SA Rugby magazine looks back at the 2003 World Cup, which England won on Australian soil.
Australia was awarded the sole right to host the 2003 World Cup when New Zealand, originally co-hosts, failed to guarantee the International Rugby Board that stadiums would be free of non-World Cup advertising. The rugby-mad Kiwi public were shattered and the administrators responsible forced to resign.
There was even more drama in the buildup to the Boks’ third World Cup campaign, with Geo Cronjé and Quinton Davids being dropped from the squad after a racial bust-up and the remaining players having to endure the military-style ‘Kamp Staaldraad’ (details of which came out after the tournament).
The Boks arrived Down Under low on confidence, having finished last in the Tri-Nations and conceding 52 points to the All Blacks at Loftus.
Corné Krige’s side got off to a good start in Perth with a crushing 72-6 win against Uruguay, but their next match, against No 1-ranked England, would determine whether they played Wales or New Zealand in the quarter-finals.
The Boks withstood an early English assault and then dominated for a while, but kicks were missed and the teams went into half time locked at 6-6.
England scored a crucial second-half try when Louis Koen’s clearance kick was charged down and Will Greenwood toed the ball ahead. Two drop goals from Jonny Wilkinson sealed a 25-6 win.
The Boks then beat Georgia 46-19 and Samoa 60-10 to finish second in Pool C.
In the latter clash, Samoa centre Brian Lima – nicknamed ‘The Chiropractor’ – made one of the most famous tackles in rugby history when he rushed up on defence and lifted Springbok flyhalf Derick Hougaard off his feet with a bone-crunching hit.
In Pool A, Australia and Ireland progressed from the ‘Pool of Death’, with Ireland edging Argentina 16-15 and Australia sneaking past Ireland 17-16. In Pool B, France thrashed Scotland 51-9, but both teams went through when the Scots snuck home 22-20 against Fiji. New Zealand and Wales qualified in Pool D, the former winning their encounter 53-37.
It was New Zealand who finally put the Boks out of their misery in the first quarter-final, scoring three unanswered tries in a convincing 29-9 win. Australia were unconvincing 33-16 winners against Scotland, France thrashed Ireland 43-21 and England fought their way back in the second half to beat the fired-up Welsh 28-17.
As in 1999, the All Blacks went into their semi-final match as big favourites. The Wallabies had failed to impress in the tournament up to that point and had taken some serious flak from the local media.
However, once again New Zealand crumbled under the pressure of a big World Cup match. Stirling Mortlock scored an early interception try after a poor pass from Carlos Spencer and the All Blacks, who’d been on the attack, never recovered from the 14-point turnaround. Five penalties from Elton Flatley saw Australia claim a 22-10 win.
The other semi-final, between England and France, was spoilt by rain that prevented either team from playing an expansive game. In the end, it was a one-man show, with Wilkinson slotting five penalties and three drop goals to give England a 24-7 win.
Most of the attention in the buildup to the World Cup final predictably was on Wilkinson, who the Australian media labelled ‘boring’.
The Wallabies were full of confidence after their semi-final victory and took an early lead when Lote Tuqiri plucked a hoisted ball out of the air and scored. But England soon took control, with three Wilkinson penalties and a try from Jason Robinson giving them a nine-point lead at the interval.
England continued to run the ball in the second half, despite the wet conditions, which allowed Australia to play themselves back into contention. A late Flatley penalty made it 17-17 and took the game into extra time.
With 30 seconds to go, and the prospect of sudden death, England launched one final attack and passed the ball back to Wilkinson. The flyhalf coolly sent it through the uprights and wrote himself into rugby history.
2003 Player of the Tournament
Although not at his best during the 2003 World Cup, Jonny Wilkinson was still the most influential player at the tournament.
The flyhalf kicked 20 points against the Boks in their key pool match, all 24 against France in their semi-final and another 15 in the final, including the drop goal that brought the Webb Ellis Cup to England.
2003 Playoff results
Quarter-finals
New Zealand 29 South Africa 9
Australia 33 Scotland 16
France 43 Ireland 21
England 28 Wales 17
Semi-finals
Australia 22 New Zealand 10
England 24 France 7
Third-place playoff
New Zealand 40 France 13
Final
England 20 Australia 17
By Simon Borchardt