1997 Five Nations Championship

Last updated

1997 Five Nations Championship
Date18 January – 15 March 1997
CountriesFlag of England.svg  England
Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France
IRFU flag.svg  Ireland
Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales
Tournament statistics
Champions Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France (11th title)
Grand Slam Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France (5th title)
Triple Crown Flag of England.svg  England (20th title)
Matches played10
Tries scored50 (5 per match)
Top point scorer(s) Flag of England.svg Paul Grayson (52 points)
Top try scorer(s) Flag of France (lighter variant).svg David Venditti
Flag of France (lighter variant).svg Laurent Leflamand (4 tries)
1996 (Previous)(Next) 1998

The 1997 Five Nations Championship was the sixty-eighth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-third series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends from 18 January to 15 March, the crucial match being in Weekend 4 where England inexplicably threw away a 20–6 lead at Twickenham with quarter of the match to go and were pipped by France. France went on to win their first Grand Slam in ten years; England defeated the other Home Nations by large margins to win the Triple Crown. It was the last time that France played at the Parc des Princes, in Paris. Since then, the French team has been playing in the Stade de France, also in Paris. [1]

Contents

Participants

The teams involved were:

NationVenueCityHead coachCaptain
Flag of England.svg  England Twickenham Stadium London Jack Rowell Phil de Glanville
Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France Parc des Princes Paris Jean-Claude Skrela Abdelatif Benazzi
IRFU flag.svg  Ireland Lansdowne Road Dublin Brian Ashton Keith Wood/Jim Staples
Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland Murrayfield Stadium Edinburgh Jim Telfer Rob Wainwright
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales National Stadium Cardiff Kevin Bowring Jonathan Humphreys

Squads

Table

PosTeamPldWDLPFPAPDPts
1Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France 440012977+528
2Flag of England.svg  England 430114155+866
3Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 410394106122
4Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland 410390132422
5IRFU flag.svg  Ireland 410357141842
Source: [ citation needed ]

Results

Week 1

18 January 1997
15:00
Ireland  IRFU flag.svg15–32Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France
Pen: Elwood (5) Report Try: Galthié
Venditti (3)
Con: Castaignède (3)
Pen: Castaignède (2)
Lansdowne Road, Dublin
Attendance: 53,000
Referee: Andre Watson (South Africa)

18 January 1997
15:00
Scotland  Flag of Scotland.svg19–34Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales
Try: S. Hastings
Con: Shepherd
Pen: Shepherd (3)
Drop: Chalmers
Report Try: Evans
N. Jenkins
S. Quinnell
A. Thomas
Con: N. Jenkins (4)
Pen: N. Jenkins (2)
Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Attendance: 67,500
Referee: Bertie Smith (Ireland)

Week 2

1 February 1997
15:00
England  Flag of England.svg41–13Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Try: Penalty try
Carling
De Glanville
Gomarsall
Con: Grayson (3)
Pen: Grayson (5)
Report Try: Eriksson
Con: Shepherd
Pen: Shepherd (2)
Twickenham, London
Attendance: 75,000
Referee: Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand)

1 February 1997
15:00
Wales  Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg25–26IRFU flag.svg  Ireland
Try: Evans (2)
S. Quinnell
Con: N. Jenkins (2)
Pen: N. Jenkins (2)
Report Try: Bell
Hickie
Miller
Con: Elwood (1)
Pen: Elwood (3)
National Stadium, Cardiff
Attendance: 53,000
Referee: Wayne Erickson (Australia)

Week 3

15 February 1997
15:00
France  Flag of France (lighter variant).svg27–22Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales
Try: Leflamand (2)
Merle
Venditti
Con: Aucagne (1)
Dourthe (1)
Pen: Aucagne
Report Try: Bateman
Howley
G. Thomas
Con: N. Jenkins (2)
Pen: N. Jenkins
Parc des Princes, Paris
Attendance: 46,000
Referee: Peter Marshall (Australia)

15 February 1997
15:00
Ireland  IRFU flag.svg6–46Flag of England.svg  England
Pen: Elwood (2) Report Try: Gomarsall
Hill
Sleightholme (2)
T. Underwood (2)
Con: Grayson (2)
Pen: Grayson (4)
Lansdowne Road, Dublin
Attendance: 51,898
Referee: Colin Hawke (New Zealand)

Week 4

1 March 1997
15:00
England  Flag of England.svg20–23Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France
Try: Dallaglio
Pen: Grayson (4)
Drop: Grayson
Report Try: Lamaison
Leflamand
Con: Lamaison (2)
Pen: Lamaison (2)
Drop: Lamaison
Twickenham, London
Attendance: 75,000
Referee: Jim Fleming (Scotland)

1 March 1997
15:00
Scotland  Flag of Scotland.svg38–10IRFU flag.svg  Ireland
Try: Stanger
Tait
Townsend
Walton
Weir
Con: Shepherd (5)
Pen: Shepherd
Report Try: Hickie
Con: Humphreys
Pen: Humphreys
Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Attendance: 67,500
Referee: Gareth Simmonds (Wales)

Week 5

15 March 1997
15:00
France  Flag of France (lighter variant).svg47–20Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Try: Benazzi
Leflamand
Magne
Tournaire
Con: Lamaison (3)
Pen: Lamaison (6)
Drop: Sadourny
Report Try: Tait (2)
Con: Shepherd (2)
Pen: Shepherd (2)
Parc des Princes, Paris
Attendance: 49,000
Referee: Ed Morrison (England)

15 March 1997
15:00
Wales  Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg13–34Flag of England.svg  England
Try: Howley
Con: J. Davies
Pen: J. Davies (2)
Report Try: De Glanville
Hill
Stimpson
T. Underwood
Con: Catt (4)
Pen: Catt (2)
National Stadium, Cardiff
Attendance: 53,000
Referee: Joel Dume (France)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Six Nations Championship</span> Annual international rugby union competition

The Six Nations Championship is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The championship holders are Ireland, who won the 2023 tournament, while the 2024 Six Nations Championship is currently in progress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">England national rugby union team</span> Sports team

The England men's national rugby union team represents the Rugby Football Union in men's international rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. England have won the championship on 29 occasions, winning the Grand Slam 14 times and the Triple Crown 26 times, making them the most successful outright winners in the tournament's history. They are currently the only team from the Northern Hemisphere to win the Rugby World Cup, having won the tournament in 2003, and have been runners-up on three further occasions.

The France national rugby union team represents the French Rugby Federation in men's international rugby union matches. Colloquially known as Le XV de France, the team traditionally wears blue shirts with a Gallic rooster embroidered on the chest, white shorts and red socks in reference to the French national flag. Les Bleus mostly play home matches at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, near Paris. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship along with England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. France have won the tournament on 26 occasions, winning the Grand Slam 10 times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">France national rugby league team</span> Represents France in international rugby league

The France national rugby league team represents France in international rugby league matches. They are referred to as les Chanticleers or less commonly as les Tricolores. The team is run under the auspices of the Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII.

The 1982 Five Nations Championship was the fifty-third series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eighty-eighth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 16 January and 20 March. The winner of the championship was Ireland, with three wins and one defeat. It was the team's ninth title. Ireland also won the Triple Crown, its fifth such honour, its first since 1949 and last one until 1985. The team's only defeat came on the final day of the competition, losing 22-9 to France in Paris, denying the Irish what would have been only their second ever Grand Slam.

The 1974 Five Nations Championship was the forty-fifth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eightieth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 19 January and 16 March. It was contested by England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The championship was won by Ireland, the team's eighth outright title.

The 1978 Five Nations Championship was the forty-ninth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eighty-fourth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 21 January and 18 March. The tournament was contested by England, France, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The championship was won by Wales, their twentieth outright win in the competition. The Welsh had shared another nine titles with other teams. Having won all four of their games, Wales also won the Grand Slam for a record eighth time - Wales had formerly shared the record of seven with England. Victories over England, Ireland and Scotland, also meant Wales won the Triple Crown for the third consecutive time, a record, given no other team had ever won the Triple Crown more than twice in a row. It was Wales' fifteenth in total, also a record, surpassing the fourteen won by England.

The French national rugby union team first competed at the 1900 Summer Olympics.

The 1999 Five Nations Championship was the seventieth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-fifth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends from 6 February to 11 April. The tournament was won by Scotland, who beat England on points difference. Scotland scored sixteen tries in the tournament, to England's eight.

The 1998 Five Nations Championship was the sixty-ninth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-fourth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends from 7 February to 5 April. France won it with a Grand Slam. England had the consolation of winning the Triple Crown, the Calcutta Cup and the Millennium Trophy.

The 1996 Five Nations Championship was the sixty-seventh series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship, and the first in the sport's professional era, which officially began in August 1995. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-second series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends from 20 January to 16 March. England were the winners, losing only the first game with France, thus missing the Grand Slam, but winning the Triple Crown. France went into the final week needing a victory to clinch the championship themselves thanks to superior points difference, but lost by a single point to Wales, who not only avoided a whitewash but climbed above Ireland on points difference in doing so.

The 1995 Five Nations Championship was the 66th Five Nations Championship, the annual Northern Hemisphere rugby union competition contested by the national teams of England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It was also the last Five Nations held in the sport's amateur era, as rugby union's governing body, the International Rugby Football Board, opened the sport to professionalism on August 26 of that year. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-first series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends from 21 January to 18 March. It was also the fifth occasion, after 1978, 1984, 1990 and 1991, on which two teams each with three victories faced off against each other in the final round of matches, with both capable of completing a Grand Slam with a victory, and the second time that the Triple Crown had also been at stake at the same time, as a result of England and Scotland's earlier victories over the other Home Nations. The tournament took a surprisingly similar course to five years earlier, where England and Scotland both won their first three matches and met in the final week, with an undefeated record, a Grand Slam, Triple Crown and the Calcutta Cup all at stake for the victor: however, this time it was England who prevailed in the deciding match. Even the minor placings were the same as in 1990, as France came third, Ireland fourth and Wales were whitewashed.

The 1991 Five Nations Championship was the 62nd series of the Five Nations Championship, an annual rugby union competition between the major Northern Hemisphere rugby union national teams. The tournament consisted of ten matches held between 19 January and 16 March 1991.

The 1990 Five Nations Championship was the 61st series of the Five Nations Championship, an annual rugby union competition between the major rugby union national teams in Europe. The tournament consisted of ten matches held between 20 January and 24 March 1990.

The 1989 Five Nations Championship was the 60th series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the 95th series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends between 21 January and 18 March. France won it with three wins and one defeat, while none of the other four teams was able to win the Triple Crown. England entered the final round of matches knowing that a win would give them at least a share of the championship, but were overturned in Cardiff as Wales scored their only victory of the season. Scotland also could have taken the championship had they won in France - even a draw would have been enough, thanks to England's defeat - but France won the game to seal the title.

The 1988 Five Nations Championship was the 59th series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the ninety–fourth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends between 16 January and 19 March. Wales and France were declared joint winners with six points each; it was the most recent time the Championship was shared between two or more nations as the rules were changed in 1994 to make such an event unlikely.

The 1987 Five Nations Championship was the fifty-eighth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the ninety-third series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played over five weekends between 7 February and 4 April. This was the last time the championship would be interrupted by weather conditions until the Six Nations of 2012. France won with a Grand Slam, for the fourth time, while England won the Calcutta Cup, in their only win. Originally the opening matches of the Championship were due to be played on the 24th January with England v Scotland at Twickenham and Wales v Ireland at Cardiff but both matches were called off due to the bad weather and postponed till the 4th April

The 1977 Five Nations Championship was the forty-eighth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eighty-third series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 15 January and 19 March.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1959 Five Nations Championship</span>

The 1959 Five Nations Championship was the thirtieth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the sixty-fifth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 10 January and 18 April. It was contested by England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. France won the title outright for the first time, after two shared wins in 1954 and 1955.

The 1960 Five Nations Championship was the thirty-first series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the sixty-sixth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 9 January and 9 April. It was contested by England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

References

  1. Mick Cleary and John Griffiths, ed. (1997). Rothmans Rugby Union Yearbook 1997–98. London: Headline Book Publishing. ISBN   0 7472 7732 X.