1991 Rugby World Cup Final
Encyclopedia
The 1991 Rugby World Cup Final, was the final match in the 1991 Rugby World Cup
, played in England.
The match was played at Twickenham Stadium
, London on 2 November 1991 between the Australian wallabies
and the host nation, England
.
England had reached the final by playing an attritional, forward dominated game, but appeared to respond to heavy public criticism from David Campese and rejected this style of play in the final. They chose to play a more expansive and open game, but failed to master it in the short time they had to practice it.
The change in approach and the hope that this might unsettle the Australians proved flawed.
Australia won the encounter by 6 points, and with it, their first Webb Ellis Cup
.
and Simon Poidevin
both performed well in continually holding up the English attacking threat. Australia opened the scoring on 27 minutes with a Michael Lynagh
penalty. Despite English dominance in possession, the only try of the match was scored just three minutes later by prop Tony Daly
, touching down for a try following Ofahengaue's break from a line-out and subsequent drive from the Australian forwards. Michael Lynagh converted the try. At half-time Australia led England 9–0.
looked to pass to England winger Rory Underwood
but the pass was knocked down by David Campese
. This was seen as a deliberate knock-on designed to foil an England score. Welsh referee Derek Bevan awarded the penalty and waved away England calls for a penalty try. Jonathan Webb
slotted his second penalty of the game but no further England points were to follow.
Though not a classic match the better team on the day, and by far the best team throughout the competition, Australia were rewarded for their efforts and captain Nick Farr-Jones
held aloft the Webb Ellis Cup.
style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center">
England
|
FB
15
Jonathan Webb
RW
14
Simon Halliday
OC
13
Will Carling
(c
)
IC
12
Jeremy Guscott
LW
11
Rory Underwood
FH
10
Rob Andrew
SH
9
Richard Hill
N8
8
Mike Teague
OF
7
Peter Winterbottom
BF
6
Michael Skinner
RL
5
Paul Ackford
LL
4
Wade Dooley
TP
3
Jeff Probyn
HK
2
Brian Moore
LP
1
Jason Leonard
Coach:
Roger Uttley
1991 Rugby World Cup
The 1991 Rugby World Cup was the second edition of the Rugby World Cup, and was jointly hosted by England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and France; at that time, the five European countries that participated in the Five Nations Championship making it the first Rugby World Cup to be staged in the...
, played in England.
The match was played at Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
, London on 2 November 1991 between the Australian wallabies
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
and the host nation, England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
.
England had reached the final by playing an attritional, forward dominated game, but appeared to respond to heavy public criticism from David Campese and rejected this style of play in the final. They chose to play a more expansive and open game, but failed to master it in the short time they had to practice it.
The change in approach and the hope that this might unsettle the Australians proved flawed.
Australia won the encounter by 6 points, and with it, their first Webb Ellis Cup
Webb Ellis Cup
The Webb Ellis Cup is the trophy awarded to the winner of the Rugby World Cup. The Cup is named after William Webb Ellis, who is often credited as the inventor of rugby football. The trophy is silver gilt and has been presented to the winner of the Rugby World Cup since the first competition in 1987...
.
First half
In front of a capacity crowd at Twickenham, England met Australia. For both teams it was their first Rugby World Cup Final. Australia's resilient defence was to the fore in the opening half. Viliami OfahengaueViliami Ofahengaue
Viliami 'Ofahengaue , widely known as Willie O, earned 41 caps for the Australian rugby union side from 1990 to 1998 and played in the World Cups of 1991 and 1995 as well as the World Cup Sevens in 1993....
and Simon Poidevin
Simon Poidevin
Simon Paul Poidevin OAM is a former Australian rugby union player.-Rugby union career:Born in Goulburn, New South Wales, Poidevin played rugby at St Patrick's College in New South Wales, and made the Australian Schoolboy side...
both performed well in continually holding up the English attacking threat. Australia opened the scoring on 27 minutes with a Michael Lynagh
Michael Lynagh
Michael Lynagh is a former Australian rugby union footballer who played as a Fly-half.Lynagh represented Australia from 1984 to 1995, playing at both inside centre and fly half. Lynagh was capped 72 times for Australia, and was captain from 1993 to 1995. He was the world points scoring record...
penalty. Despite English dominance in possession, the only try of the match was scored just three minutes later by prop Tony Daly
Tony Daly
Tony Daly is a former Australian rugby union footballer who represented Australia in 41 Test matches. He played for Eastern Suburbs, Randwick, Manly, Brothers and Saracens at prop. He represented Australia between 1989 and 1995...
, touching down for a try following Ofahengaue's break from a line-out and subsequent drive from the Australian forwards. Michael Lynagh converted the try. At half-time Australia led England 9–0.
Second half
England, continued their open, running style failed to crack the Australians. Webb put England on the scoreboard after an hour with a successful penalty kick. Lynagh added a further penalty for the Wallabies after 65 minutes. With the score at 12–3 to Australia, England had secured an overlap in an attack. Peter WinterbottomPeter Winterbottom
Peter James Winterbottom , is a former England rugby union footballer who played as an openside flanker. He was England's most-capped openside until being overtaken by Neil Back in 2003...
looked to pass to England winger Rory Underwood
Rory Underwood
Rory Underwood MBE is a former English rugby union footballer who played wing for, most notably, Leicester Tigers and Bedford. He represented England and the British Lions and is a former Royal Air Force pilot....
but the pass was knocked down by David Campese
David Campese
David Ian Campese , also known as Campo, is a former Australian rugby union player. Campese was capped by the Wallabies 101 times, and held the world record for the most tries in test matches until Daisuke Ohata scored his 65th try playing for Japan on 14 May 2006...
. This was seen as a deliberate knock-on designed to foil an England score. Welsh referee Derek Bevan awarded the penalty and waved away England calls for a penalty try. Jonathan Webb
Jonathan Webb
Jonathan Mark Webb is a former English rugby union footballer who represented England in 33 Test matches. He played for two clubs, first Bristol and then Bath where he played mainly at fullback. His career representing England lasted between 1987 and 1993, and he scored a total of 296 points for...
slotted his second penalty of the game but no further England points were to follow.
Though not a classic match the better team on the day, and by far the best team throughout the competition, Australia were rewarded for their efforts and captain Nick Farr-Jones
Nick Farr-Jones
Nicholas Campbell Farr-Jones is a former Australian rugby union footballer. His position was scrum-half. He attended Newington College and St Andrew's College within the University of Sydney...
held aloft the Webb Ellis Cup.
Match details
| style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> | Australia | ||
| FB | 15 | Marty Roebuck Marty Roebuck Marty Roebuck is a former Australian rugby union footballer who represented New South Wales and the Wallabies as a fullback.... |
|
| RW | 14 | Bob Egerton Bob Egerton Robert 'Bob' Egerton born 6 March 1963 Lae, New Guinea was an Australian International Rugby Player whose short-lived career at the very highest level of the game was timed to perfection. Rob won only nine caps for the Wallabies, all in a 13 week spell in 1991, with his final appearance coming in... |
|
| OC | 13 | Jason Little | |
| IC | 12 | Tim Horan Tim Horan Tim Horan AM is a former Australian rugby union footballer. He played for the Queensland Reds in the Super 12, and represented Australia, he was one of the best centres in the world throughout the 1990s due to his attacking prowess, formidable defence and playmaking ability.As well as inside... |
|
| LW | 11 | David Campese David Campese David Ian Campese , also known as Campo, is a former Australian rugby union player. Campese was capped by the Wallabies 101 times, and held the world record for the most tries in test matches until Daisuke Ohata scored his 65th try playing for Japan on 14 May 2006... |
|
| FH | 10 | Michael Lynagh Michael Lynagh Michael Lynagh is a former Australian rugby union footballer who played as a Fly-half.Lynagh represented Australia from 1984 to 1995, playing at both inside centre and fly half. Lynagh was capped 72 times for Australia, and was captain from 1993 to 1995. He was the world points scoring record... |
|
| SH | 9 | Nick Farr-Jones Nick Farr-Jones Nicholas Campbell Farr-Jones is a former Australian rugby union footballer. His position was scrum-half. He attended Newington College and St Andrew's College within the University of Sydney... (c Captain (sports) In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field... ) |
|
| N8 | 8 | Troy Coker | |
| BF | 7 | Viliami Ofahengaue Viliami Ofahengaue Viliami 'Ofahengaue , widely known as Willie O, earned 41 caps for the Australian rugby union side from 1990 to 1998 and played in the World Cups of 1991 and 1995 as well as the World Cup Sevens in 1993.... |
|
| OF | 6 | Simon Poidevin Simon Poidevin Simon Paul Poidevin OAM is a former Australian rugby union player.-Rugby union career:Born in Goulburn, New South Wales, Poidevin played rugby at St Patrick's College in New South Wales, and made the Australian Schoolboy side... |
|
| RL | 5 | John Eales John Eales John Eales AM is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby.-Early life:... |
|
| LL | 4 | Rod McCall Rod McCall Roderick James McCall is a former Australian rugby union lock. McCall played for Australia from 1989 to 1995, including winning the 1991 Rugby World Cup. He played 40 times in total for Australia... |
|
| TP | 3 | Ewen McKenzie Ewen McKenzie Ewen James Andrew McKenzie is a former Australian Rugby Union prop and now professional coach, currently with the Queensland Reds who won the 2011 premiership... |
|
| HK | 2 | Phil Kearns Phil Kearns Philip Nicholas Kearns is a former Australian rugby union player. He represented Australia 67 times and was captain of on 10 occasions.... |
|
| LP | 1 | Tony Daly Tony Daly Tony Daly is a former Australian rugby union footballer who represented Australia in 41 Test matches. He played for Eastern Suburbs, Randwick, Manly, Brothers and Saracens at prop. He represented Australia between 1989 and 1995... |
|
| Coach: | |||
 Bob DwyerBob Dwyer Bob Dwyer is an Australian rugby union coach.Educated at Sydney Boys High School, he coached Sydney club Randwick to four Sydney championship wins before becoming Australia's national team coach. He coached Australia from 1982-83, and again from 1988... |
|||
Jonathan Webb
Jonathan Mark Webb is a former English rugby union footballer who represented England in 33 Test matches. He played for two clubs, first Bristol and then Bath where he played mainly at fullback. His career representing England lasted between 1987 and 1993, and he scored a total of 296 points for...
Simon Halliday
Simon John Halliday is a former English rugby union international. He also played nine first-class cricket cricket matches...
Will Carling
William David Charles Carling, OBE is a former Rugby union player for Harlequins, and a former captain of England from 1988 to 1996, winning 72 caps.-Early life:...
(c
Captain (sports)
In team sports, a captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field...
)
Jeremy Guscott
Jeremy Clayton Guscott is a former rugby union outside centre who played for Bath, England and the British and Irish Lions. On rare occasions, he has also appeared for England on the wing....
Rory Underwood
Rory Underwood MBE is a former English rugby union footballer who played wing for, most notably, Leicester Tigers and Bedford. He represented England and the British Lions and is a former Royal Air Force pilot....
Rob Andrew
Christopher Robert "Rob" Andrew MBE , nicknamed "Squeaky", is a former English rugby union footballer and currently Director of Operations at the RFU. He was formerly the Director of Rugby of Newcastle Falcons. As a player, Andrew was assured in his kicking and defensive skills off both feet...
Richard Hill (scrum-half)
Richard Hill , is rugby union coach and former English international rugby footballer.-Biography:Born in Birmingham, Hill was educated at Bishop Wordsworth's Grammar School in Salisbury, and Exeter University...
Mike Teague
Michael Clive Teague is a former England and British Lions rugby union footballer.-Early life:Teague was born and raised on a pig farm a few miles outside Gloucester...
Peter Winterbottom
Peter James Winterbottom , is a former England rugby union footballer who played as an openside flanker. He was England's most-capped openside until being overtaken by Neil Back in 2003...
Paul Ackford
Paul Ackford is a former English rugby union international who played lock forward. He was formerly an inspector in the Metropolitan Police, and is now a journalist.Ackford was born in Hanover, West Germany...
Wade Dooley
Wade Dooley is a former England rugby union international who played lock forward. He played for his country 55 times and was known as the "Blackpool Tower", as a result of being 6 feet 8 inches tall and a police officer with Lancashire Constabulary in Blackpool.Dooley was born in Warrington,...
Jeff Probyn
Jeff Probyn is an English former Rugby Union player.The Askeans, Streatham and Wasps prop was selected in England's squad for the 1987 Rugby World Cup, but Probyn did not make his international debut until 1988, at the age of 31, against France...
Jason Leonard
Jason Leonard OBE , also known as "The Fun Bus", is an English former rugby union prop forward who held the world record for winning the most international caps until 2005, when it was surpassed by Australia's scrum-half George Gregan...
Roger UttleyRoger Uttley
Roger Miles Uttley OBE MA is a former English rugby union player.- Career :He played 23 games for England both in the second row and the back row, 5 times as captain, 4 tests in the Lions back row on the undefeated 1974 tour to South Africa.Roger was born in Blackpool, and played first for...