1995 Rugby World Cup final

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1995 Rugby World Cup Final
Ellis Park Stadium.jpg
Event 1995 Rugby World Cup
South Africa New Zealand
Flag of South Africa.svgFlag of New Zealand.svg
1512
After extra time
Date24 June 1995
Venue Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
Referee Ed Morrison (England) [1]
Attendance59,870
← 1991
1999 →

The 1995 Rugby World Cup Final was the final match of the 1995 Rugby World Cup, played in South Africa. The match was played at Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg on 24 June 1995 between the host nation, South Africa, and New Zealand.

Contents

South Africa won the match by three points in their first Rugby World Cup Final, which was also the first to require extra time. Unusually, the points were scored by only one player from each team, with Andrew Mehrtens of New Zealand scoring all 12 of the All Blacks points, (three penalties and one drop goal) and Joel Stransky tallying all 15 points (three penalties and two drop goals) for the Springboks, including a drop goal in extra time, which sealed the victory and their first ever Rugby World Cup title.

At the end of the match, South African President Nelson Mandela, wearing a number 6 Springbok rugby shirt and cap, presented the Webb Ellis Cup to the South African captain François Pienaar.

Path to the final

The final was contested by the hosts, South Africa, and New Zealand. Both teams finished at the top of their pools, both undefeated in the pool stages. South Africa defeated Western Samoa in the quarter finals, and then France in the semi-finals to reach the final; the All Blacks defeated Scotland in the quarter-finals, and England in the semi-finals, a game in which Jonah Lomu famously scored four tries.

Going into the final, New Zealand had led the tournament in points scored, outscoring their opponents 315–104, while South Africa had outscored their opponents 129–55. The high scoring All Blacks had been led by Lomu, who had the record for most tries in a world cup match summary.

The Final

Queen of the Skies fly by

Just minutes before South Africa and New Zealand ran out for the final, a Boeing 747-200 ZS-SAN, nicknamed "LEBOMBO" captained by Captain Laurie Kay approached the ground from the south. They completed the first fly by, made a right turn and approached for a second even lower fly by. The message "GOOD LUCK BOKKE" was stenciled beneath her wings and was witnessed by the full capacity of Ellis Park. [2] [3]

Anthems

The national anthem of New Zealand, "God Defend New Zealand", and the then-dual national anthems of South Africa's "Die Stem van Suid-Afrika" and "Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika" were sung by the Imilonji Kantu Choral Society. [4]

First half

No tries were scored, but this did not diminish the tense atmosphere and climactic finish. The South Africans played a largely defensive game. Due to the strength of flanker Ruben Kruger and No. 8 Mark Andrews plus scrum-half Joost van der Westhuizen, the expansive attacks from New Zealand were repeatedly closed down. Andrew Mehrtens opened the scoring with a penalty after six minutes to give New Zealand a 3–0 lead. A Joel Stransky penalty put South Africa on the scoreboard after 11 minutes. Mehrtens and Stransky swapped successful penalty kicks. Following a period of pressure, Stransky landed a 32nd minute drop goal to give South Africa a 9–6 lead at half time.

Second half

The All Blacks levelled the scores at 9–9 with a Mehrtens drop goal after 55 minutes. Though All Blacks fly-half Andrew Mehrtens almost kicked a late drop goal, the score remained unchanged at full time, forcing the game into extra time for the first time in a Rugby World Cup final.

Extra time

Extra time began with South Africa needing to take the initiative, due to the ruling that if extra time finished with scores still level with no side having scored more tries than the other, then the team with the better overall disciplinary record during the tournament would win. [5] But early in the first half, the Springboks were penalized for chasing a Stransky kick from an offside position. [5] From just inside the half-way line, Mehrtens kicked truly to give New Zealand a 12–9 lead. As half-time approached, Stransky put a high kick for his teammates to chase, and from the resultant play referee Morrison penalized the All Blacks for diving to the ground near the tackle, and right on the stroke of half-time Stransky levelled the scores at 12–12. Seven minutes from time it was Stransky who scored the final point. From thirty metres out he struck the drop goal, securing South Africa's victory and the Rugby World Cup crown.

Aftermath

After the match Nelson Mandela, wearing a Springbok rugby shirt and cricket cap, presented the Webb Ellis Cup to South Africa captain François Pienaar. The moment is one of the most famous of any sporting final. [6] In 2002, Mandela's presentation was listed at number 70 in a list of the 100 Greatest Sporting Moments on a British television programme. [7]

During the end of tournament banquet, South Africa's rugby president, Louis Luyt said in his speech that "There were no true world champions in the 1987 and 1991 World Cups because South Africa were not there." This claim led the New Zealand team to walk out of the dinner. [8]

Match details

24 June 1995
13:30 UTC+2
South Africa  Flag of South Africa.svg15–12Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand
Pen: Stransky (3/4) 10', 22', 90'
Drop: Stransky (2/2) 31', 92'		 Report Pen: Mehrtens (3/3) 5', 13', 83'
Drop: Mehrtens (1/2) 55'
Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Attendance: 65,000
Referee: Ed Morrison (England)
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body sa95.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks 2 gold stripes.png
Kit socks long.svg
South Africa
Kit left arm.svg
Kit body allblacksclassic.png
Kit body.svg
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
Kit socks 2whitestripes.png
Kit socks long.svg
New Zealand
FB15 André Joubert
RW14 James Small Sub off.svg 97'
OC13 Japie Mulder
IC12 Hennie le Roux
LW11 Chester Williams
FH10 Joel Stransky
SH9 Joost van der Westhuizen
N88 Mark Andrews Sub off.svg 90'
BF7 Ruben Kruger
OF6 Francois Pienaar (c)
RL5 Hannes Strydom
LL4 Kobus Wiese
TP3 Balie Swart Sub off.svg 68'
HK2 Chris Rossouw
LP1 Os du Randt
Replacements:
HK16 Naka Drotské
C17 Brendan Venter Sub on.svg 97'
FL18 Rudolf Straeuli Sub on.svg 90'
SH19 Johan Roux
PR20 Garry Pagel Sub on.svg 68'
FB21 Gavin Johnson
Coach:
Flag of South Africa.svg Kitch Christie
FB15 Glen Osborne
RW14 Jeff Wilson Sub off.svg 55'
OC13 Frank Bunce
IC12 Walter Little
LW11 Jonah Lomu
FH10 Andrew Mehrtens
SH9 Graeme Bachop Cruz Roja.svg 67' to 70'
N88 Zinzan Brooke
OF7 Josh Kronfeld
BF6 Mike Brewer Sub off.svg 40'
RL5 Robin Brooke
LL4 Ian Jones
TP3 Olo Brown
HK2 Sean Fitzpatrick (c)
LP1 Craig Dowd Sub off.svg 83'
Replacements:
WG16 Marc Ellis Sub on.svg 55'
FH17 Simon Culhane
SH18 Ant Strachan Sub on.svg 67'Sub off.svg 70'
FL19 Jamie Joseph Sub on.svg 40'
PR20 Richard Loe Sub on.svg 83'
HK21 Norm Hewitt
Coach:
Flag of New Zealand.svg Laurie Mains

Referee:
Ed Morrison (England)

Touch Judges:
Derek Bevan (Wales)
Joël Dumé (France)

Mandela and Pienaar's involvement in the 1995 World Cup became the subject of Clint Eastwood's Oscar-nominated 2009 film Invictus , featuring Morgan Freeman as Mandela and Matt Damon as Pienaar, with the final as the climactic scene and filmed on location at Ellis Park. Chester Williams, the only black player in the 1995 Springbok squad, was a technical consultant.

Poisoning allegations

New Zealand coach Laurie Mains and doctor Mike Bowen have claimed that the All Blacks were intentionally food poisoned while staying at a South African hotel. [9] [10] The South African side has rebuffed these claims and New Zealand manager Colin Meads has attributed the poisoning to "dodgy milk" rather than an intentional act. [11]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Jérôme Garcès to referee Rugby World Cup 2019 final | Rugby World Cup". www.rugbyworldcup.com. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  2. ↑ "Shock and awe as 747 swoops on Ellis Park". www.magzter.com. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  3. ↑ "Our Aircraft". SAA Museum. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  4. ↑ "Gobingca George Mxadana (OIS) | Classical Movements". 23 February 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  5. 1 2 Jones, Stephen (25 June 1995). "One team, one nation, one kick". The Sunday Times . No. 8913. Gale   FP1802922177.
  6. ↑ "Rugby World Cup history". BBC. 7 October 2003. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  7. ↑ "100 Greatest Sporting Moments – Results". London: Channel 4. 2002. Archived from the original on 4 February 2002. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  8. ↑ Donegan, Lawrence (26 June 1995). "Afrikaans arrogance sours Springboks' taste of victory". The Guardian. London: Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
  9. ↑ "Rugby players' food may have been spiked". The Independent. 20 November 1996. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  10. ↑ "RWC #40: New Zealand blame food poisoning on waitress 'Suzie'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  11. ↑ "Meads: Dodgy milk wrecked 1995 World Cup hopes". Yahoo Sports. 9 June 2008. Retrieved 24 September 2023.