2003 Six Nations Championship
Encyclopedia
The 2003 Six Nations Championship was the fourth series of the Six Nations Championship
. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-ninth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. The annual tournament was won by England
, who completed a tournament grand slam
, and went on to win the 2003 Rugby World Cup
later the same year. Italy won their first match with Wales (30-22), finishing in 5th place for the second time.
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had to walk on the grass instead of the red carpet
to meet the Irish team. England had lined up on the left hand side when facing the tunnel, which was said to be Ireland's lucky side. When asked to move his team, England captain Martin Johnson refused, so Ireland lined up to the left of them, with no team now on the right hand side, leaving insufficient red carpet on that side. A day after the game the Irish Rugby Football Union
sent a written apology to the president for the England team's failure to "follow established and communicated protocol", while their English counterparts the Rugby Football Union
also sent her a "full and unreserved apology". Having dismissed it at the time as "a fuss about nothing", Johnson later explained ahead of meeting the president again in Ireland for the 2011 Championship that he had lined up on that side as it was customary to line up on the side you warmed up on, that he had no prior knowledge of the protocol, and his subsequent refusal to move was because the request came from some "random guy", rather than the match referee.
Six Nations Championship
The Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the hundred-and-ninth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. The annual tournament was won by 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...
, who completed a tournament grand slam
Grand Slam (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, a Grand Slam occurs when one team in the Six Nations Championship manages to beat all the others during one year's competition...
, and went on to win the 2003 Rugby World Cup
2003 Rugby World Cup
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 Football Union and Rugby World...
later the same year. Italy won their first match with Wales (30-22), finishing in 5th place for the second time.
Participants
The teams involved were:| Nation | Venue | City | Head coach |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twickenham 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 London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... |
Clive Woodward Clive Woodward Sir Clive Ronald Woodward OBE is an English former rugby union player and coach. He was coach of the team from 1997 to 2004, managing them to victory in the 2003 Rugby World Cup. He is currently the British Olympic Association's Director of Elite Performance.-Early life:Woodward was born in Ely... |
|
| Stade de France Stade de France The Stade de France is the national stadium of France, situated just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. It has an all-seater capacity of 80,000, making it the fifth largest stadium in Europe, and is used by both the France national football team and French rugby union team for... |
Saint-Denis Saint-Denis Saint-Denis is a commune in the northern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Saint-Denis is a sous-préfecture of the Seine-Saint-Denis département, being the seat of the Arrondissement of Saint-Denis.... |
Bernard Laporte Bernard Laporte Bernard Laporte is a rugby union coach and former French Secretary of State for Sport. He is currently the head coach at Toulon, having taken over in 2011 from Philippe Saint-André, who had been named the new head coach of the France national team. Laporte himself is a former head coach of France,... |
|
| Lansdowne Road Lansdowne Road Lansdowne Road was a stadium in Dublin owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union that has been the location of a number of sports stadiums. It was used primarily for rugby union and for association football matches as well as some music concerts... |
Dublin | Eddie O'Sullivan Eddie O'Sullivan Eddie O'Sullivan is an Irish rugby union coach and a former footballer. He is a former head coach of the United States national rugby union team and of the Ireland national rugby union team.... |
|
| Stadio Flaminio Stadio Flaminio The Stadio Flaminio is a stadium in Rome. It lies along the Via Flaminia, three kilometres northwest of the city centre, 300 metres away from the Parco di Villa Glori.... |
Rome Rome Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half... |
John Kirwan | |
| Murrayfield Murrayfield Stadium Murrayfield Stadium is a sports stadium located in the west end of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Its all-seater capacity was recently reduced from 67,800 to 67,130 to incorporate the largest permanent "big screen" in the country though it still remains the largest stadium in Scotland and one... |
Edinburgh Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area... |
Ian McGeechan Ian McGeechan Sir Ian Robert McGeechan OBE is a Scottish former rugby union player and coach. His nickname is "Geech".-Playing career:... |
|
| Millennium Stadium Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage... |
Cardiff Cardiff Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for... |
Steve Hansen Steve Hansen Steve Hansen is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player.He was the head coach of the Welsh national team. He became the ninth Welsh coach in 13 years, after Graham Henry parted company with the Welsh Rugby Union in 2002. During his first game in charge, Wales performed well but lost by... |
Squads
Table
| Position | Nation | Games | Points | Table points |
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against | Difference | Tries | |||
| 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 173 | 46 | 18 | 10 | ||
| 2 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 119 | 97 | 10 | 8 | ||
| 3 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 153 | 75 | 17 | 6 | ||
| 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 81 | 161 | ||||
| 7 | 4 | |||||||||
| 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 100 | 185 | ||||
| 12 | 2 | |||||||||
| 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 82 | 144 | ||||
| 10 | 0 | |||||||||
Week 1
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Week 2
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Week 3
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Week 4
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Week 5
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Red carpet incident
The deciding game between Ireland and England was overshadowed by an incident in the pre-game ceremonies in which the Irish President Mary McAleeseMary McAleese
Mary Patricia McAleese served as the eighth President of Ireland from 1997 to 2011. She was the second female president and was first elected in 1997 succeeding Mary Robinson, making McAleese the world's first woman to succeed another as president. She was re-elected unopposed for a second term in...
had to walk on the grass instead of the red carpet
Red carpet
A red carpet is traditionally used to mark the route taken by heads of state on ceremonial and formal occasions, and has in recent decades been extended to use by VIPs and celebrities at formal events.- History :...
to meet the Irish team. England had lined up on the left hand side when facing the tunnel, which was said to be Ireland's lucky side. When asked to move his team, England captain Martin Johnson refused, so Ireland lined up to the left of them, with no team now on the right hand side, leaving insufficient red carpet on that side. A day after the game the Irish Rugby Football Union
Irish Rugby Football Union
The Irish Rugby Football Union is the body managing rugby union in Ireland. The IRFU has its head office at 10/12 Lansdowne Road and home ground at Aviva Stadium, where Irish rugby union international matches are played...
sent a written apology to the president for the England team's failure to "follow established and communicated protocol", while their English counterparts the Rugby Football Union
Rugby Football Union
The Rugby Football Union was founded in 1871 as the governing body for the sport of rugby union, and performed as the international governing body prior to the formation of the International Rugby Board in 1886...
also sent her a "full and unreserved apology". Having dismissed it at the time as "a fuss about nothing", Johnson later explained ahead of meeting the president again in Ireland for the 2011 Championship that he had lined up on that side as it was customary to line up on the side you warmed up on, that he had no prior knowledge of the protocol, and his subsequent refusal to move was because the request came from some "random guy", rather than the match referee.
External links
- Six Nations - Official website