2007 Six Nations Championship
The 2007 RBS 6 Nations Championship was the eighth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship and was won by France, on points difference. 15 matches were played over five weekends from 3 February to 17 March.
In the build-up to the competition, Ireland were being tipped as favourites for the Grand Slam, having played well during the Autumn Tests. However, despite having started strongly with a win against Wales, they lost to France 20-17 in an historic[1] encounter at Croke Park. In turn, Ireland went on to beat England, who subsequently won against France.
Round 3 of the competition saw Italy win their first ever away match in the Six Nations. Scotland conceded three tries (all converted) in the first six minutes, and Italy went on to secure an historic 37-17 victory. In the same round, England's defeat by Ireland at Croke Park 43-13 marked their worst result ever in the history of the tournament, both in number of points conceded and in points difference (30 points).
In round 4, Italy achieved a second victory in the same championship for the first time in their history. They won against Wales 23-20 in Rome. The end of the match was controversial. Wales won a late penalty near the Italian 22-metre line, asked the referee if they had time to kick for touch to go for a try. The referee said they did, but when they went to take their line-out, the referee blew for full time.[2]
France won the tournament with an injury-time try at the Stade de France, giving them the 27 point victory over Scotland they needed to secure the title.
Participants
The teams involved are:
Table
Template:2007 Six Nations Table
- After Round 4 of the competition, all of the teams had lost at least one match, and as a result no one could win the Grand Slam.
- Ireland won the Triple Crown for the second straight year and third time in four years.
Final day
On the final day (a Super Saturday — all three matches on one day), four teams could win the Championship: France, Ireland, England and Italy. France were top of the table going into the final day, on a few points difference over Ireland. England were over 20 points behind. Italy could only win if the other three lost and they won substantially. Ireland and Italy played first. The first half was close, Ireland leading by a point at half time. They then ran in several tries, stretching away from Italy. After 80 minutes, Ireland had the ball and pushed forward for another try, to set a higher target for the other teams. However, they lost the ball and Italy went on to score another try, which was converted.
France played next against Scotland. The first half was very close, but in the second half France scored a few tries to stretch a lead. After 80 minutes, they were three points behind Ireland, so pushed forward. A try was awarded to Elvis Vermeulen following a decision by the Irish Television Match Official (TMO) at the end of their match against Scotland, giving them a four points difference over Ireland. This try was controversial because the grounding could barely be seen on the replays. Also, at that point in time, the decision who would, ultimately win the Six Nations 2007 was in the hands of an Irish TMO. The referee inquired to the TMO if there was any apparent reason why the try should not be given, suggesting the referee already believed the grounding occurred, thus making the video call just a precaution, given the massive implications of the outcome of the decision.
England were left with the formidable task of beating Wales by 57 points. Wales were playing to avoid the wooden spoon, and were also fired up by the rivalry between them and England. Wales started well, going 15-0 up in 15 minutes. England fought back with two tries from Jason Robinson and Harry Ellis. It was 18-15 to Wales at half time, leaving it almost certain that France would be champions. England drew level, but then James Hook kicked Wales to victory, 27-18. France therefore won the championship on points difference by four points.
Scorers
Leading Try Scorers
| Top 3 try scorers | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Name | Tries | Pld | Team | ||||
| 1 | Jason Robinson | 4 | 4 | England | ||||
| 1 | Ronan O'Gara | 4 | 5 | Ireland | ||||
| 3 | Sébastien Chabal | 2 | 3 | France | ||||
Leading point scorers
| Top 3 point scorers | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Name | Points | Pld | Team | ||||
| 1 | Ronan O'Gara | 85 | 5 | Ireland | ||||
| 2 | Chris Paterson | 65 | 5 | Scotland | ||||
| 3 | Jonny Wilkinson | 50 | 3 | England | ||||
Results
Week 1
| 2007-02-03 1330 GMT |
| ITAru | 3 – 39 | FRAru |
| Pen: Pez 36' | Tries: Dominici 23' c Heymans 30' c Chabal (2) 40' m, 44' c Jauzion 63' c Con: Skrela (4) Pen: Skrela 13' Beauxis 72' |
| Stadio Flaminio, Rome Attendance: 24,973 |
| 2007-02-03 1600 GMT |
| ENGru | 42 – 20 | SCOru |
| Tries: Robinson (2) 37' m, 55' c Wilkinson 59' c Lund 72' m Con: Wilkinson (2) Drop: Wilkinson 19' Pen: Wilkinson (5) 11', 29', 31', 49', 53' | Tries: Taylor 25' c Dewey 77' c Con: Paterson (2) Pen: Paterson (2) 18', 43' |
| Twickenham, London Attendance: 82,000 |
| 2007-02-04 1500 GMT |
| WALru | 9 – 19 | IRLru |
| Pen: S. Jones (3) 9', 19', 25' | Tries: R. Best 1' m B. O'Driscoll 33' c O'Gara 71' c Con: O'Gara (2) |
| Millennium Stadium, Cardiff Attendance: 74,239 |
Week 2
| 2007-02-10 1330 GMT |
| ENGru | 20 – 7 | ITAru |
| Try: Robinson 39' m Pen: Wilkinson (5) 3', 15', 25', 56', 75' | Try: Scanavacca 65' c Con: Scanavacca |
| Twickenham, London Attendance: 82,000 |
| 2007-02-10 1530 GMT |
| SCOru | 21 – 9 | WALru |
| Pen: Paterson (7) 6', 19', 37', 48', 52', 58', 79' | Pen: S. Jones (3) 24', 40', 54' |
| Murrayfield, Edinburgh Attendance: 67,500 |
| 2007-02-11 1500 GMT |
| IRLru | 17 – 20 | FRAru |
| Try: O'Gara 31' m Pen: O'Gara (4) 12', 24', 56', 78' | Tries: Ibañez 14' c Clerc 79' c Con: Skrela, Beauxis Pen: Skrela (2) 4', 9' |
| Croke Park, Dublin Attendance: 83,000 |
Week 3
| 2007-02-24 1500 GMT |
| SCOru | 17 – 37 | ITAru |
| Tries: Dewey 14' c Paterson 60' c Con: Paterson (2) Pen: Paterson 40' | Tries: Ma. Bergamasco 1' c Scanavacca 4' c Robertson 6' c Troncon 75' c Con: Scanavacca (4) Pen: Scanavacca (3) 19', 66', 71' |
| Murrayfield, Edinburgh Attendance: 50,284 |
| 2007-02-24 1730 GMT |
| IRLru | 43 – 13 | ENGru |
| Tries: Dempsey 30' c D. Wallace 37' c Horgan 63' c Boss 78' c Con: O'Gara (3) P. Wallace Pen: O'Gara (5) 6', 20', 26', 43', 57' | Tries: Strettle 46' c Con: Wilkinson Pen: Wilkinson (2) 2', 56' |
| Croke Park, Dublin Attendance: 83,000 |
| 2007-02-24 2000 GMT |
| FRAru | 32 – 21 | WALru |
| Tries: Dominici 28' c Nallet 34' c Con: Skrela (2) Pen: Skrela (5) 11', 18', 38', 46', 52' Beauxis 80' | Tries: Popham 13' c Shanklin 15' c Robinson 74' c Con: S. Jones (3) |
| Stade de France, Saint-Denis Attendance: 79,959 |
Week 4
| 2007-03-10 1330 GMT |
| SCOru | 18 – 19 | IRLru |
| Pen: Paterson (6) 17', 36', 40', 51', 61', 66' | Try: O'Gara 30' c Con: O'Gara Pen: O'Gara (4) 9', 38', 68', 70' |
| Murrayfield, Edinburgh Attendance: 67,800 |
| 2007-03-10 1530 GMT |
| ITAru | 23 – 20 | WALru |
| Try: Robertson 37' c Mauro Bergamasco 78' c Con: Pez (2) Pen: Pez (3) 12', 20', 73' | Tries: S. Williams 27' c Rees 45' c Con: S. Jones Hook Pen: Hook (2) 44', 54' |
| Stadio Flaminio, Rome Attendance: 24,973 |
| 2007-03-11 1500 GMT |
| ENGru | 26 – 18 | FRAru |
| Try: Flood 48' c Tindall 73' c Con: Flood, Geraghty Pen: Flood (3) 8', 31', 35' Geraghty 68' | Pen: Skrela (3) 4', 15', 21' Yachvili (3) 34', 52', 59' |
| Twickenham, London Attendance: 82,000 |
Week 5
| 2007-03-17 1330 GMT |
| ITAru | 24 – 51 | IRLru |
| Try: Bortolami 75' m de Marigny 80' c Con: Scanavacca Drop: Pez (2) 12', 29' Pen: Pez (2) 15', 26' | Try: Dempsey (2) 17' m, 46' c Easterby 21' m D'Arcy 40' c Horgan 51' m Hickie (2) 55' c, 77' m O'Gara 59' c Con: O'Gara (4) Pen: O'Gara 6' |
| Stadio Flaminio, Rome Attendance: 24,973 |
| 2007-03-17 1530 GMT |
| FRAru | 46 – 19 | SCOru |
| Try: Harinordoquy 29' c Jauzion 33' c Marty 52' Heymans 59' m Milloud 62' c Vermeulen 80' c Con: Beauxis (5) Pen: Beauxis (2) 19', 37' | Try: Walker 7' c S. Lamont 40' c E. Murray 76' m Con: Paterson (2) |
| Stade de France, Saint-Denis Attendance: 79,959 |
France needed to win by 24 points to win the Championship.
| 2007-03-17 1730 GMT |
| WALru | 27 – 18 | ENGru |
| Try: Hook 3' c Horsman 13' m Con: Hook Drop: Hook 68' Pen: Hook (4) 11', 39', 64', 74' | Try: Ellis 32' c Robinson 40' m Con: Flood Drop: Flood 35' Pen: Flood 46' |
| Millennium Stadium, Cardiff Attendance: 74,500 |
England needed to win by 57 points to win the Championship.
Notes and references
- ^ This was the first rugby match ever at Croke Park. Before 2005, the constitution of the Gaelic Athletic Association, which owns Croke Park, prohibited "foreign games" from being played on the ground. In practice, this ban was applied only to football and the rugby codes, as the stadium has been used for matches in International Rules football (a hybrid between Australian Rules and Gaelic football) and American football.
- ^ "Italy v Wales". BBC. March 10, 2007.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Mike Catt captained England in their final two matches against France and Wales, which Vickery missed due to injury.
- ^ Regular captain Fabien Pelous was out injured for France's first two matches against Italy and Ireland, with vice-captain Ibañez elevated to the captaincy for both matches.
- ^ "France robbed of skipper Pelous". RugbyRugby.com. February 20, 2007.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) Pelous' injury ultimately ruled him out of the entire 2007 competition, and Ibañez was announced as his replacement. - ^ Lansdowne Road, Ireland's traditional home, is being redeveloped and is expected to be back in use by 2009.
- ^ Paul O'Connell captained Ireland in their second match against France, which O'Driscoll missed due to injury.
- ^ The regular Scotland captain, Jason White, did not play in this season's competition because he was recovering from a serious knee injury.
- ^ "Thomas to deputise for injured captain". Welsh Rugby Union. 14 March 2007. Jones was ruled out of Wales' final match against England due to a broken wrist. Gareth Thomas was named captain for the match, in which he equalled Gareth Llewellyn for most caps by a Wales player.