Kay failed to score a try when he was tackled.[59][61] Wilkinson sustained a minor shoulder injury when he tackled Giteau.[61] In the 28th minute, England got another penalty kick after they won a scrum after a Flatley tackle and moved up the pitch.[55][56] Wilkinson scored a third penalty goal from a narrow angle to extend England's lead to four points.[57][59] Woodman was penalised two minutes later for incorrectly binding during a scrum, earning Australia a penalty.[57] Flatley failed to score the penalty goal from the left of England's 10-metre (33 ft) line.[56] Larkham returned to the pitch after 31 minutes, following medical treatment of his lip.[57] Dallaglio passed Australia's mid-pitch defence seven minutes later and passed the ball to Wilkinson,[62] who briefly ran with it before making a long pass to the approaching Robinson on his left.[2][55][56] Robinson passed Sailor, scoring a left-corner try.[36][61] Wilkinson failed to convert the try almost from the touchline, and the first half ended with England leading 14–5.[55]

Second half edit

Flatley began the second half of the match by kicking deep into the England half,[56] and England started making errors in a scrum or a line-out.[62] Seven minutes later, England made two errors in succession from consecutive line-outs and Australia earned a penalty kick when Dallaglio was penalised for being offside when he thought it was open play; Watson, however, decided that a ruck was being formed.[55][57][58] Flatley successfully scored the penalty from inside Australia's half to put Australia three points behind.[56] Soon afterwards, Australia made a change when David Giffin came on in place of Sharpe.[57] In the 53rd minute, Dawson and Lewsey made an illegal cross that caused an accidental obstruction and gave Australia a penalty kick inside the England 10-metre (33 ft) line.[56][59] Flatley kicked for goal from where he could score a try, but failed to score the penalty.[35] After 56 minutes, Australia substituted Larkham for Giteau.[57][59] The team made a double substitution one minute later, bringing on Paul for Brendan Cannon and Matt Cockbain for Lyons. At 58 minutes, Australia earned a penalty after Vickery incorrectly bound in a scrum; Rogers failed to score the goal. The rain began to increase in intensity, and both sides made more playing errors.[58]

In the 61st minute, Vickery was informed that he had illegally handled the ball on the floor in a ruck, giving Australia a penalty kick.[55][56][57] Flatley took the penalty in front of the posts from the 10-metre (33 ft) line, scoring to put Australia three points behind England.[56][62] Watson then called England for three consecutive infractions during scrums.[35] A shot by Tindall spun to the right at 68 minutes, and Greenwood gathered the ball.[56] Greenwood was prevented from scoring a try by a left-footed leg tackle from Rogers,[57][59] which brought the ball into touch just before the try line.[61] After 71 minutes, Australia substituted Roff for Sailor.[57] After England secured a line-out one minute later, Lewsey got the ball and passed it to Wilkinson[56] (whose second attempt to score a drop goal went wide of the left-hand post).[55][58] In the 79th minute, Catt was brought on for the injured Tindall.[56][57] With 90 seconds of regular time remaining,[2] Watson penalised England for collapsing a scrum and Woodman's failure to engage on their 22-metre (72 ft) line on the right side of the pitch; Woodman felt that Australia engaged too early, but a penalty kick was awarded to Australia.[55][36] Flatley scored the penalty from 15 m (49 ft) out on the right of the England half with ten seconds left, bringing on extra time with the teams tied 14–14.[60][62]

Extra time edit

 
Jonny Wilkinson (pictured in 2007) scored the match-winning drop goal for England in the last minute of extra time.

One minute into extra time, England substituted Vickery for Leonard. England were awarded a penalty kick a minute later, when a line-out Johnson was pulled down by Justin Harrison.[56][57] Wilkinson opted to take the penalty,[57] and kicked a shot from 44 m (144 ft) out wide on the right which went between the posts and put England back in the lead.[55][62] Larkham came off the pitch again for Giteau because he was still bleeding, and an injured-looking Lewsey came off for Balshaw. Catt unsuccessfully attempted to score a drop goal on 89 minutes because Phil Waugh stopped him with a knock-on.[57] Wilkinson also tried to score a drop goal a minute later, but his shot went wide.[57][59] This ended the first half of extra time, with England leading Australia 17–14.[61]

At 92 minutes, Australia replaced Young with Dunning; England substituted Moody for Hill, who had a cramp, one minute later.[56][57] Tuqiri was prevented from scoring a try when Cohen and Robinson were tackled from 5 m (16 ft) three minutes later;[59][62] Wilkinson held the ball, giving Australia a line-out.[57] England got a penalty line-out in the 96th minute when Rogers held onto the ball during a tackle.[57][58] Dallaglio was penalised from coming in on the side and handling the ball in a ruck, giving Australia a penalty kick at 97 minutes.[55][57] Flatley scored the penalty from outside the England area to level the score 17–17 and, potentially, require a match-ending penalty shootout.[56][59] With more than one minute remaining, England won a line-out and moved towards Australia's area three times, including a dummy and run by Dawson that broke the line and brought England within drop goal range.[2] Dawson passed the ball to Wilkinson,[36] who could not be stopped by Gregan and scored a right-foot drop goal from 30 m (98 ft) out with 28 seconds left to put England back in the lead.[55][59][62] No further points were scored; Watson blew the final whistle, with England winning the match 20–17 for their first Rugby World Cup.[35]

Details edit

22 November 2003
20:00 AEDT (UTC+11)
Australia  17–20 (a.e.t.)  England
Try: Tuqiri 6' m
Pen: Flatley 47', 61', 80', 97'		ReportTry: Robinson 38' m
Pen: Wilkinson 11', 20', 28', 82'
Drop: Wilkinson 100'
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Australia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
England
FB 15 Mat Rogers
RW 14 Wendell Sailor   71'
OC 13 Stirling Mortlock
IC 12 Elton Flatley
LW 11 Lote Tuqiri
FH 10 Stephen Larkham   temp'
SH 9 George Gregan (c)
N8 8 David Lyons   57'
OF 7 Phil Waugh
BF 6 George Smith
RL 5 Nathan Sharpe   48'
LL 4 Justin Harrison
TP 3 Al Baxter
HK 2 Brendan Cannon   57 '
LP 1 Bill Young   92'
Replacements:
HK 16 Jeremy Paul   57'
PR 17 Matt Dunning   92'
LK 18 David Giffin   48'
N8 19 Matt Cockbain   57'
SH 20 Chris Whitaker
FH 21 Matt Giteau   temp'
WG 22 Joe Roff   71'
Coach:
  Eddie Jones
 
FB 15 Josh Lewsey   86'
RW 14 Jason Robinson
OC 12 Mike Tindall   79'
IC[c] 13 Will Greenwood
LW 11 Ben Cohen
FH 10 Jonny Wilkinson
SH 9 Matt Dawson
N8 8 Lawrence Dallaglio
OF 7 Neil Back
BF 6 Richard Hill   93'
RL 5 Ben Kay
LL 4 Martin Johnson (c)
TP 3 Phil Vickery   81'
HK 2 Steve Thompson
LP 1 Trevor Woodman
Replacements:
HK 16 Dorian West
PR 17 Jason Leonard   81'
LK 18 Martin Corry
FL 19 Lewis Moody   93'
SH 20 Kyran Bracken
FH 21 Mike Catt   79'
FB 22 Iain Balshaw   86'
Coach:
  Clive Woodward

Man of the Match:[64]
Jonny Wilkinson (England)
Touch judges:[1]
Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand)
Paul Honiss (New Zealand)
Television match official:[1]
Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Fourth official:[1]
Joël Jutge (France)
Fifth official:[1]
Alain Rolland (Ireland)

Match rules[43]

Statistics edit

Overall[65]
Statistic Australia England
Tries 1 1
Conversions 0 0
Penalties 4 4
Dropped goals 0 1
Scrums 12 9
Possession 42% 58%
Territory 46% 54%
Yellow cards 0 0
Red cards 0 0

Aftermath edit

 
Celebration in London

England was the first Northern Hemisphere nation to win the Rugby World Cup, ending 16 years of Southern Hemisphere dominance.[35] IRB chairman Syd Millar presented the runner-up medals to the Australian side. The victorious England team received their medals from Australian Prime Minister John Howard before Johnson held up the Webb Ellis Cup presented to him by Howard.[66] The England team then took a lap of honour around the stadium.[35] Wilkinson was named man of the match and won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award.[64][67] Every member of England's playing and senior coaching staff was appointed at least a Member of Order of the British Empire in the 2004 New Year Honours.[68] In May 2004, the England squad received the Laureus World Sports Award for Team of the Year and Woodward was knighted.[69]

According to Woodward, the victory was "very important and it is just a big thank you to the Premiership clubs and the Rugby Football Union. We have just put the icing on the cake and we want to keep this going."[70] His counterpart, Jones, conceded that the better side won the final:[35] "You slug it out for 100 minutes and get beaten in the 99th – yeah, that would qualify as a photo finish. England were outstanding and are the best team in the world by one minute."[70] Wilkinson explained why he scored a drop final in the last minute of the match: "I didn't want the game to go to a drop-goal competition. I just wanted to win so much for the other guys. I had to make sure I hit the target when the chance came my way."[35] In a 2019 interview with BBC Sport, he described the goal as "not a memory that I treasure because I don't have much memory of it – but just an experience which gave me a glimpse of life a little bit outside the boundaries of what I thought was possible – something bigger."[71] Cannon described the drop goal as "like witnessing a car accident, you know it's about to happen but you don't want it to happen."[72]

Dawson said the win was "very surreal" after England's comeback from elimination in the quarter-final stage of the 1999 tournament.[35] Greenwood said that during the match and when he received his World Cup winners medal he thought about his son, Freddie, who died shortly after he was born in 2002.[73] Gregan said that although the Australian team were disappointed, they had "a good deal of pride there as well. It was a gutsy effort, coming down to the last play of the game. My team didn't leave anything out so I couldn't ask for anything more."[74] Injured prop Darwin said that he was frustrated to be unable to play in the final.[72] Flatley described the pressure he felt when scoring the two penalty goals which meant that the match would go into extra time: "I had my hands together praying and I didn't see either kick. I had my eyes closed. It was scary pressure. There wasn't a great deal going on in my head ... I just had to knock them over."[75] Although Rogers blamed himself for the loss because he had been unable to clear the ball in the final minute, Flatley told him that he was not to blame: "A million things go on and in a game like that you can't really put it down to one thing. "It wasn't like I was about to slit my wrists or anything, but I was hoping to kick it up a bit further and make it even harder for them to score."[76]

Watson's refereeing was criticised by the media and rugby-world figures.[55][77] Woodward's assistant Andy Robinson asked Watson during the post-match celebrations why England were penalised for scrum infringements, and was told to review the video footage.[77][78] Watson defended his decisions: "I was satisfied with my handling of the match and that includes the scrum infringements .... I ref what I see and nothing else and I was happy with my performance. If there were any problems, they will have been noted by the IRB and I have not had any comebacks from them."[78]

The team left Sydney on the evening of 24 November, and arrived at Heathrow Airport (greeted by 8,000 to 10,000 people) early the next morning.[68] Johnson, holding the trophy, was the first player to appear, and "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" was sung.[79] A national day of celebration was organised by the Rugby Football Union on 8 December, and was seen by almost a million people.[68] The team paraded in open-top buses from Marble Arch to Trafalgar Square.[68] Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, awarded the squad the freedom of Greater London. The team then met the queen and other senior royal family members at Buckingham Palace, followed by a reception at 10 Downing Street with Prime Minister Tony Blair.[80]

The match viewership on ITV1 peaked overnight at around 14.5 million (82 percent of the British viewership) between 11:20 and 11:25 am and averaged 12.3 million (a 77 per cent viewing share);[81] it had a final peak rating of 15 million viewers. This was the highest viewership in the United Kingdom of a rugby union match since the 1991 Rugby World Cup Final was watched by an average of 13.6 million.[82] The Seven Network's coverage of the final had a nationwide average of four million viewers in Australia and peaked at a total of 4.3 million viewers, making it the most-watched football game in the history of Australian television.[83] Global audience figures for the 2003 Rugby World Cup final totalled between 22 and 30 million.[36][82]

At the next World Cup, hosted by France in 2007, England reached the final for the third time in tournament history before they were defeated by South Africa 15–6. Australia advanced from their group as winners before they were knocked out in the quarter-final stage by England.[84]

See also edit

Notes and references edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ New Zealand were due to co-host the tournament, but the IRB forced the nation to withdraw in April 2002 over a disagreement about ground-signage rights.[2]
  2. ^ As of 2021, this is the only occasion in which Australia have scored 100 points in one game, and it is Namibia's most significant loss.[16]
  3. ^ Will Greenwood, for superstitious reasons, prefers to play wearing the number 13 shirt, even when selected to play inside centre.[63]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Jenkins, Graham (22 November 2003). . Scrum.com. Archived from the original on 13 January 2004. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e Welch 2007, pp. 70–73
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Bibliography edit

External links edit

  • – rwc2003.irb.com
  • Australia 17–20 England

April 12, 2024
2003, rugby, world, final, 2003, rugby, world, final, final, match, 2003, rugby, world, fifth, edition, rugby, world, competition, organised, international, rugby, board, national, rugby, union, teams, match, played, stadium, australia, sydney, november, 2003,. The 2003 Rugby World Cup Final was the final match of the 2003 Rugby World Cup the fifth edition of the Rugby World Cup competition organised by the International Rugby Board IRB for national rugby union teams The match was played at Stadium Australia in Sydney on 22 November 2003 and was contested by Australia the tournament hosts and England The 20 team competition consisted of a group stage from which eight squads qualified for the knockout stage En route to the final Australia finished first in Pool A with four wins and no losses or draws before defeating Scotland in the quarter final and New Zealand in the semi final England finished on top of Pool C and like Australia went undefeated with four victories and no draws before beating Wales in the quarter final and France in the semi final 2003 Rugby World Cup FinalStadium Australia the match venueEvent2003 Rugby World CupAustralia England17 20After extra timeDate22 November 2003VenueStadium Australia SydneyMan of the MatchJonny Wilkinson England RefereeAndre Watson South Africa 1 Attendance82 957Weatherslightly wet 19992007 The final was played in front of a Rugby World Cup record crowd of 82 957 with 22 to 30 million television viewers and was refereed by Andre Watson of South Africa Australia scored first when Lote Tuqiri scored a try in the sixth minute but Elton Flatley failed to score the resulting conversion England s first points were through a penalty goal scored by Jonny Wilkinson at 11 minutes Wilkinson scored a second penalty nine minutes later to put his side ahead of Australia A third Wilkinson penalty goal after 28 minutes and a 38th minute try by Jason Robinson which Wilkinson was unable to convert gave England a 14 5 lead at half time The second half saw Flatley score three penalty goals in succession regular time ended with both teams tied 14 14 and the match went into extra time Wilkinson scored a fourth penalty goal to put England back ahead of Australia in the second minute of extra time before Flatley equalised again with his fourth penalty goal with two minutes of extra time to play With 28 seconds remaining Wilkinson scored a drop goal with his right foot to secure a 20 17 victory for England England s win was their first Rugby World Cup title They were the first Northern Hemisphere team to win the tournament ending 16 years of dominance by Southern Hemisphere teams They are currently the only Northern Hemisphere team to have won a Rugby World Cup title Wilkinson was named man of the match and the England playing and senior coaching team were appointed to the Order of the British Empire in the 2004 New Year Honours England failed to defend their trophy at the following 2007 Rugby World Cup hosted by France losing 15 6 to South Africa in the final Australia reached the tournament s quarter final stage where they were defeated by England Contents 1 Background 2 Route to the final 2 1 Australia 2 2 England 3 Match 3 1 Before the match 3 2 First half 3 3 Second half 3 4 Extra time 3 5 Details 3 6 Statistics 4 Aftermath 5 See also 6 Notes and references 6 1 Notes 6 2 References 6 3 Bibliography 7 External linksBackground editThe 2003 Rugby World Cup the fifth edition of the Rugby World Cup the International Rugby Board s IRB leading quadrennial rugby union tournament for national teams was held in Australia from 10 October to 22 November 2003 a 3 4 In the finals 20 teams played a total of 48 matches 4 The eight quarter finalists in the 1999 Rugby World Cup automatically qualified for the tournament the remaining twelve spots were decided in qualifying rounds played between 23 September 2000 and 27 April 2003 by teams from a record 81 nations 2 5 Teams were divided into four groups of five in the finals with each team playing each other once in a round robin format The two top teams from each group advanced to a knockout stage 4 Rights to host the final were awarded to Stadium Australia a purpose built venue for the 2000 Summer Olympics and the 2000 Summer Paralympics in Sydney Olympic Park an urban renewal project in the mid west suburb of Homebush Bay 6 The stadium played host to six other matches in the World Cup 7 Australia had won the World Cup on two previous occasions in 1991 and 1999 Although England had never won the tournament before they reached the 1991 final losing to Australia 12 6 3 The 2003 final was the 29th match between Australia and England 8 Since Australia and England first played each other in 1909 England won 16 of those meetings including the previous four Australia won 11 and drew once in November 1997 9 The teams had played each other in three of the past four World Cups 10 and the 2003 final was their fourth meeting in the competition s history 8 The most recent match between them before the 2003 World Cup was played at Docklands Stadium in Melbourne on 21 June 2003 a 29 14 victory for England 9 England had won 21 of their previous 22 test matches and Australia had lost four matches before the competition began 11 At the start of the tournament England were ranked first in the inaugural IRB World Rugby Rankings Australia were ranked fourth 12 Route to the final editAustralia edit Australia s route to the final Opponent Result1 Argentina 24 82 Romania 90 83 Namibia 142 04 Ireland 17 16QF Scotland 33 16SF New Zealand 22 10Australia qualified for the tournament as defending champions and were drawn in Pool A with Argentina Ireland Namibia and Romania Their first match against Argentina on 10 October at Stadium Australia was the tournament s opening game 4 Australia led 11 0 after two Elton Flatley penalties and Wendell Sailor s try at 20 minutes which Flatley failed to convert Felipe Contepomi scored Argentina s only penalty seven minutes later before a third Flatley penalty put Australia ahead 13 3 at half time Flatley scored his final penalty to extend Australia s lead before Ignacio Corleto scored a 72nd minute try A Joe Roff try converted by Flatley two minutes later however gave Australia a 24 8 win 13 14 Australia s second pool match was against Romania at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on 18 October 4 They won 90 8 scoring three tries by Mat Rogers two tries each by Matt Burke Stephen Larkham and one try each by Flatley Stirling Mortlock Roff Matt Giteau Lote Tuqiri and George Smith Flatley adding 11 conversions and a penalty Romania s eight points came from a Petrișor Toderașc try and a Ionuț Tofan penalty At 18 seconds Flatley scored the earliest World Cup try 15 The team s third group fixture was against Namibia at Adelaide Oval on 25 October 4 Australia won by a World Cup record margin of 142 0 with a tournament record 22 tries five by Chris Latham three each by Giteau and Tuqiri two each by Rogers and Morgan Turinui and one each by David Lyons Mortlock Jeremy Paul Nathan Grey Matt Burke John Roe Rogers had one penalty try and 16 conversions b 17 Australia concluded their pool matches against Ireland on 1 November at Melbourne s Docklands Stadium George Gregan gave Australia the lead with a drop goal followed with a try by Smith Ronan O Gara s penalty put Ireland five points behind before a Flatley penalty restored Australia s eight point lead A second penalty goal by O Gara gave Australia an 11 6 lead at half time Four minutes into the second half Flatley scored a second penalty before a Brian O Driscoll try converted by O Gara put Ireland one point behind Australia went four points ahead after Flatley s third penalty and despite an O Driscoll drop goal advanced to the quarter finals 17 16 as pool winners 18 Their quarter final was against Scotland at Brisbane s Suncorp Stadium on 8 November 4 The sides were tied 9 9 at half time after three penalties by Flatley and two penalties and a drop goal by Chris Paterson Tries by Mortlock Gregan and Lyons were converted by Flatley who scored his fourth penalty in the second half to put Australia 24 points ahead of Scotland A last minute Robbie Russell try converted by Paterson gave Scotland seven extra points but Australia won the match 33 16 for a place in the semi final 19 They returned to Sydney s Stadium Australia to play New Zealand in their semi final on 15 November Australia opened the scoring at nine minutes when Mortlock scored a try which Flatley converted Flatley scored two penalties to increase Australia s lead before a try by New Zealand s Reuben Thorne converted by Leon MacDonald cut Australia s lead to 13 7 at half time Flatley scored three more penalties in the second half and although MacDonald scored a late penalty for New Zealand Australia held on to win the match 22 10 and a berth in the final 20 England edit England s route to the final Opponent Result1 Georgia 84 62 South Africa 25 63 Samoa 35 224 Uruguay 111 13QF Wales 28 17SF France 24 7England qualified for the finals by reaching the quarter finals of the 1999 World Cup and were placed in Pool C with Georgia Samoa South Africa and Uruguay Their finals campaign began on 12 October at Subiaco Oval in Perth against Georgia 4 The team secured a 84 6 victory with one try each by Mike Tindall Matt Dawson Steve Thompson Neil Back Lawrence Dallaglio Mark Regan Dan Luger and Jason Robinson two tries by Will Greenwood and Ben Cohen and conversions by Jonny Wilkinson and Paul Grayson Wilkinson added two penalties Georgia s six points were penalties by Malkhaz Urjukashvili and Paliko Jimsheladze 21 Six days later England played South Africa at Subiaco Oval 22 The teams were tied 6 6 at half time with two Louis Koen penalties for South Africa and two penalties by England s Wilkinson Two more penalties by Wilkinson followed before he converted a Greenwood try and scored two drop goals to put England at the top of their pool with a 25 6 win 23 Their third group game was against Samoa at Docklands Stadium in Melbourne on 26 October 4 Samoa went ten points ahead with a penalty and a converted try by Earl Va a before England levelled with a Neil Back try converted by Wilkinson after which Wilkinson scored a penalty Two more penalties by Va a and a second penalty by Wilkinson gave Samoa a 16 13 lead at half time England earned a penalty try after Samoa conceded a scrum and Wilkinson converted it to return England to the lead Va a s two subsequent penalties put Samoa back in the lead but England won 35 22 with tries by Wilkinson Iain Balshaw and Vickery Wilkinson converted a second try 24 England s final group match was against Uruguay at Brisbane s Suncorp Stadium on 2 November They had a team World Cup record victory of 111 13 with a national record equalling 17 tries scored by Lewis Moody Josh Lewsey Balshaw Andy Gomarsall Luger Grayson Stuart Abbott and Robinson converted by Grayson or Mike Catt to qualify for the quarter finals as pool winners Uruguay s points came from two first half Juan Menchaca penalties and a second half Pablo Lemoine try converted by Menchaca 25 In the quarter finals England faced Wales at Suncorp Stadium on 9 November 26 England scored the game s first points with a Wilkinson penalty but Wales led 10 3 at half time after tries by Stephen Jones and Colin Charvis which Jones failed to convert England moved 15 points ahead of Wales with a Greenwood try converted by Wilkinson followed by five successive penalties by Wilkinson Martyn Williams scored a try converted by Iestyn Harris to put Wales eight points behind before a last minute Wilkinson drop goal advanced England to the semi finals 28 17 27 England then faced France in the semi finals in wet cold conditions at Stadium Australia on 16 November Wilkinson gave England the lead with a ninth minute penalty before an England line out error allowed Serge Betsen to score a try converted by Frederic Michalak to give France a 7 3 advantage England retook the lead when Wilkinson scored two drop goals and two penalties to give them a 12 7 lead at half time In the second half Wilkinson scored a second drop goal and three more penalties to put England through to the final with a 24 7 victory 28 Match editBefore the match edit Andre Watson a 45 year old retired civil engineer and school rugby fly half from South Africa was selected as referee for the final 29 Watson had refereed two 2003 World Cup matches the New Zealand Wales and Argentina Ireland matches in the group stage 30 He also refereed the 1999 Rugby World Cup Final and a number of Currie Cup and Super 12 finals 29 Watson was assisted by Paddy O Brien and Paul Honiss of New Zealand the two touch judges Joel Jutge and Alain Rolland of France and Ireland were named the fourth and fifth officials respectively and South Africa s Jonathan Kaplan was the television match official 1 Tickets for the final sold out on 22 August 2003 31 The IRB returned an additional 2 000 tickets for the match to the Australian Rugby Union which it sold to the public since 13 November 32 Several Australian and British bookmakers cited England as the favourite to win the match 33 34 Australia coach Eddie Jones noted that World Cup finals were generally disorganised and said that it would be good if the match was contested with a good balance between the important ingredients of rugby and that is contest versus continuity Our responsibility is to play naturally and with freedom and our natural game is to attack so we ll be keeping our part of the bargain If we can get England to and the referee to contribute we should have a great spectacle It could be the world s great game of rugby 11 England coach Clive Woodward was pleased with Australia for their organisation of the tournament and the quality of their players and said about his team s chances for the final My only goal when I left my business to take his job six years ago was to make England the best team in the world and win this thing Now we have a real chance of doing exactly that 35 Woodward added When the tournament began I would have said this was my dream final We have one objective and we re now one game away from achieving it We certainly haven t come out here to finish second 35 nbsp Martin Johnson pictured in 2015 played his last international match for England in the final A closing ceremony was held before the match It began with the release of 18 of 20 inflatable cylindrical figures representing the 20 qualifying teams placed in a circle outside the pitch 36 Kate Ceberano performed Cyndi Lauper s True Colors the competition s official song replacing Kasey Chambers who had withdrawn 37 38 Three young children from the Sydney Children s Choir sang the rugby anthem World in Union as part of the Rugby World Choir 39 The Australian national anthem Advance Australia Fair was performed by Alice Girle and performing arts student Akos Miszlai 40 before the English national anthem God Save the Queen was played by Rugby World Choir members Belinda Evans and James Laing 36 The match was broadcast live on television by the Seven Network in Australia 41 Sportsnet in Canada 42 and on ITV1 and S4C in the United Kingdom 43 The Theatre Broadcasting System of the Department of Defence carried coverage of the final for Australian troops stationed in Baghdad 44 Radio coverage was by ABC Radio on the non commercial programme ABC Radio Grandstand and the commercial Macquarie Network in Australia and by BBC Radio 5 Live in the United Kingdom 45 46 Live sites were set up across Australia and London with large screens to enable the public to watch the final 47 Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer cautioned Australian citizens watching the final abroad to be mindful of their safety after the Istanbul bombings in Turkey 48 The New South Wales Police adjusted its security measures to stop pitch invasions by spectators during the final 49 The British government was represented at the match by Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell 50 Both teams coaches released their line ups on 19 November 51 Australia were without prop Ben Darwin who sustained a prolapsed disc in his neck contacting his spinal cord during a scrum in the team s semi final with New Zealand 52 Coach Eddie Jones replaced Darwin with Al Baxter at the tight head prop position 51 Jones also made Matt Dunning a prop reserve and utility back Giteau replaced Grey as a substitute after Giteau s recovery from an ankle injury in Australia s quarter final with Scotland 53 England coach Clive Woodward made one change to the side which began their semi final against France Tindall replaced Catt who was made a substitute to counter Mortlock s running ability and indicating that England wanted to run more with the ball and not rely on Catt and Wilkinson s dual kicking strategy 51 The final was the last time that captain Martin Johnson and Back represented England both players retired the following year 54 First half edit nbsp Lote Tuqiri scored the first points of the match with a try for Australia in the sixth minute Low cloud cover and sporadic downpours fell in Sydney on the morning of the match it tapered off to a drizzle 35 making the pitch damp 55 The match began before a World Cup record crowd of 82 957 36 at 20 00 local time with Wilkinson kicking the ball into Australia s right hand defence where it was collected by Nathan Sharpe 56 57 At two minutes Rogers threw to Tuqiri it threatened to overlap but went into touch 57 58 A touch judge noticed that Woodman s right fist went outside at the back of a maul and he was reprimanded by Watson 55 59 A penalty on England s 10 yard 9 1 m line was awarded to Australia 56 but the team decided that it was too far for their players and Rogers should kick into touch Australia earned a free kick when England had too many players in a line out but opted for a scrum 55 57 Gregan passed the ball to Larkham whose high shot was directed from right to left 35 55 The taller Tuqiri out jumped Robinson 36 60 and gathered the ball to score a try in the corner after a short run Flatley s attempt to convert the try from the right hand touchline struck the inside of the left hand post preserving Australia s 5 0 lead 35 55 56 Robinson passed some Australian players 55 Lyons committed an infraction in a tackle earning England a penalty kick 58 Wilkinson made it 5 3 after 11 minutes scoring the penalty from 47 m 154 ft 59 Australia got a penalty kick two minutes later when Back held the ball too long in a line out 57 58 England gained possession with breaks by Lewsey but both teams had difficulty handing the ball and were cautioned by Watson 55 At 20 minutes England got a penalty kick when Cohen was tackled by Larkham without the ball 56 57 Larkham sustained a lip injury for which he received medical attention and Giteau was brought in as a blood replacement 56 60 Wilkinson scored the penalty from outside the Australia half to put England ahead 6 5 56 57 At 23 minutes Wilkinson s long drop goal attempt with his left foot went wide 57 59 Two minutes later Ben Kay gathered the ball after Richard Hill kicked it through Australia s defence when Giteau dropped it after a Wilkinson tackle Kay failed to score a try when he was tackled 59 61 Wilkinson sustained a minor shoulder injury when he tackled Giteau 61 In the 28th minute England got another penalty kick after they won a scrum after a Flatley tackle and moved up the pitch 55 56 Wilkinson scored a third penalty goal from a narrow angle to extend England s lead to four points 57 59 Woodman was penalised two minutes later for incorrectly binding during a scrum earning Australia a penalty 57 Flatley failed to score the penalty goal from the left of England s 10 metre 33 ft line 56 Larkham returned to the pitch after 31 minutes following medical treatment of his lip 57 Dallaglio passed Australia s mid pitch defence seven minutes later and passed the ball to Wilkinson 62 who briefly ran with it before making a long pass to the approaching Robinson on his left 2 55 56 Robinson passed Sailor scoring a left corner try 36 61 Wilkinson failed to convert the try almost from the touchline and the first half ended with England leading 14 5 55 Second half edit Flatley began the second half of the match by kicking deep into the England half 56 and England started making errors in a scrum or a line out 62 Seven minutes later England made two errors in succession from consecutive line outs and Australia earned a penalty kick when Dallaglio was penalised for being offside when he thought it was open play Watson however decided that a ruck was being formed 55 57 58 Flatley successfully scored the penalty from inside Australia s half to put Australia three points behind 56 Soon afterwards Australia made a change when David Giffin came on in place of Sharpe 57 In the 53rd minute Dawson and Lewsey made an illegal cross that caused an accidental obstruction and gave Australia a penalty kick inside the England 10 metre 33 ft line 56 59 Flatley kicked for goal from where he could score a try but failed to score the penalty 35 After 56 minutes Australia substituted Larkham for Giteau 57 59 The team made a double substitution one minute later bringing on Paul for Brendan Cannon and Matt Cockbain for Lyons At 58 minutes Australia earned a penalty after Vickery incorrectly bound in a scrum Rogers failed to score the goal The rain began to increase in intensity and both sides made more playing errors 58 In the 61st minute Vickery was informed that he had illegally handled the ball on the floor in a ruck giving Australia a penalty kick 55 56 57 Flatley took the penalty in front of the posts from the 10 metre 33 ft line scoring to put Australia three points behind England 56 62 Watson then called England for three consecutive infractions during scrums 35 A shot by Tindall spun to the right at 68 minutes and Greenwood gathered the ball 56 Greenwood was prevented from scoring a try by a left footed leg tackle from Rogers 57 59 which brought the ball into touch just before the try line 61 After 71 minutes Australia substituted Roff for Sailor 57 After England secured a line out one minute later Lewsey got the ball and passed it to Wilkinson 56 whose second attempt to score a drop goal went wide of the left hand post 55 58 In the 79th minute Catt was brought on for the injured Tindall 56 57 With 90 seconds of regular time remaining 2 Watson penalised England for collapsing a scrum and Woodman s failure to engage on their 22 metre 72 ft line on the right side of the pitch Woodman felt that Australia engaged too early but a penalty kick was awarded to Australia 55 36 Flatley scored the penalty from 15 m 49 ft out on the right of the England half with ten seconds left bringing on extra time with the teams tied 14 14 60 62 Extra time edit nbsp Jonny Wilkinson pictured in 2007 scored the match winning drop goal for England in the last minute of extra time One minute into extra time England substituted Vickery for Leonard England were awarded a penalty kick a minute later when a line out Johnson was pulled down by Justin Harrison 56 57 Wilkinson opted to take the penalty 57 and kicked a shot from 44 m 144 ft out wide on the right which went between the posts and put England back in the lead 55 62 Larkham came off the pitch again for Giteau because he was still bleeding and an injured looking Lewsey came off for Balshaw Catt unsuccessfully attempted to score a drop goal on 89 minutes because Phil Waugh stopped him with a knock on 57 Wilkinson also tried to score a drop goal a minute later but his shot went wide 57 59 This ended the first half of extra time with England leading Australia 17 14 61 At 92 minutes Australia replaced Young with Dunning England substituted Moody for Hill who had a cramp one minute later 56 57 Tuqiri was prevented from scoring a try when Cohen and Robinson were tackled from 5 m 16 ft three minutes later 59 62 Wilkinson held the ball giving Australia a line out 57 England got a penalty line out in the 96th minute when Rogers held onto the ball during a tackle 57 58 Dallaglio was penalised from coming in on the side and handling the ball in a ruck giving Australia a penalty kick at 97 minutes 55 57 Flatley scored the penalty from outside the England area to level the score 17 17 and potentially require a match ending penalty shootout 56 59 With more than one minute remaining England won a line out and moved towards Australia s area three times including a dummy and run by Dawson that broke the line and brought England within drop goal range 2 Dawson passed the ball to Wilkinson 36 who could not be stopped by Gregan and scored a right foot drop goal from 30 m 98 ft out with 28 seconds left to put England back in the lead 55 59 62 No further points were scored Watson blew the final whistle with England winning the match 20 17 for their first Rugby World Cup 35 Details edit 22 November 200320 00 AEDT UTC 11 Australia nbsp 17 20 a e t nbsp EnglandTry Tuqiri 6 mPen Flatley 47 61 80 97 ReportTry Robinson 38 mPen Wilkinson 11 20 28 82 Drop Wilkinson 100 Stadium Australia Sydney Attendance 82 957 1 Referee Andre Watson South Africa 1 nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Australia nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp EnglandFB 15 Mat RogersRW 14 Wendell Sailor nbsp 71 OC 13 Stirling MortlockIC 12 Elton FlatleyLW 11 Lote TuqiriFH 10 Stephen Larkham nbsp temp SH 9 George Gregan c N8 8 David Lyons nbsp 57 OF 7 Phil WaughBF 6 George SmithRL 5 Nathan Sharpe nbsp 48 LL 4 Justin HarrisonTP 3 Al BaxterHK 2 Brendan Cannon nbsp 57 LP 1 Bill Young nbsp 92 Replacements HK 16 Jeremy Paul nbsp 57 PR 17 Matt Dunning nbsp 92 LK 18 David Giffin nbsp 48 N8 19 Matt Cockbain nbsp 57 SH 20 Chris WhitakerFH 21 Matt Giteau nbsp temp WG 22 Joe Roff nbsp 71 Coach nbsp Eddie Jones nbsp FB 15 Josh Lewsey nbsp 86 RW 14 Jason RobinsonOC 12 Mike Tindall nbsp 79 IC c 13 Will GreenwoodLW 11 Ben CohenFH 10 Jonny WilkinsonSH 9 Matt DawsonN8 8 Lawrence DallaglioOF 7 Neil BackBF 6 Richard Hill nbsp 93 RL 5 Ben KayLL 4 Martin Johnson c TP 3 Phil Vickery nbsp 81 HK 2 Steve ThompsonLP 1 Trevor WoodmanReplacements HK 16 Dorian WestPR 17 Jason Leonard nbsp 81 LK 18 Martin CorryFL 19 Lewis Moody nbsp 93 SH 20 Kyran BrackenFH 21 Mike Catt nbsp 79 FB 22 Iain Balshaw nbsp 86 Coach nbsp Clive WoodwardMan of the Match 64 Jonny Wilkinson England Touch judges 1 Paddy O Brien New Zealand Paul Honiss New Zealand Television match official 1 Jonathan Kaplan South Africa Fourth official 1 Joel Jutge France Fifth official 1 Alain Rolland Ireland Match rules 43 80 minutes 20 minutes of extra time if necessary Penalty shootout if still tied Seven named eligible substitutesStatistics edit Overall 65 Statistic Australia EnglandTries 1 1Conversions 0 0Penalties 4 4Dropped goals 0 1Scrums 12 9Possession 42 58 Territory 46 54 Yellow cards 0 0Red cards 0 0Aftermath edit nbsp Celebration in LondonEngland was the first Northern Hemisphere nation to win the Rugby World Cup ending 16 years of Southern Hemisphere dominance 35 IRB chairman Syd Millar presented the runner up medals to the Australian side The victorious England team received their medals from Australian Prime Minister John Howard before Johnson held up the Webb Ellis Cup presented to him by Howard 66 The England team then took a lap of honour around the stadium 35 Wilkinson was named man of the match and won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award 64 67 Every member of England s playing and senior coaching staff was appointed at least a Member of Order of the British Empire in the 2004 New Year Honours 68 In May 2004 the England squad received the Laureus World Sports Award for Team of the Year and Woodward was knighted 69 According to Woodward the victory was very important and it is just a big thank you to the Premiership clubs and the Rugby Football Union We have just put the icing on the cake and we want to keep this going 70 His counterpart Jones conceded that the better side won the final 35 You slug it out for 100 minutes and get beaten in the 99th yeah that would qualify as a photo finish England were outstanding and are the best team in the world by one minute 70 Wilkinson explained why he scored a drop final in the last minute of the match I didn t want the game to go to a drop goal competition I just wanted to win so much for the other guys I had to make sure I hit the target when the chance came my way 35 In a 2019 interview with BBC Sport he described the goal as not a memory that I treasure because I don t have much memory of it but just an experience which gave me a glimpse of life a little bit outside the boundaries of what I thought was possible something bigger 71 Cannon described the drop goal as like witnessing a car accident you know it s about to happen but you don t want it to happen 72 Dawson said the win was very surreal after England s comeback from elimination in the quarter final stage of the 1999 tournament 35 Greenwood said that during the match and when he received his World Cup winners medal he thought about his son Freddie who died shortly after he was born in 2002 73 Gregan said that although the Australian team were disappointed they had a good deal of pride there as well It was a gutsy effort coming down to the last play of the game My team didn t leave anything out so I couldn t ask for anything more 74 Injured prop Darwin said that he was frustrated to be unable to play in the final 72 Flatley described the pressure he felt when scoring the two penalty goals which meant that the match would go into extra time I had my hands together praying and I didn t see either kick I had my eyes closed It was scary pressure There wasn t a great deal going on in my head I just had to knock them over 75 Although Rogers blamed himself for the loss because he had been unable to clear the ball in the final minute Flatley told him that he was not to blame A million things go on and in a game like that you can t really put it down to one thing It wasn t like I was about to slit my wrists or anything but I was hoping to kick it up a bit further and make it even harder for them to score 76 Watson s refereeing was criticised by the media and rugby world figures 55 77 Woodward s assistant Andy Robinson asked Watson during the post match celebrations why England were penalised for scrum infringements and was told to review the video footage 77 78 Watson defended his decisions I was satisfied with my handling of the match and that includes the scrum infringements I ref what I see and nothing else and I was happy with my performance If there were any problems they will have been noted by the IRB and I have not had any comebacks from them 78 The team left Sydney on the evening of 24 November and arrived at Heathrow Airport greeted by 8 000 to 10 000 people early the next morning 68 Johnson holding the trophy was the first player to appear and Swing Low Sweet Chariot was sung 79 A national day of celebration was organised by the Rugby Football Union on 8 December and was seen by almost a million people 68 The team paraded in open top buses from Marble Arch to Trafalgar Square 68 Ken Livingstone the Mayor of London awarded the squad the freedom of Greater London The team then met the queen and other senior royal family members at Buckingham Palace followed by a reception at 10 Downing Street with Prime Minister Tony Blair 80 The match viewership on ITV1 peaked overnight at around 14 5 million 82 percent of the British viewership between 11 20 and 11 25 am and averaged 12 3 million a 77 per cent viewing share 81 it had a final peak rating of 15 million viewers This was the highest viewership in the United Kingdom of a rugby union match since the 1991 Rugby World Cup Final was watched by an average of 13 6 million 82 The Seven Network s coverage of the final had a nationwide average of four million viewers in Australia and peaked at a total of 4 3 million viewers making it the most watched football game in the history of Australian television 83 Global audience figures for the 2003 Rugby World Cup final totalled between 22 and 30 million 36 82 At the next World Cup hosted by France in 2007 England reached the final for the third time in tournament history before they were defeated by South Africa 15 6 Australia advanced from their group as winners before they were knocked out in the quarter final stage by England 84 See also editCook Cup List of Rugby World Cup finalsNotes and references editNotes edit New Zealand were due to co host the tournament but the IRB forced the nation to withdraw in April 2002 over a disagreement about ground signage rights 2 As of 2021 update this is the only occasion in which Australia have scored 100 points in one game and it is Namibia s most significant loss 16 Will Greenwood for superstitious reasons prefers to play wearing the number 13 shirt even when selected to play inside centre 63 References edit a b c d e f g h Jenkins Graham 22 November 2003 England clinch World Cup crown Scrum com Archived from the original on 13 January 2004 Retrieved 19 December 2021 a b c d e Welch 2007 pp 70 73 a b 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Peatey 2011 pp 179 203 204 Bibliography edit Team England Rugby 2003 World Cup 2003 The official Account of England s World Cup triumph London England Orion Media ISBN 0 7528 6048 8 via Open Library Jones Stephen 2004 On My Knees The Pains and Passions of England s Attempt on the 2003 Rugby World Cup Edinburgh Scotland Mainstream Publishing ISBN 1 84018 708 5 via Open Library Welch Ian 2007 England Beat Australia in the World Cup Final 2003 Greatest Moments of Rugby Swindon Wiltshire Green Umbrella Publishing ISBN 978 1 906229 40 5 via Open Library Peatey Lance 2011 2007 A Complete History of the Rugby World Cup In Pursuit of Bill Second ed Croydon South London New Holland Publishers ISBN 978 1 78009 219 5 via Open Library Tait Paul 2013 Rugby World Cups 2003 and 2015 What s happened in between and can England repeat the success Luton Bedfordshire Andrews UK ISBN 978 1 78333 353 0 Ceberano Kate Gilling Tom 2014 I m Talking My Life My Words My Music eBook ed Didcot Oxfordshire Hachette UK ISBN 978 0 7336 3038 5 Clark Joe 2015 Rugby World Cup A History in 50 Greatest Games Durrington West Sussex Pitch Publishing ISBN 978 1 78531 053 9 via Open Library Smith Martin ed 2015 The Telegraph Book of the Rugby World Cup Islington London Aurum Press ISBN 978 1 78131 493 7 via Open Library Hawkes Chris 2015 2012 World Rugby Records Fourth ed London England Carlton Books ISBN 978 1 78097 719 5 via Open Library External links editAustralia v England Final rwc2003 irb com Australia 17 20 England Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 2003 Rugby World Cup final amp oldid 1216958602, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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