International tries
Scores and results list New Zealand's tally first. [1] [5] [6]
Christian Cullen is a New Zealand rugby union player who represented the New Zealand national rugby union team either as a fullback or a wing at international level from 1996 to 2002. He represented New Zealand in 58 test matches and scored 46 tries for his country. [lower-alpha 1] [1] Cullen's try total places him ninth on the all-time list and he is the second highest try scorer for New Zealand behind Doug Howlett (49). [2] He holds the record for the highest number of international tries scored in the fullback playing position in history. [3]
Cullen made his international debut for New Zealand in a 51–10 victory over Samoa at McLean Park in Napier on 7 June 1996, [4] scoring his first three international tries in the same match. [5] [6] He went on to score a further four tries in a 62–31 win against Scotland the following week. [7] Cullen went on to score more tries in the Tri Nations Series in 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000 and New Zealand's tour of Britain and Ireland in 1997. [5] [6] His final three tries came in a test match on 29 June 2002 with Fiji at Westpac Stadium in Wellington, where he overtook Jeff Wilson's total of 44 to become the player with the highest number of tries scored for New Zealand. [8] Cullen remained New Zealand's leading try-scorer until Howlett overtook Cullen's total in September 2007. [9]
Of Cullen's 46 international tries, 27 were scored in test matches, 16 in the Tri Nations Series and 3 in New Zealand's 1997 tour of Britain and Ireland. He scored more against South Africa more than any other team, with ten tries, followed by Australia whom he scored eight tries against. Cullen scored multiple tries in a single international match on 13 occasions, including four hat-tricks. The first of these was a three-try effort against Samoa on his 1996 international debut. The second hat-trick was against Scotland in his second international game held the following week. The third was against Wales in New Zealand's 1997 Britain and Ireland tour and the last was over Fiji in a 2002 test match. Cullen scored tries against 11 countries, including eight of the eleven "Tier 1" countries and three "Tier 2" nations. [5] [6]
Scores and results list New Zealand's tally first. [1] [5] [6]
| No. | Opponent | Venue | Competition | Date | Result | Score | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Samoa | McLean Park, Napier | Test match | 7 June 1996 | Won | 51–10 | [4] |
| 2 |  Scotland | Carisbrook, Dunedin | 15 June 1996 | Won | 62–31 | [10] [7] | |
| 3 |  Wales | Wembley Stadium, London | 1997 New Zealand tour of Britain and Ireland | 29 November 1997 | Won | 42–7 | [20] |
| 4 |  Fiji | Westpac Stadium, Wellington | Test match | 29 June 2002 | Won | 68–18 | [8] |
|
|
|
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for their international success, the All Blacks have often been regarded as one of the most successful sports teams in history.
Jonah Tali Lomu was a New Zealand professional rugby union player. Lomu is considered to have been the first true global superstar of rugby, and consequently had a huge impact on the game. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential players in the history of the sport, and as one of the most talented sportsmen ever.
Christian Mathias Cullen is a retired New Zealand rugby union player. He played most of his rugby at fullback for New Zealand, for the Hurricanes in the Super 12, and for Manawatu, Wellington and later Munster at provincial level. He was nicknamed the Paekakariki Express and was considered to be one of the most potent running fullbacks rugby has ever seen. With 46 tries scored in 58 tests, Cullen is the 9th-highest try-scorer in international rugby.
Zinzan Valentine Brooke is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer who played at number eight.
Jonathan Ionatana Falefasa Umaga is a New Zealand former rugby union footballer and former captain of the national team, the All Blacks. Since 2016 he has been coach of the Blues in the Super Rugby competition.
Josevata Taliga "Joe" Rokocoko is a New Zealand former professional rugby union player, who played as a wing.
George Musarurwa Gregan AM is a retired Australian rugby union player, and is currently Australia's most capped international player.
The United States men's national rugby union team, nicknamed the Eagles, represents the United States of America Rugby Football Union in men's international rugby union. USA Rugby is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United States, and is a member of Rugby Americas North, one of six regional governing bodies under World Rugby. Until rugby returned to Olympic competition, with sevens at the 2016 Rio Games, the United States was the reigning Olympic rugby champion, having defeated the one other competitor in 1920 and the two other competitors at the 1924 Summer Olympics.
The 2003 Rugby World Cup Final was the final match of the 2003 Rugby World Cup, the fifth edition of the Rugby World Cup competition organised by the International Rugby Board (IRB) for national rugby union teams. The match was played at Stadium Australia in Sydney on 22 November 2003, and was contested by Australia and England. The 20-team competition consisted of a group stage, from which eight squads qualified for the knockout stage. En route to the final, Australia finished first in Pool A with four wins and no losses or draws before defeating Scotland in the quarter-final and New Zealand in the semi-final. England finished on top of Pool C and, like Australia, went undefeated with four victories and no draws before beating Wales in the quarter-final and France in the semi-final.
The 2008 Tri Nations Series was the thirteenth annual Tri Nations competition between the national rugby union teams of New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. The All Blacks won the series on 13 September 2008 after defeating Australia in the last match of the series.
Alan Christopher Hunte is an English former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer who played between 1989 and 2003. He played rugby league (RL) at representative level for Great Britain, and at club level for Wakefield Trinity, St. Helens, Hull FC, Warrington Wolves and Salford City Reds as a three-quarter, and club level rugby union (RU) for Pontypridd RFC.
New Zealand first played against Ireland in 1905, during the 1905–1906 All Blacks tour of Europe and North America, beating Ireland 15–0 at Lansdowne Road, Dublin. The two teams have played 37 test matches, with New Zealand winning 31, Ireland winning 5, and 1 match drawn.
Morné Steyn is a South African former professional rugby union player who played as a fly-half for the Bulls and played for the South Africa national team, up until his retirement from international test rugby in October 2021.
The 2006 Heineken Cup Final was a rugby union match played at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, on 20 May 2006, to determine the winners of the 2005–06 Heineken Cup, European rugby's premier club competition. The match was contested by Irish province Munster and French side Biarritz. It was the 11th Heineken Cup final overall and the third final appearance for Munster, while Biarritz were competing in their first final. It was the second time the Millennium Stadium had hosted the Heineken Cup final, the other being in 2002, and the fourth to take place in Cardiff, including finals played at the old Cardiff Arms Park.
The 2010 Tri Nations Series was the 15th annual Tri Nations series between the national rugby union teams of New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.
The 1996 New Zealand rugby union tour of South Africa was a historic tour in the history of New Zealand rugby. The All Blacks won the test series 2–1 and became known as "the Incomparables" for their feat of winning a series in South Africa for the first time.
Asafo Junior Aumua is a New Zealand professional rugby union player who plays as a hooker for New Zealand franchise Hurricanes and the New Zealand national team. In his youth, he was selected to play in the 2016 and 2017 World Rugby Under 20 Championships for New Zealand.
Tupou Paea'i Okalani Vaa'i is a New Zealand professional rugby union footballer who plays as a lock for the Taranaki Bulls in the Mitre 10 Cup and for the Chiefs in Super Rugby.
The 2020 Tri Nations Series was the seventeenth edition of the annual southern hemisphere competition, involving Argentina, Australia and New Zealand. On 16 October 2020, 2019 Rugby Championship winners and 2019 Rugby World Cup champions South Africa confirmed their withdrawal from the originally planned 2020 Rugby Championship due to South African government travel restrictions, player welfare and safety concerns related to COVID-19. This meant that the competition temporarily returned to its previous Tri-Nations format - played across six weekends with each team playing each other twice.
