2003 Rugby World Cup

5th Rugby World Cup June 2026 August 2020 RWC2003logo.svg 250px 10 October 22 November (44 days) Australia 20 (80 qualifying) 11 (in 10 host cities) England (1st title) Australia New Zealand 48 1838847 ENG Jonny Wilkinson (113) NZL Doug HowlettNZL Mils Muliaina(7 tries each) 1999 2007 thumb|England 2003 World Cup winners The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Union and Rugby World Cup Limited. The pre-event favourites were England, regarded by many at the time as the best team in the world. New Zealand, France, South Africa and defending champions Australia were also expected to make strong showings, with New Zealand being second favourites after victory in the southern-hemisphere Tri-Nations championship. The tournament began with host nation Australia defeating Argentina 24–8 at Stadium Australia in Sydney. Australia went on to defeat New Zealand 22–10 in the semi-final, to play England in the final. Along with a try to Jason Robinson, Jonny Wilkinson kicked four penalties and then a drop-goal in extra time to win the game 20–17 for England, who became the first northern hemisphere team to win the Webb Ellis Cup and the only one 2025 yes (with their only title). Qualifying 2003 Rugby World Cup qualifying The following 20 teams, shown by region, qualified for the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Of the 20 teams, eight of those places were automatically filled by the teams that reached the quarter-final stages in 1999, including hosts and world champions Australia and did not have to play any qualification matches. A record 81 nations from five continents were involved in the qualification process designed to fill the remaining 12 spots, which began on 23 September 2000. AfricaAmericasEuropeOceania/AsiaNAM (Africa) RSAARG CAN (Americas 1) USA (Repechage 1) URU (Americas 2)ENG FRA 1974 IRE (Europe 1) ITA (Europe 2) ROU (Europe 3) SCO GEO 1990 (Europe 4) WALAUS FIJ (Oceania 1) NZL SAM (Oceania 2) TGA (Repechage 2) JPN (Asia) Host Rugby World Cup hosts Hosting rights to the tournament were initially awarded to both Australia and New Zealand; Australia would serve as the primary host, staging 25 of the 48 matches, while the other 23 would be played in New Zealand. Concerns were expressed in January 2001 that Australia might have been stripped of hosting rights after the International Rugby Board (IRB) removed official status from the 2001 Brisbane Sevens in response to the Australian government denying entry visas to the Fiji team; despite this, the IRB confirmed that Australia was still confirmed as host nation.IRB confirms Australia as 2003 World Cup hosts https://www.espn.com/rugby/story/_/id/15348818/irb-confirms-australia-2003-world-cup-hosts ESPNscrum ESPN Enterprises 14 January 2001 18 October 2023 In March 2002, the Australian Rugby Union withdrew its offer to allow New Zealand to co-host the tournament after New Zealand Rugby failed to return the sub-host agreement by the deadline of 04:00 GMT on 8 March 2002. The New Zealand governing body had returned the documents, but with substantial changes relating to signage inside stadiums. New Zealand Rugby had intended for the annual National Provincial Championship to take place during the World Cup, and insisted on being able to honour its agreement with local sponsors, but this was not acceptable to the IRB. The ARU was then given 21 days to come up with alternative arrangements.New Zealand loses Cup status https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/1861398.stm BBC Sport 8 March 2002 18 October 2023 Australia's new plans were ratified at an IRB meeting on 18 April 2003, confirming them as sole hosts of the tournament.NZ loses Rugby World Cup https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/international/1937084.stm BBC Sport 18 April 2002 18 October 2023 The IRB was criticised from some quarters for its decision to strip New Zealand of the World Cup, and speaking to BBC Sport, former New Zealand number 8 Zinzan Brooke called on his former team to threaten a boycott of tournament.Brooke backs Kiwi withdrawal https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/international/1937370.stm BBC Sport 18 April 2002 18 October 2023 New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said the IRB and the ARU had not given enough time to find a solution;Kiwi rugby fights back https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/international/1938692.stm BBC Sport 19 April 2002 18 October 2023 however, the head of the ARU, John O'Neill, said he feared Australia could lose the World Cup entirely as a result of the disagreement.Australia 'could have lost World Cup' https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/international/1943018.stm BBC Sport 22 April 2002 18 October 2023 Venues thumb|The Opening Ceremony at Stadium Australia The overall stadium capacity was 421,311 across 11 venues. This was a reduction from the 1999 Rugby World Cup in Wales (with games also held in England, France, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland) which had a total capacity of 654,677 across 18 venues. The Adelaide Oval underwent a AU$20 million redevelopment for the 2003 Rugby World Cup, financed entirely by the South Australian Cricket Association, with two new grandstands built adjacent to the Victor Richardson Gates. Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane (formerly Lang Park) was a new A$280 million venue designed specifically for rugby league, rugby union and soccer, and was opened just prior to the start of the 2003 World Cup with a capacity of 52,500, some 12,000 more than the old Lang Park could hold. The Central Coast Stadium was also a newly built rectangular venue built for union, league and soccer. It was built on the site of the old Grahame Park ground and was opened in February 2000 at a cost of A$30 million. The Sydney Football Stadium was one of two venues in Sydney that were used for football during the 2000 Olympic Games. The other venue in Sydney was Stadium Australia, which was the centrepiece of the 2000 Olympic Games. It was built as the main stadium of the 2000 Olympics at a cost of $690 million and with a capacity of 83,500 was the biggest stadium used in the 2003 World Cup (the stadium had an original capacity of 110,000 before undergoing a post-Olympics redevelopment from 2001 to 2003). The only stadium with a retractable roof used was the Docklands Stadium in Melbourne. Although the Docklands Stadium has movable seating which brings four sections of the lower bowl forward by 18 metres to create a more rectangular surround for the pitch, this was not used during the World Cup as it reduces the seating capacity of the stadium by approximately 3,500. Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Stadium Australia Sydney Football Stadium Docklands Stadium Lang Park Capacity: 83,500 Capacity: 42,500 Capacity: 56,347 Capacity: 52,500 185px 180px 195px 185px Perth Adelaide Subiaco Oval Adelaide Oval Capacity: 42,922center Australia 350 Australia -33.86 151.12 Australia -34.16 151.82 0 Sydney right Australia -34.4278 150.8931 Australia -34.3278 150.8931 0 Wollongong left Australia -35.30 149.12 Canberra bottom Australia -19.25 146.81 Townsville left Australia -27.46 153.03 Brisbane left Australia -34.9285 138.6007 Adelaide left Australia -41.4332 147.1441 Launceston Australia -37.81 144.96 Melbourne bottom Australia -33.4267 151.3417 Gosford top Australia -31.95 115.85 Perth right Capacity: 33,597 185px 185px Townsville Canberra Willows Sports Complex Canberra Stadium Capacity: 26,500 Capacity: 25,011 185px 185px Gosford Launceston Wollongong Central Coast Stadium York Park Wollongong Showground Capacity: 20,059 Capacity: 19,891 Capacity: 18,484 185px 220px 185px Squads 2003 Rugby World Cup squads Referees ARG Pablo De Luca AUS Andrew Cole AUS Stuart Dickinson AUS Scott Young AUS Peter Marshall ENG Chris White ENG Tony Spreadbury FRA 1974 Joël Jutge IRE rugby union Alain Rolland IRE rugby union David McHugh NZL Paul Honiss NZL Paddy O'Brien NZL Steve Walsh RSA Jonathan Kaplan RSA André Watson WAL Nigel Williams Touch judges and television match officials FRA 1974 Joël Dumé IRE rugby union Donal Courtney IRE rugby union Alan Lewis ITA Giulio de Santis NZL Kelvin Deaker SCO Iain Ramage RSA Mark Lawrence WAL Nigel Whitehouse Source:http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby/news/article.cfm?c_id=80&objectid=3526808 The whistlers that contol the cup The New Zealand Herald 11 February 2018 2 October 2003 Pools and format Pool APool BPool CPool DAUS IRE ARG NAM ROMFRA 1974 USA JPN FIJ SCORSA ENG SAM GEO 1990 URUNZL WAL ITA CAN TGA Following criticism of the complex format used in the 1999 Rugby World Cup a new simpler format was introduced and the twenty teams were divided into four pools of five nations, with the top two in each pool moving on to the knock-out quarter-final stage. With forty matches to be played in the pool stage on top of the knock-out matches would make the event the largest Rugby World Cup tournament to be played to date. For the first time, a bonus point system was implemented in pool play. This system is identical to that long used in Southern Hemisphere tournaments, and was soon adopted in most European competitions (though not in the Six Nations until 2017): 4 points for a win 2 points for a draw 0 points for a loss (before possible bonus points) 1 bonus point for scoring 4 or more tries, or a loss by 7 points or fewer A total of 48 matches (40 pool stage and eight knock-out) were played throughout the tournament over 42 days from 10 October to 22 November 2003. Summary Pool stage thumb|Stadium Australia before the 2003 Rugby World Cup opening game between Australia and Argentina The Australian media criticised the competition early in the tournament as the smaller nations were crushed by the rugby superpowers by 60 points or more, in particular a 142–0 victory by the host nation over Namibia, the largest winning margin in Rugby World Cup history. However, some of these smaller, third-tier nations, such as Japan, acquitted themselves well in their opening matches. The South Pacific island countries of Fiji, Tonga and Samoa were reported as being handicapped by several of their foreign-based key players being warned by their clubs that their contracts would not be renewed if they played in the competition.December 2020 The pool stage of the competition played out largely as expected, with some tension as to whether some of the "developing" nations would overtake some of the weaker major countries for the second quarter-final qualification place in each pool – in Pool A, Argentina lost to Ireland by only one point, when a victory would have carried them into the quarter-finals in Ireland's place; in Pool B, Fiji narrowly missed out on a quarter-final berth, having led Scotland 20–15 with five minutes to go in their deciding match, only for a yellow card to lock Apenisa Naevo to allow Scotland to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat with a late converted try; in Pool D, Italy, despite missing the knockout stage, put up a good performance with two victories. In Pool C, Samoa gave England a fright with an adventurous approach that allowed them to take an early lead, but England overcame the early deficit and eventually won. This match was marked by controversy, as England technically fielded 16 players for 30 seconds during the game when Dan Luger came onto the pitch in substitution for Mike Tindall, who was receiving treatment for an injury but still on the pitch. England were fined £10,000 as a result.thefreelibrary.com The big clashes ran mainly to form. South Africa came through the pool in second place, after they lost to England, which meant a quarter-final against New Zealand. Australia, however, only beat Ireland by one point to top their pool, while Wales pushed the All Blacks to the wire in arguably the most entertaining game of the entire tournament; adopting a hyper-attacking style of play, they led 37–33 with just 20 minutes left, but New Zealand eventually proved too much in the 12-try thriller. France meanwhile routed Scotland to set up a quarter-final against Ireland. Knockout stage The quarter-final stage produced the widely predicted set of semi-finalists, although England again made heavy weather of defeating a resurgent Wales. England were widely rated the world's best team, but they struggled, at least in the first half, against a Welsh side full of belief after their game against New Zealand. However, spurred into action after the tactical substitution of Catt for Luger and by a Will Greenwood try, set up by a remarkable run by Jason Robinson from inside his own half, England pulled away in the second half, until a late Welsh try gave the scoreline the respectability that their first-half performance had deserved. France destroyed an Irish side who had gone into the match hopeful of a win, scoring 31 early points to put the game out of reach. In the other quarter-finals, a disappointing South Africa fell to a clinical New Zealand and Australia comprehensively defeated the Scots. The first semi-final produced the first significant upset of the tournament, when Australia defeated the fancied New Zealand to become the first defending champions to reach the following championship final. Unfortunately, it was the last match for Australian star Ben Darwin, who badly injured his neck in a scrum. Although Darwin never played rugby again, the actions of Kees Meeuws – who immediately stopped exerting pressure when he heard the call "neck neck neck" – may well have saved his opponent's life and certainly prevented further injury. The match was decided by a Stirling Mortlock interception try, after a loose pass from highly rated All Blacks fly-half Carlos Spencer, and the excellent kicking of inside-centre Elton Flatley. George Gregan taunted his opponents in defeat with the comment, "Four more years boys, four more years".youtube.comhttp://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-news/opinion/2398842/Cup-won-t-be-empty-for-three-more-years https://web.archive.org/web/20090515200314/http://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-news/opinion/2398842/Cup-won-t-be-empty-for-three-more-years dead 15 May 2009 Cup won't be empty for three more years Devlin Martin 10 May 2009 Sunday News 14 September 2011 The second semi-final saw France face England. The boot of Jonny Wilkinson was the difference between the two sides, with England coming out victors in torrential rain: although France scored the game's only try after an early English line-out error, they never seriously threatened the English line otherwise. With handling and place-kicking being so difficult in the wet and windy conditions (Wilkinson missed three kicks at goal, and Michalak missed four), England's superior forward pressure and territorial control forced France to concede a slew of penalties, of which Wilkinson kicked five, also adding three drop goals (two off his less-favoured right boot) - a remarkable display considering that the swirling winds made accurate kicking as difficult as the rain and mud made passing and running. French ill-discipline also cost them dear, with winger Christophe Dominici and flanker Serge Betsen both receiving yellow-cards for foul play: the former for a cynical trip on Jason Robinson, the latter for a late tackle on Wilkinson. New Zealand played France in the third-place playoff, and New Zealand avenged their shock defeat to France in the semi-finals at the 1999 World Cup, running in 6 tries in a 40-13 demolition. Mils Muliaina and Doug Howlett scored a try a-piece, finishing as the tournament's joint-leading try-scorers with 7 tries. Final 2003 Rugby World Cup final The final between Australia and England was played at Sydney's Stadium Australia in front of a crowd of 82,957, and was refereed by veteran South African official André Watson, in so doing becoming the first, and so far only, referee to officiate two Rugby World Cup finals. Australia opened the scoring after they decided to run a penalty instead of kicking for touch. Lote Tuqiri beat England's right wing, Jason Robinson, to a high cross-field kick and went over for the first try, but Elton Flatley was not able to add the conversion. thumb|left|Celebrations in Trafalgar Square The rest of the half was a tight affair, with England edging in front from applying pressure and Jonny Wilkinson's boot put them up to a 9–5 lead after Australian indiscipline gave away several penalties, but were unable to capitalise on their territory. Towards the end of the first half, England stretched their lead further. Lawrence Dallaglio made a break and popped the ball inside to Jonny Wilkinson, who drew the defence before putting Robinson away in the corner for a try. The conversion was missed, but England went in at half time leading by 14–5. In the second half Australia tightened their discipline, and solid play forced mistakes from England. The game swung from end to end, with both sides having try-scoring opportunities, but neither able to take them. Australia managed to get points on the board and Elton Flatley scored two penalties to make the score 14–11 to England. In the 79th minute, Australia were putting pressure on England in their half, and Australia were awarded a penalty right before full-time, with the potential to tie the scores. Flatley converted it to make the score 14–14 and take the game into an additional 20 minutes' extra time. England opened the scoring in extra time with another Wilkinson penalty, but with two and a half minutes of extra time remaining Australia were awarded another penalty, which Flatley kicked successfully. With 20 seconds left before sudden death, Wilkinson scored a drop goal to win the match and with it the world championship. Post-final After the final, Australian Prime Minister John Howard was widely criticised for his behaviour during the presentation ceremony.https://www.smh.com.au/sport/excruciating-trophy-presentations-20100313-q5b9.html Excruciating trophy presentations Tate Andrew 13 March 2010 The Sydney Morning Herald 2019-11-02 The offhand manner in which he presented the Webb Ellis Cup to the England captain was seen by many as a graceless piece of bad sportsmanship not befitting such a climactic sporting spectacle. Three days after the final, the World Cup winning England team landed at Heathrow Airport in the early hours of the morning, emerging from their plane to a huge reception, despite the time.England rugby heroes arrive home https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/rugby_world_cup/3232174.stm BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation) 25 November 2003 7 June 2006 On 8 December, a national day of celebration took place in the form of a massive victory parade in the streets of London.Visa International Renews Rugby World Cup Partnership corporate.visa.com http://www.corporate.visa.com/md/nr/press269.jsp 25 April 2006 https://web.archive.org/web/20060427071525/http://www.corporate.visa.com/md/nr/press269.jsp 27 April 2006 dead Pool stage Pool A 2003 Rugby World Cup Pool A main WDL Q n 4 y points AUS AUS IRE IRE ARG ARG ROM ROM NAM NAM 4 0 0 273 32 3 0 1 141 56 2 0 2 140 57 1 0 3 65 192 0 0 4 28 310 2 3 3 1 #ccffcc Quarter-finals QF QF complete 10 October 2003 AUS 24–8 ARG Sailor 20'Roff 74' Flatley Flatley (4) Corleto 72' M. Contepomi Stadium Australia, Sydney 81,350 Paul Honiss (New Zealand) 11 October 2003 IRE 45–17 ROM S. HorganWoodHickie (2)Costello Humphreys (3)O'Gara Humphreys (4) Penalty tryMaftei TofanVioreanu Tofan Central Coast Stadium, Gosford 19,123 Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa) 14 October 2003 ARG 67–14 NAM MéndezBouza (2)J. Fernández MirandaPenalty try (2)Gaitán (3)N. Fernández Miranda Quesada (7) Quesada GroblerHusselman Wessels (2) Central Coast Stadium, Gosford 17,887 Nigel Williams (Wales) 18 October 2003 AUS 90–8 ROM FlatleyRogers (3)Burke (2)Larkham (2)MortlockRoffGiteauTuqiriSmith Flatley (11) Flatley Toderașc Tofan Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 48,778 Pablo De Luca (Argentina) 19 October 2003 IRE 64–7 NAM Quinlan (2)DempseyHickieHoranMiller (2)G. EasterbyS. HorganKelly O'Gara (7) Powell Wessels Aussie Stadium, Sydney 35,382 Andrew Cole (Australia) 22 October 2003 ARG 50–3 ROM GaitánHernández (2)M. ContepomiN. Fernández MirandaBouza (2) J. Fernández Miranda (4)Quesada (2) J. Fernández Miranda Tofan Aussie Stadium, Sydney 33,673 Chris White (England) 25 October 2003 AUS 142–0 NAM Latham (5)LyonsMortlockTuqiri (3)Penalty tryRogers (2)PaulGiteau (3)GreyTurinui (2)BurkeRoe Rogers (16) Adelaide Oval, Adelaide 28,196 Joël Jutge (France) Largest winning margin in Rugby World Cup history. 26 October 2003 ARG 15–16 IRE Quesada (3) QuesadaCorleto Quinlan Humphreys HumphreysO'Gara (2) Adelaide Oval, Adelaide 30,203 André Watson (South Africa) 30 October 2003 NAM 7–37 ROM Isaacs Wessels PetrecheiSîrbuChiriacTeodorescuSăuan Tofan (3) Tofan (2) York Park, Launceston 15,457 Peter Marshall (Australia) 1 November 2003 AUS 17–16 IRE Smith Flatley (3) Gregan O'Driscoll O'Gara O'Gara (2) O'Driscoll Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 54,206 Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand) Pool B 2003 Rugby World Cup Pool B main WDL Q n 4 y points FRA FRA 1974 SCO SCO FIJ FIJ USA USA JPN JPN 4 0 0 204 70 3 0 1 102 97 2 0 2 98 114 1 0 3 86 125 0 0 4 79 163 4 2 2 2 #ccffcc Quarter-finals QF QF complete 11 October 2003 FRA 1974 61–18 FIJ Dominici (2)HarinordoquyJauzion (3)Ibañez Michalak (4) Michalak (6) NaevoCaucaunibuca Little Little (2) Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 46,795 Alain Rolland (Ireland) 12 October 2003 SCO 32–11 JPN Paterson (2)GrimesTaylorDanielli PatersonTownsend Paterson Onozawa Hirose (2) Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville 19,170 Stuart Dickinson (Australia) 15 October 2003 FIJ 19–18 USA Naevo Little Little (4) Van ZylSchubert Hercus Hercus (2) Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 30,990 Joël Jutge (France) 18 October 2003 FRA 1974 51–29 JPN MichalakRougerie (2)PelousDominiciCrenca Michalak (5)Merceron Michalak (3) KoniaOhata Kurihara (2) Kurihara (5) Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville 21,309 Alan Lewis (Ireland) 20 October 2003 SCO 39–15 USA Danielli (2)KerrTownsendPaterson Paterson (4) Paterson (2) Hercus (5) Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 46,796 Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa) 23 October 2003 FIJ 41–13 JPN Tuilevu (2)Ligairi (2)Vunibaka Little (2) Little (4) Miller Miller Miller Miller Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville 17,269 Nigel Williams (Wales) Andy Miller's drop goal, at 52 metres, remains the longest in Rugby World Cup history. 25 October 2003 FRA 1974 51–9 SCO BetsenHarinordoquyMichalakGalthiéBrusque Michalak (3)Merceron Michalak (4) MichalakBrusque Paterson (3) Stadium Australia, Sydney 78,974 David McHugh (Ireland) 27 October 2003 JPN 26–39 USA KuriharaOhata Kurihara (2) Kurihara (4) HercusEloffSchubertVan ZylKhasigian Hercus (4) Hercus (2) Central Coast Stadium, Gosford 19,653 Steve Walsh (New Zealand) 31 October 2003 FRA 1974 41–14 USA Liebenberg (3)PouxBru Merceron (2) Merceron (3) Yachvili HercusSchubert Hercus (2) WIN Stadium, Wollongong 17,833 Paul Honiss (New Zealand) 1 November 2003 SCO 22–20 FIJ Smith Paterson Paterson (5) Caucaunibuca (2) Little (2) Little (2) Aussie Stadium, Sydney 37,137 Tony Spreadbury (England) Pool C thumb|South Africa vs Georgia, 24 October 2003 2003 Rugby World Cup Pool C main WDL Q n 4 y points ENG ENG RSA RSA SAM SAM URU URU GEO GEO 1990 4 0 0 255 47 3 0 1 184 60 2 0 2 138 117 1 0 3 56 255 0 0 4 46 200 3 3 2 #ccffcc Quarter-finals QF QF complete 11 October 2003 RSA 72–6 URU Van der Westhuizen (3)Van NiekerkBotha (2)DelportFourieBandsRossouwScholtzGreef Koen (5)Hougaard Aguirre (2) Subiaco Oval, Perth 16,906 Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand) 12 October 2003 ENG 84–6 GEO 1990 TindallDawsonThompsonBackDallaglioGreenwood (2)ReganCohen (2)RobinsonLuger Wilkinson (5)Grayson (4) Wilkinson (2) UrjukashviliJimsheladze Subiaco Oval, Perth 25,501 Pablo De Luca (Argentina) 15 October 2003 SAM 60–13 URU Fa'asavalu (2)Lima (2)TagicakibauFa'atauLemaluViliFe'aunatiPalepoi Va'a (3)Vili (2) CapóLemoine Aguirre Subiaco Oval, Perth 22,020 David McHugh (Ireland) 18 October 2003 RSA 6–25 ENG Koen (2) Greenwood Wilkinson Wilkinson (4) Wilkinson (2) Subiaco Oval, Perth 38,834 Peter Marshall (Australia) 19 October 2003 GEO 1990 9–46 SAM Jimsheladze (2) Jimsheladze TagicakibauVa'aSititiSo'oialoFe'aunatiLima Va'a (5) Va'a (2) Subiaco Oval, Perth 21,507 Alain Rolland (Ireland) 24 October 2003 RSA 46–19 GEO 1990 Rossouw (2)HougaardVan NiekerkFourieBothaBurger Hougaard (4) Hougaard Dadunashvili Jimsheladze Jimsheladze (3)Kvirikashvili Aussie Stadium, Sydney 34,308 Stuart Dickinson (Australia) 26 October 2003 ENG 35–22 SAM BackPenalty tryBalshawVickery Wilkinson (3) Wilkinson (2) Wilkinson Sititi Va'a Va'a (5) Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 50,647 Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa) 28 October 2003 GEO 1990 12–24 URU UrjukashviliKvirikashvili (3) CardosoLamelasBrignoni Aguirre (2)Menchaca Menchaca Aussie Stadium, Sydney 28,576 Kelvin Deaker (New Zealand) 1 November 2003 RSA 60–10 SAM Van NiekerkMullerHougaardSmithWillemseFourieVan der WesthuyzenDe Kock Hougaard (5)Koen (2) Hougaard Hougaard Palepoi Va'a Va'a Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 48,496 Chris White (England) 2 November 2003 ENG 111–13 URU MoodyLewsey (5)Balshaw (2) Catt (2)Gomarsall (2)LugerAbbottRobinson (2)Greenwood Grayson (11)Catt (2) Lemoine Menchaca Menchaca (2) Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 46,233 Nigel Williams (Wales) Pool D 2003 Rugby World Cup Pool D main WDL Q n 4 y points NZL NZL WAL WAL ITA ITA CAN CAN TGA TGA 4 0 0 282 57 3 0 1 132 98 2 0 2 77 123 1 0 3 54 135 0 0 4 46 178 4 2 1 1 #ccffcc Quarter-finals QF QF complete 11 October 2003 NZL 70–7 ITA B. ThornR. ThorneHowlett (2)Spencer (2)Rokocoko (2)MarshallCarterMacDonald Carter (6) Spencer Phillips Peens Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 41,715 Andrew Cole (Australia) 12 October 2003 WAL 41–10 CAN ParkerCooperM. JonesCharvisThomas Harris (5) Harris (2) Tkachuk Pritchard Ross Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 24,874 Chris White (England) 15 October 2003 ITA 36–12 TGA M. DallanD. Dallan (2) Wakarua (3) Wakarua (5) PayneTuʻifua Tuipulotu Canberra Stadium, Canberra 18,967 Steve Walsh (New Zealand) 17 October 2003 NZL 68–6 CAN Ralph (2)So'oialo (2)Muliaina (4)MeeuwsNonu Carter (9) Barker (2) Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 38,899 Tony Spreadbury (England) 19 October 2003 WAL 27–20 TGA CooperM. Williams S. Jones S. Jones (4) M. Williams HolaKivaluLavaka Hola Hola Canberra Stadium, Canberra 19,806 Paul Honiss (New Zealand) 21 October 2003 ITA 19–14 CAN Parisse Wakarua Wakarua (4) Fyffe Barker (3) Canberra Stadium, Canberra 20,515 Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand) 24 October 2003 NZL 91–7 TGA BraidCarterFlynnRalph (2)SpencerMeeuwsPenalty tryMuliaina (2)MacDonaldHowlett (2) MacDonald (12)Spencer Hola Tuipulotu Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 47,588 Pablo De Luca (Argentina) 25 October 2003 ITA 15–27 WAL Wakarua (5) M. JonesParkerD. Jones Harris (3) Harris (2) Canberra Stadium, Canberra 22,641 Andrew Cole (Australia) 29 October 2003 CAN 24–7 TGA FauthAbrams Pritchard Ross (4) Kivalu Hola WIN Stadium, Wollongong 15,630 Alain Rolland (Ireland) 2 November 2003 NZL 53–37 WAL Rokocoko (2)MacDonaldWilliamsHowlett (2)SpencerMauger MacDonald (5) MacDonald TaylorParkerCharvisS. Williams S. Jones (4) S. Jones (3) Stadium Australia, Sydney 80,012 André Watson (South Africa) Knockout stage 2003 Rugby World Cup knockout stage 8 November – Melbourne NZL 29 RSA 9 8 November – Brisbane AUS 33 SCO 16 9 November – Melbourne FRA 1974 43 IRE 21 9 November – Brisbane ENG 28 WAL 17 15 November – Sydney (Telstra) NZL 10 AUS 22 16 November – Sydney (Telstra) FRA 1974 7 ENG 24 22 November – Sydney (Telstra) AUS 17 ENG (a.e.t.) 20 20 November – Sydney (Telstra) NZL 40 FRA 1974 13 Quarter-finals 8 November 2003 NZL 29–9 RSA MacDonald 16' cMealamu 59' mRokocoko 72' m MacDonald MacDonald (3) Mauger 45' Hougaard (3) Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 40,734 Tony Spreadbury (England) 8 November 2003 AUS 33–16 SCO Mortlock 46' cGregan 59' cLyons 64' c Flatley (3) Flatley (4) Russell 80' c Paterson Paterson (2) Paterson 38' Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 45,412 Steve Walsh (New Zealand) 9 November 2003 FRA 1974 43–21 IRE Report Magne 3' cDominici 29' cHarinordoquy 33' cCrenca 47' c Michalak (4) 4', 31', 34', 48' Michalak (5) 21', 39', 42', 60', 72' Maggs 52' cO'Driscoll (2) 65' c, 80+2' c Humphreys (3) 53', 66', 81' Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 33,134 Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa) 9 November 2003 ENG 28–17 WAL Greenwood 44' c Wilkinson Wilkinson (6) Wilkinson 80+1' S. Jones 30' mCharvis 35' mM. Williams 71' c Harris Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane 45,252 Alain Rolland (Ireland) Semi-finals 15 November 2003 NZL 10–22 AUS Thorne 35' c MacDonald MacDonald Mortlock 9' c Flatley Flatley (5) Stadium Australia, Sydney 82,444 Chris White (England) 16 November 2003 FRA 1974 7–24 ENG Betsen 10' c Michalak Wilkinson (5) Wilkinson (3) 9', 38', 58' Stadium Australia, Sydney 82,346 Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand) Third-place play-off 20 November 2003 NZL 40–13 FRA 1974 Jack 12' cHowlett 20' cRokocoko 51' cThorn 54' cMuliaina 58' cHolah 72' m MacDonaldCarter (4) Elhorga 42' c Yachvili Yachvili Yachvili Stadium Australia, Sydney 62,712 Chris White (England) Final 2003 Rugby World Cup final 22 November 2003 AUS 17–20 (a.e.t.) Report ENG Tuqiri 6' m Flatley (4) Robinson 38' m Wilkinson (4) Wilkinson 100' Stadium Australia, Sydney 82,957 André Watson (South Africa) Statistics 2003 Rugby World Cup statistics The tournament's top point scorer was England's Jonny Wilkinson, who scored 113 points. Doug Howlett and Mils Muliaina scored the most tries, seven in total. +PlayerTeamPositionPlayedTriesConversionsPenaltiesDrop goalsTotal pointsYellow cardsJonny WilkinsonENGFly-half60102381130Frédéric MichalakFRA 1974Fly-half62171811010Elton FlatleyAUSCentre61162101000Leon MacDonaldNZLCentre742050750Chris PatersonSCOFly-half537131710Mat RogersAUSFull-back751600571Mike HercusUSAFly-half42790510Rima WakaruaITAFly-half304140500Earl Va'aSAMFly-half411080490Dan CarterNZLFly-half521900480 Broadcasters The event was broadcast by Seven Network and Fox Sports in Australia and by ITV in the United Kingdom. References External links 2003 Rugby World Cup Official site (Archived) 2003 Rugby World Cup Reports and Statistics BBC account of 2003 World Cup victory Tournament Results & Statistics on ESPN Scrum Category:Rugby World Cup tournaments World Cup Category:October 2003 in sports Category:November 2003 in sports Category:2003 in Australian rugby union