1977 Five Nations Championship

Last updated
1977 Five Nations Championship
Date15 January - 19 March 1977
CountriesFlag of England.svg  England
IRFU flag.svg  Ireland
Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France
Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales
Tournament statistics
Champions Flag of France.svg  France (6th title)
Grand Slam Flag of France.svg  France (2nd title)
Triple Crown Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales (14th title)
Matches played10
Tries scored25 (2.5 per match)
Top point scorer(s)
Top try scorer(s)
1976 (Previous)(Next) 1978

The 1977 Five Nations Championship was the forty-eighth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eighty-third series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 15 January and 19 March.

Contents

France won the championship for the sixth time outright. Including shared titles this was France's tenth championship overall. France won the Grand Slam for the second time and did so with the same fifteen players in all four matches (a unique feat for a Grand Slam winner) and without conceding a try. [1] [2] England, in 1913, are the only other Grand Slam winners not to concede a try. [3] France also registered the lowest points total, 58, of any Grand Slam winner in the four point-try era (1972–92). [2] Wales won the Triple Crown for the second consecutive season and the fourteenth time overall, equalling England's record of Triple Crown wins. They were the first Triple Crown winners to finish as runners-up in the championship. [1]

The third game of the tournament — France v. Wales in Paris — was the subject of the 1978 film Grand Slam; the ending had to be rewritten when Wales unexpectedly lost. [4]

Participants

The teams involved were:

NationVenueCityHead coachCaptain
Flag of England.svg  England Twickenham London Peter Colston Roger Uttley
Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France Parc des Princes Paris Jean Desclaux Jacques Fouroux
IRFU flag.svg  Ireland Lansdowne Road Dublin Roly Meates Tom Grace
Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland Murrayfield Edinburgh Bill Dickinson Ian McGeechan
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales National Stadium Cardiff John Dawes Phil Bennett

Table

PosTeamPldWDLPFPAPDPts
1Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France 44005821+378
2Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 43016643+236
3Flag of England.svg  England 42024224+184
4Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland 41033985462
5IRFU flag.svg  Ireland 40043365320
Source: [ citation needed ]

Squads

Results

1977-01-15
Wales  Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg25–9IRFU flag.svg  Ireland
Tries: Burgess
Davies
J.P.R. Williams
Con.: Bennett (2)
Pen.: Bennett (2)
Drops: Fenwick
Pen.: Gibson (3)
National Stadium, Cardiff
Referee: N. Sanson (Scotland)
1977-01-15
England  Flag of England.svg26–6Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Tries: Kent
Slemen
Uttley
Young
Con.: Hignell (2)
Pen.: Hignell (2)
Pen.: Irvine (2)
Twickenham, London
Referee: M. Joseph (Wales)

1977-02-05
France  Flag of France (lighter variant).svg16–9Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales
Tries: Harize
Skrela
Con.: Romeu
Pen.: Romeu (2)
Pen.: Fenwick (3)
Parc des Princes, Paris
Attendance: 43,666
Referee: Alan Hosie (Scotland)
1977-02-05
Ireland  IRFU flag.svg0–4Flag of England.svg  England
Tries: Cooper
Lansdowne Road, Dublin
Referee: F. Palmade (France)

1977-02-19
England  Flag of England.svg3–4Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France
Pen.: Hignell Tries: Sangalli
Twickenham, London
Attendance: 70,000
Referee: J. C. Kelleher (Wales)
1977-02-19
Scotland  Flag of Scotland.svg21–18IRFU flag.svg  Ireland
Tries: Gammell (2)
Madsen
Pen.: Irvine (2)
Drops: Morgan
Tries: Gibson
Con.: Gibson
Pen.: Gibson (2)
Quinn
Drops: Quinn
Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Referee: M. Joseph (Wales)

1977-03-05
France  Flag of France (lighter variant).svg23–3Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland
Tries: Bertranne
Harize
Paco
Paparemborde
Con.: Romeu (2)
Pen.: Romeu
Pen.: Irvine (3)
Parc des Princes, Paris
Attendance: 43,660
Referee: M. Joseph (Wales)
1977-03-05
Wales  Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg14–9Flag of England.svg  England
Tries: Edwards
J.P.R. Williams
Pen.: Fenwick (2)
Pen.: Hignell (3)
National Stadium, Cardiff
Referee: D. I. H. Burnett (Ireland)

1977-03-19
Ireland  IRFU flag.svg6–15Flag of France (lighter variant).svg  France
Pen.: Gibson
Quinn
Tries: Bastiat
Con.: Aguirre
Pen.: Aguirre (2)
Romeu
Lansdowne Road, Dublin
Attendance: 50,000
Referee: Alan Hosie (Scotland)
1977-03-19
Scotland  Flag of Scotland.svg9–18Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales
Tries: Irvine
Con.: Irvine
Drops: McGeechan
Tries: Bennett
J.J. Williams
Con.: Bennett (2)
Pen.: Bennett (2)
Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Referee: G. Domercq (France)

References

  1. 1 2 (Jenkins, p57)
  2. 1 2 Seeckts, Richard. "A frugal French victory". espnscrum.com. Retrieved 25 February 2013.
  3. Griffiths, John. "A watertight defence". espn.co.uk. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  4. Owen, Roger (15 September 2013). Gwenlyn Parry. University of Wales Press. ISBN   9780708326633 via Google Books.