2003 Rugby World Cup

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Venues

The Adelaide Oval underwent a AUS$ 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. The Suncorp Stadium was a new AUS$280 million state-of-the-art venue designed specifically for rugby. It was opened just before the start of the 2003 Rugby World Cup. The Central Coast Stadium was also a newly built venue. It opened in February 2000 at a cost of AUS$30 million.

Aussie Staudium in Sydney is one of two venues in that city and was the main venue for soccer during the 2000 Olympic Games. The other venue in Sydney was the Telstra Stadium. Originally the centrepiece of the 2000 Olympic Games as Stadium Australia as it was then known, it was built at a cost of over AUS$600 million and was the biggest stadium used during the 2003 Rugby World Cup. The only stadium with a retractable roof used was the Telstra Dome in Melbourne.

Qualification

Namibia

Japan

Format

• 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, regardless of the final score
• 1 bonus point for a loss by 7 points or less

Summary

First Round

In the event, the group stage of the competition played out largely as expected, with only some tension as to whether some of the "developing" nations would overtake some of the weaker major countries for the second quarterfinal qualification place in each pool — in pool A, Argentina lost to Ireland by only one point, which would otherwise have carried them into the quarterfinals in Ireland's place; similarly in pool B Fiji lost out to Scotland by only two points, while Italy put up a good performance in pool D. In Pool C, Samoa gave England a fright with an adventurous approach that allowed them to take an early lead. However, England's superior fitness saw them through.

The big clashes ran mainly to form. A disappointing South Africa limped through the pool, eventually capitulating to England to relegate them to a difficult quarter final against New Zealand. Australia just beat Ireland to top their group, whilst Wales pushed the All Blacks to the wire, after adopting an outgoing style of play with a fringe selection. France beat Scotland to round out the quarter finals.

Knock-out stage

The first semi-final produced an upset, when Australia defeated the hugely fancied New Zealand to become the first defending champions ever to reach the following championship final. The match was decided by a Stirling Mortlock interception try, after a loose pass from highly-rated All Blacks fly-half, Carlos Spencer. 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, but rain and France's willingness to give away penalties to prevent tries, ensured that it was a dour game.

Final

Australia opened the scoring after they decided to run a penalty instead of kicking for touch. Lote Tuquiri beat England's right wing, Robinson, to a high cross-field kick and went over for the first try. Elton Flatley was not able to add the conversion though.

England dominated the rest of the half, opening up a 9-5 lead after Australian indiscipline gave away several penalties, but were unable to capitalise on their dominance. They nearly crossed the line on one occasion, when the Australian defence was stretched after a mistake and Ben Kay was given a try scoring pass. He fumbled the ball over the line. Television replays showed Kay's reaction in four letter words. Towards the end of the first half, however, 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 halftime leading by 14-5, a resounding riposte to the Australian media, which had questioned England's try-scoring abilities.

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. England had a scrum and just needed to keep hold of the ball until time elapsed. Several scrums were reset after the front rows failed to engage properly and finally, the referee, André Watson, gave a controversial penalty to Australia, despite Englands scrum dominating the rest of the game. Elton Flatley converted it with the last kick of normal time to tie the match 14-14 and take it to 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 21 seconds left before sudden death, England's Jonny Wilkinson scored a drop goal to win the match and with it the world championship.

Results

Pool A

Team	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	BP	Points
Australia	4	0	0	273	32	2	18
Ireland	3	0	1	141	55	3	15
Argentina	2	0	2	140	57	3	11
Romania	1	0	3	65	192	1	5
Namibia	0	0	4	28	310	0	0

2003-10-10
	'''Australia '''	24–8	''' Argentina'''	Telstra Stadium Attendance: 81,350 Referee: Paul Honiss
	Tries: Wendell Sailor, Joe Roff Con: Elton Flatley Pen: Elton Flatley (4)		Tries: Ignacio Corleto Pen: Manuel Contepomi

2003-10-10
	'''Ireland '''	45–17	''' Romania'''	Central Coast Stadium Attendance: 19,123 Referee: Jonathan Kaplan
	Tries: Shane Horgan, Keith Wood, Denis Hickie (2), Victor Costello Con: David Humphreys (3), Ronan O'Gara Pen: David Humphreys (4)		Tries: Penalty try, Valentin Maftei Con: Ionut Tofan, Mihai Vioreanu Pen: Ionut Tofan

2003-10-14
	'''Argentina '''	67–14	''' Namibia'''	Central Coast Stadium Attendance: 17,887 Referee: Nigel Williams
	Tries: Federico Mendez, Pablo Bouza (2), Juan Fernandez Miranda, Penalty try (2), Martin Gaitan (3), Nicolas Fernandez Miranda Con: Gonzalo Quesada (7) Pen: Gonzalo Quesada		Tries: Du Preez Grobler, Hakkies Husselman Con: Emile Wessels

2003-10-18
	'''Australia '''	90–8	''' Romania'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 48,778 Referee: Pablo Deluca
	Tries: Elton Flatley, Mat Rogers (3), Matt Burke (2), Stephen Larkham (2), Stirling Mortlock, Joe Roff, Matt Giteau, Lote Tuqiri, George Smith Con: Elton Flatley (10) Pen: Elton Flatley		Tries: Petrisor Toderasc Pen: Ionut Tofan

2003-10-19
	'''Ireland '''	64–7	''' Namibia'''	Aussie Stadium Attendance: 5,382 Referee: Andrew Cole
	Tries: Alan Quinlan (2), Girvan Dempsey, Denis Hickie, Marcus Horan, Eric Miller (2), Guy Easterby, Shane Horgan, John Kelly Con:Ronan O'Gara (7)		Tries: Corne Powell Con: Emile Wessels

2003-10-22
	'''Argentina '''	50–3	''' Romania'''	Aussie Stadium Attendance: 33,673 Referee: Chris White
	Tries: Martin Gaitan, Juan Martín Hernández (2), Manuel Contepomi, Nicolas Fernandez Miranda, Pablo Bouza (2) Con: Juan Fernandez Miranda (4), Gonzalo Quesada (2) Pen: Juan Fernandez Miranda		Pen: Ionut Tofan

2003-10-25
	'''Australia '''	142–0	''' Namibia'''	Adelaide Oval Attendance: 33,000 Referee: Joël Jutge
	Tries: Chris Latham (5), David Lyons, Stirling Mortlock, Lote Tuqiri (3), Penalty try, Mat Rogers (2), Jeremy Paul, Matt Giteau (3), Nathan Grey, Morgan Turinui (2), Matt Burke, John Roe Con: Mat Rogers (16)

2003-10-26
	'''Argentina '''	15–16	''' Ireland'''	Adelaide Oval Attendance: 30,203 Referee: André Watson
	Pen: Gonzalo Quesada (3) Drop Goals: Gonzalo Quesada, Ignacio Corleto		Tries: Alan Quinlan Con: David Humphreys Pen: David Humphreys, Ronan O'Gara (2)

2003-10-30
	'''Namibia '''	7–37	''' Romania'''	Aurora Stadium Attendance: 15,457 Referee: Peter Marshall
	Tries: Eben Isaacs Con: Emile Wessels		Tries: Augustin Petrichei, Lucian Sirbu, George Chiriac, Ioan Teodorescu, Cristian Sauan Con: Ionut Tofan (2) Pen: Ionut Tofan (3)

2003-11-01
	'''Australia '''	17–16	''' Ireland'''	Telstra Dome Attendance: 54,206 Referee: Paddy O'Brien
	Tries: George Smith Pen: Elton Flatley (3) Drop Goals: George Gregan		Tries: Brian O'Driscoll Con: Ronan O'Gara Pen: Ronan O'Gara (2) Drop Goals: Brian O'Driscoll

Pool B

Team	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	BP	Points
France	4	0	0	204	70	4	20
Scotland	3	0	1	102	97	2	14
Fiji	2	0	2	98	112	1	9
United States	1	0	3	86	125	2	6
Japan	0	0	4	79	163	0	0

2003-10-11
	'''France '''	61–18	''' Fiji'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 46,795 Referee: Alain Rolland
	Tries: Christophe Dominici (2), Imanol Harinordoquy, Yannick Jauzion (3), Raphael Ibanez Con: Frédéric Michalak (4) Pen: Frédéric Michalak (6)		Tries: Api Naevo, Rupeni Caucaunibuca Con: Nicky Little Pen: Nicky Little (2)

2003-10-11
	'''Scotland '''	32–11	''' Japan'''	Dairy Farmers Stadium Attendance: 19,170 Referee: Stuart Dickinson
	Tries: Chris Paterson (2), Stuart Grimes, Simon Taylor, Simon Danielli Con: Chris Paterson, Gregor Townsend Pen: Chris Paterson		Tries: Hirotoki Onozawa Pen: Keiji Hirose (2)

2003-10-15
	'''Fiji '''	19–18	''' United States'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 30,990 Referee: Joël Jutge
	Tries: Apensia Naevo Con: Nicky Little Pen: Nicky Little (4)		Tries: Riaan van Zyl Con: Mike Hercus Pen: Mike Hercus (2)

2003-10-18
	'''France '''	51–29	''' Japan'''	Dairy Farmers Stadium Attendance: 21,309 Referee: Alan Lewis
	Tries: Frédéric Michalak, Aurélien Rougerie (2), Fabien Pelous, Christophe Dominici, Jean-Jacques Crenca Con: Frédéric Michalak (5), Gérald Merceron Pen: Frédéric Michalak (3)		Tries: George Konia, Daisuke Ohata Con: Toru Kurihara (2) Pen: Toru Kurihara (5)

2003-10-20
	'''Scotland '''	39–15	''' United States'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 46,796 Referee: Jonathan Kaplan
	Tries: Simon Danielli (2), Gavin Kerr, Gregor Townsend, Chris Paterson Con: Chris Paterson (4) Pen: Chris Paterson (2)		Pen: Mike Hercus (5)

2003-10-23
	'''Fiji '''	41–13	''' Japan'''	Dairy Farmers Stadium Attendance: 17,269 Referee: Nigel Williams
	Tries: Aisea Tuilevu (2), Norman Ligairi (2), Marika Vunibaka Con: Nicky Little (2) Pen: Nicky Little (4)		Tries: Andy Miller Con: Andy Miller Pen: Andy Miller Drop Goals: Andy Miller

2003-10-25
	'''France '''	51–9	''' Scotland'''	Telstra Stadium Attendance: 83,500 Referee: David McHugh
	Tries: Serge Betsen, Imanol Harinordoquy, Frédéric Michalak, Fabien Galthié, Nicolas Brusque Con: Frédéric Michalak (3), Gérald Merceron Pen: Frédéric Michalak Drop Goals: Frédéric Michalak, Nicolas Brusque		Pen: Chris Paterson (3)

2003-10-27
	'''Japan '''	26–39	''' United States'''	Central Coast Stadium Attendance: 19,653 Referee: Steve Walsh
	Tries: Toru Kurihara, Daisuke Ohata Con: Toru Kurihara (2) Pen: Toru Kurihara (4)		Tries: Mike Hercus, Phillip Eloff, Kort Schubert, Riaan van Zyl, Kris Khasigian Con: Mike Hercus (4) Pen: Mike Hercus (2)

2003-10-31
	'''France '''	41–14	''' United States'''	WIN Stadium Attendance: 17,833 Referee: Paul Honiss
	Tries: Brian Liebenberg (3), Jean-Baptiste Poux, Yannick Bru Con: Gérald Merceron (2) Pen: Gérald Merceron (3)		Tries: Mike Hercus, Kort Schubert Con: Mike Hercus (2)

2003-11-01
	'''Scotland '''	22–20	''' Fiji'''	Aussie Stadium Attendance: 37,137 Referee: Tony Spreadbury
	Tries: Tom Smith Con: Chris Paterson (2) Pen: Chris Paterson (5)		Tries: Rupeni Caucaunibuca (2) Con: Nicky Little (2) Pen: Nicky Little (2)

Pool C

Team	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	BP	Points
England	4	0	0	255	47	3	19
South Africa	3	0	1	184	60	3	15
Samoa	2	0	2	138	117	2	10
Uruguay	1	0	3	56	255	0	4
Georgia	0	0	4	46	200	0	0

2003-10-11
	'''South Africa '''	72–6	''' Uruguay'''	Subiaco Oval Attendance: 16,936 Referee: Paddy O'Brien
	Tries: Joost van der Westhuizen (3), Joe van Niekerk, Bakkies Botha, Thinus Delport, Jacques Fourie, Richard Bands, Danie Rossouw, Hendro Scholtz, Werner Greeff Con: Louis Koen (5), Derick Hougaard		Pen: Diego Aguirre (2)

2003-10-12
	'''England '''	84–6	''' Georgia'''	Subiaco Oval Attendance: 25,501 Referee: Pablo Deluca
	Tries: Mike Tindall, Matt Dawson, Steve Thompson, Neil Back, Lawrence Dallaglio, Will Greenwood (2), Mark Regan, Ben Cohen (2), Jason Robinson, Dan Luger Con: Jonny Wilkinson (5), Paul Grayson (4) Pen: Jonny Wilkinson (2)		Pen: Malkhaz Urjukashvili, Paliko Jimsheladze

2003-10-15
	'''Samoa '''	60–13	''' Uruguay'''	Subiaco Oval Attendance: 22,020 Referee: David McHugh
	Tries: Maurie Fa'asavalu (2), Brian Lima (2), Sailosi Tagicakibau, Lome Fa'atau, Simon Lemalu, Tanner Vili, Dominic Feaunati, Opeta Palepoi Con: Earl Va'a (3), Paul Tanner Vili (2)		Tries: Rodrigo Capo, Pablo Lemoine Pen: Diego Aguirre

2003-10-18
	'''South Africa '''	6–25	''' England'''	Subiaco Oval Attendance: 38,834 Referee: Peter Marshall
	Pen: Louis Koen (2)		Tries: Will Greenwood Con: Jonny Wilkinson Pen: Jonny Wilkinson (4) Drop goals: Jonny Wilkinson (2)

2003-10-19
	'''Georgia '''	9–46	''' Samoa'''	Subiaco Oval Attendance: 21,507 Referee: Alain Rolland
	Pen: Paliko Jimsheladze (2) Drop goals: Paliko Jimsheladze		Tries: Sailosi Tagicakibau, Earl Va'a, Semo Sititi, Steven So'oialo, Dominic Feaunati, Brian Lima Con: Earl Va'a (5) Pen: Earl Va'a (2)

2003-10-24
	'''South Africa '''	46–19	''' Georgia'''	Aussie Stadium Attendance: 34,308 Referee: Stuart Dickinson
	Tries: Danie Rossouw (2), Derick Hougaard, Joe van Niekerk, Jaque Fourie, Bakkies Botha, Schalk Burger Con: Derick Hougaard (4) Pen: Derick Hougaard		Tries: David Dadunashvili Con: Paliko Jimsheladze Pen: Paliko Jimsheladze (3), Merab Kvirikashvili

2003-10-26
	'''England '''	35–22	''' Samoa'''	Telstra Dome Attendance: 50,647 Referee: Jonathan Kaplan
	Tries: Neil Back, Penalty try, Iain Balshaw, Phil Vickery Con: Jonny Wilkinson (3) Pen: Jonny Wilkinson (2) Drop goals: Jonny Wilkinson		Tries: Semo Sititi Con: Earl Va'a Pen: Earl Va'a (5)

2003-10-28
	'''Georgia '''	12–24	''' Uruguay'''	Aussie Stadium Attendance: 28,576 Referee: Kelvin Deaker
	Pen: Malkhaz Urjukashvili, Merab Kvirikashvili (3)		Tries: Alfonso Cardoso, Diego Lamelas, Nicolas Brignoni Con: Diego Aguirre (2), Juan Menchaca Pen: Juan Menchaca

2003-11-01
	'''South Africa '''	60–10	''' Samoa'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 48,496 Referee: Chris White
	Tries: Joe van Niekerk, Jorrie Muller, Derick Hougaard, Juan Smith, Ashwin Willemse, Jaque Fourie, Jaco van der Westhuyzen, Neil de Kock Con: Derick Hougaard (5), Louis Koen (2) Pen: Derick Hougaard		Tries: Opeta Palepoi Con: Earl Va'a Pen: Earl Va'a

2003-11-02
	'''England '''	111–13	''' Uruguay'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 46,233 Referee: Nigel Williams
	Tries: Lewis Moody, Josh Lewsey (5), Iain Balshaw (2), Mike Catt (2), Andy Gomarsall (2), Dan Luger, Stuart Abbott, Jason Robinson (2), Will Greenwood Con: Jonny Wilkinson (11), Mike Catt (2)		Tries: Pablo Lemoine Con: Juan Menchaca Pen: Juan Menchaca (2)

Pool D

Team	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	BP	Points
New Zealand	4	0	0	282	57	4	20
Wales	3	0	1	132	98	2	14
Italy	2	0	2	76	124	0	8
Canada	1	0	3	54	135	1	5
Tonga	0	0	4	46	178	1	1

2003-10-11
	'''New Zealand '''	70–7	''' Italy'''	Telstra Dome Attendance: 40, 715 Referee: Andrew Cole
	Tries: Brad Thorn, Reuben Thorne, Doug Howlett (2), Carlos Spencer (2), Joe Rokocoko (2), Justin Marshall, Daniel Carter, Leon MacDonald Con: Daniel Carter (6) Pen: Carlos Spencer		Tries: Matt Phillips Con: Gert Peens

2003-10-12
	'''Wales '''	41–10	''' Canada'''	Telstra Dome Attendance: 24,874 Referee: Chris White
	Tries: Sonny Parker, Gareth Cooper, Mark Jones, Colin Charvis, Gareth Thomas Con: Iestyn Harris (5) Pen: Iestyn Harris (2)		Tries: Kevin Tkachuk Con: James Pritchard Drop goals: Bob Ross

2003-10-15
	'''Italy '''	36–12	''' Tonga'''	Canberra Stadium Attendance: 18,967 Referee: Steve Walsh
	Tries: Manuel Dallan, Denis Dallan (2) Con: Rima Wakarua (3) Pen: Rima Wakarua (5)		Tries: John Payne, Tevita Tu'ifua Con: Sateki Tu'ipulotu

2003-10-17
	'''New Zealand '''	68–6	''' Canada'''	Telstra Dome Attendance: 38,899 Referee: Tony Spreadbury
	Tries: Caleb Ralph (2), Rodney So'oialo (2), Mils Muliaina (4), Kees Meeuws, Ma'a Nonu Con: Daniel Carter (9)		Pen: Jared Barker (2)

2003-10-19
	'''Wales '''	27–20	''' Tonga'''	Canberra Stadium Attendance: 19,806 Referee: Paul Honiss
	Tries: Gareth Cooper, Martyn Williams Con: Stephen Jones (5) Pen: Stephen Jones (4) Drop goals: Martyn Williams		Tries: Pierre Hola, Benhur Kivalu Con: Pierre Hola Pen: Pierre Hola

2003-10-21
	'''Italy '''	19–14	''' Canada'''	Canberra Stadium Attendance: 24,500 Referee: Paddy O'Brien
	Tries: Sergio Parisse Con: Rima Wakarua Pen: Rima Wakarua (4)		Tries: Quentin Fyffe Pen: Jared Barker (3)

2003-10-24
	'''New Zealand '''	91–7	''' Tonga'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 47,588 Referee: Pablo Deluca
	Tries: Daniel Braid, Daniel Carter, Corey Flynn, Caleb Ralph (2), Carlos Spencer, Kees Meeuws, Mils Muliaina (2), Leon MacDonald, Doug Howlett (2) Con: Leon MacDonald (12), Carlos Spencer		Tries: Pierre Hola Con: Sateki Tu'ipulotu

2003-10-25
	'''Italy '''	15–27	''' Wales'''	Canberra Stadium Attendance: 22,641 Referee: Andrew Cole
	Pen: Rima Wakarua (5)		Tries: Mark Jones, Sonny Parker, Dafydd Jones Con: Iestyn Harris (3) Pen: Iestyn Harris (3)

2003-10-29
	'''Canada '''	24–7	''' Tonga'''	WIN Stadium Attendance: 15,630 Referee: Alain Rolland
	Tries: Sean Fauth, Aaron Abrams Con: James Pritchard Pen: Bob Ross (4)		Tries: Benhur Kivalu Con: Pierre Hola

2003-11-02
	'''New Zealand '''	53–37	''' Wales'''	Telstra Stadium Attendance: 80,012 Referee: André Watson
	Tries: Joe Rokocoko (2), Leon MacDonald, Ali Williams, Doug Howlett (2), Carlos Spencer, Aaron Mauger Con: Leon MacDonald (5) Pen: Leon MacDonald		Tries: Mark Taylor, Sonny Parker, Colin Charvis, Shane Williams Con: Stephen Jones (4) Pen: Stephen Jones (3)

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Knock-out stages

Quarter-finals

2003-11-08
	'''New Zealand '''	29–9	''' South Africa'''	Telstra Dome Attendance: 40,734 Referee: Tony Spreadbury
	Tries: Leon MacDonald, Keven Mealamu, Joe Rokocoko Con: Leon MacDonald Pen: Leon MacDonald (3)		Pen: Derick Hougaard (3)

	'''Australia '''	33–16	''' Scotland'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 45,412 Referee: Steve Walsh
	Tries: Stirling Mortlock, George Gregan, David Lyons Con: Elton Flatley (3) Pen: Elton Flatley (4)		Tries: Robbie Russell Con: Chris Paterson Pen: Chris Paterson (2) Drop goals: Chris Paterson

2003-11-09
	'''France '''	43–21	''' Ireland'''	Telstra Dome Attendance: 33,134 Referee: Jonathan Kaplan
	Tries: Olivier Magne, Christophe Dominici, Imanol Harinordoquy, Jean-Jacques Crenca Con: Frédéric Michalak (4) Pen: Frédéric Michalak (5)		Tries: Kevin Maggs, Brian O'Driscoll (2) Con: David Humphreys (3)

	'''England '''	28–17	''' Wales'''	Suncorp Stadium Attendance: 45,252 Referee: Alain Rolland
	Tries: Will Greenwood Con: Jonny Wilkinson Pen: Jonny Wilkinson (6) Drop goals: Jonny Wilkinson		Tries: Stephen Jones, Colin Charvis, Martyn Williams Con: Iestyn Harris

Semi-finals

2003-11-15
	'''New Zealand '''	10–22	''' Australia'''	Telstra Stadium Attendance: 82,444 Referee: Chris White
	Tries: Reuben Thorne Con: Leon MacDonald Pen: Leon MacDonald		Tries: Stirling Mortlock Con: Elton Flatley Pen: Elton Flatley (5)

2003-11-16
	'''France '''	7–24	''' England'''	Telstra Stadium Attendance: 82,346 Referee: Paddy O'Brien
	Tries: Serge Betsen Con: Frédéric Michalak		Pen: Jonny Wilkinson (5) Drop goals: Jonny Wilkinson (3)

Third-place play-off

2003-11-20
	'''New Zealand '''	40–13	''' France'''	Telstra Stadium Attendance: 62,712 Referee: Chris White
	Tries: Chris Jack, Brad Thorn, Doug Howlett, Joe Rokocoko, Mils Muliaina, Marty Holah Con: Leon MacDonald, Daniel Carter		Tries: Pepito Elhorga Con: Dimitri Yachvili Pen: Dimitri Yachvili Drop goals: Dimitri Yachvili

Final

2003-11-22
	'''Australia '''	17–20 (AET)	''' England'''	Telstra Stadium Attendance: 82,957 Referee: André Watson
	Tries: Lote Tuqiri Pen: Elton Flatley (4)		Tries: Jason Robinson Pen: Jonny Wilkinson (4) Drop goals: Jonny Wilkinson

Post final

Three days after the final, the new World Champion England team landed at Heathrow Airport in the early hours of the morning, emerging from their plane to a huge reception despite the time.

Scrum-half Matt Dawson described the reception at the airport as "mindblowing". On December 8 a national day of celebration took place in the form of a massive victory parade in the streets of London.

The 2003 Rugby World Cup had a global cumulative audience of 3.5 billion.An estimated 40,000 international spectators travelled to Australia in 2003 during the World Cup. A tourism boost was noted, for example; bars in Adelaide experienced an increase of revenue by 30% over the duration of the World Cup. Officials in Melbourne estimated that $100 million would have been injected into the Australian economy. In April of 2004, the International Rugby Board released a review of the tournament which saw records in almost all aspects of the World Cup. The Australian Rugby Union said that revenues exceeded all expectations and it was announced that it had received a tournament surplus of $44.5 million.

The hosting of the World Cup in Australia also saw an increase in Super 12 crowds and junior participation.

Statistics

Team

Team statistics
Team	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points Difference	Tries Scored	Conversions	Penalties	Drop Goals	Yellow Cards	Red Cards
England	7	7	0	0	239	36	27	23	8	1	0
Australia	7	6	0	1	267	43	32	21	1	1	0
New Zealand	7	6	0	1	260	52	40	6	1	1	0
France	7	5	0	2	112	29	22	22	4	5	0
South Africa	5	3	0	2	104	27	17	7	1	1	0
Ireland	5	3	0	2	63	20	16	9	1	1	0
Wales	5	3	0	2	23	17	14	11	1	2	0
Scotland	5	3	0	2
12	8	13	1	1	0
Argentina	4	2	0	2	83	18	13	6	2	1	0
Fiji	4	2	0	2
10	6	12	0	3	0
Samoa	4	2	0	2	21	18	12	8	0	1	0
Italy	4	2	0	2
5	5	14	0	2	0
United States	4	1	0	3
9	7	9	0	1	0
Canada	4	1	0	3
4	2	9	1	1	0
Romania	4	1	0	3
8	5	5	0	1	0
Uruguay	4	1	0	3
6	4	6	0	0	0
Japan	4	0	0	4
6	5	12	1	0	0
Tonga	4	0	0	4
7	4	1	0	4	0
Georgia	4	0	0	4
1	1	12	1	2	0
Namibia	4	0	0	4
4	4	0	0	1	0

Top point scorers

Top ten point scorers
Player	Team	Position	Played	Tries Scored	Conversions	Penalties	Drop Goals	Total Points	Yellow Cards	Red Cards
Jonny Wilkinson	England	Fly-half	6	0	10	23	8	113	0	0
Frédéric Michalak	France	Fly-half	6	2	18	18	1	103	0	0
Elton Flatley	Australia	Centre	6	1	16	21	0	100	0	0
Leon MacDonald	New Zealand	Centre	7	4	20	5	0	75	0	0
Chris Paterson	Scotland	Fly-half	5	3	7	13	1	71	0	0
Mat Rogers	Australia	Full-back	7	5	16	0	0	57	1	0
Mike Hercus	United States	Fly-half	4	2	7	9	0	51	0	0
Rima Wakarua	Italy	Fly-half	3	0	4	14	0	50	0	0
Earl Va'a	Fiji	Fly-half	4	1	10	8	0	49	0	0
Daniel Carter	New Zealand	Fly-half	5	2	19	0	0	48	0	0

Top try scorers

Top ten try scorers
Player	Team	Position	Played	Tries Scored	Conversions	Penalties	Drop Goals	Total Points	Yellow Cards	Red Cards
Doug Howlett	New Zealand	Wing	7	7	0	0	0	35	0	0
Mils Muliaina	New Zealand	Full-back	7	7	0	0	0	35	0	0
Joe Rokocoko	New Zealand	Wing	5	6	0	0	0	30	0	0
Will Greenwood	England	Centre	6	5	0	0	0	25	0	0
Chris Latham	Australia	Full-back	1	5	0	0	0	25	0	0
Josh Lewsey	England	Full-back	5	5	0	0	0	25	0	0
Mat Rogers	Australia	Full-back	7	5	16	0	0	57	1	0
Lote Tuqiri	Australia	Wing	7	5	0	0	0	25	0	0
Pablo Bouza	Argentina	No. 8	2	4	0	0	0	20	0	0
Christophe Dominici	France	Wing	5	4	0	0	0	20	1	0

Notes and references

External links

• [Official site]
• [BBC account of 2003 World Cup victory]
• [Video of Caucaunibuca's 2003 World Cup try for Fiji against France] (WMV format)

Rugby World Cup
Australia and New Zealand 1987 | England 1991 | South Africa 1995 | Wales 1999 | Australia 2003 | France 2007 | New Zealand 2011 | To be decided 2015 History | Hosts | Qualification | Records and statistics | Team appearances | Trophy

 

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