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Sep 10, 2007

2003

Host: Australia
Final: England 20 Australia 17
Semi-finals: Australia 22 New Zealand 10
England 24 France 7
Top tryscorer: Mils Muliana (NZ)/ Doug Howlett (NZ) 7 tries
Top pointscorer: Jonny Wilkinson 113 points

Woodward's creaking chariot carries trophy back to the Northern Hemisphere

The 2003 Rugby World Cup set new standards for the tournament, with huge television audiences and record crowds attending over the 44 days of the event.

AUDIO: Listen to Keith Quinn reflect on the 2003 tournament

Over 1.5 million tickets were sold for the 48 matches and an estimated 3.3 billion viewers from 130 countries caught the action on their television screens.

On the field however, nothing had changed.

The team with the best goal kicker and the outstanding first-five eighth took home the William Webb Ellis trophy - as has happened in every tournament since 1987.

The All Blacks again managed to play well below their potential and left their fans wondering what might have been - for the fourth consecutive tournament.

Australia played well above the sum of their parts as their performance gave little respect to pre-tournament form, while the French reached the semi-final stage for the fourth time in five World Cups.

Argentina and the luckless Samoa took up their customary residence in the Pools of death, whilst home nations Wales and Scotland enjoyed armchair rides to the quarter-finals.

Although to be fair to the Welsh Dragons, they were involved in two of the games of the tournament and with an ounce of luck and a shade more self belief could have taken down the All Blacks in group play and taken out eventual champions England in the quarter finals.

Pre-tournament talk centred on a journey and a Jonny.

All Black coach John Mitchell was guiding his squad on a 'journey' that seemed destined to end in World Cup glory - destroying all opponents and a sizeable chunk of the English language along the way.

Few could make sense of Mitchell's musings as he added a whole new vocabulary to the coach's vernacular and the mixed metaphors were exacerbated by decreasing access to the players.

But on the field the messages were obvious as the All Blacks chalked up 50-point wins - on the road - against South Africa and Australia in an unbeaten 2003 Tri-Nations campaign.

At the Cup proper New Zealand strolled through Pool D with comfortable wins over Italy (70-7), Canada (68-6) and Tonga (91-7).

Old rivals Wales, coached by a New Zealander Steve Hansen, gave the All Blacks a fright in their final pool game, leading for long periods of the game and exposing their defence. New Zealand eventually prevailed 53-37 but had their confidence been dented?

They did have one loss in the group stages and it was crucial. Star midfielder Tana Umaga was injured against Italy and would play no further part in the tournament. The All Blacks never found a replacement for the inspirational centre.

England embarked on their campaign amid great fervour - the like of which had not been seen since 1966 when they hosted the football World Cup.

Before the tournament Clive Woodward's team had proved themselves - home and away, against all-comers.

They convincingly beat the defending champion Wallabies in Melbourne just months out from the tournament and memorably downed New Zealand on a cold June night in Wellington. The match was notable for incredible goal kicking from Jonny Wilkinson on a blustery night and the inability of the All Black forward pack to overcome a six-man English scrum.

Woodward seems to have a self belief that borders on delusional - post-World Cup he was happy to accept a technical role at Southampton football club, believing his skills would be easily transferable across codes - but this supreme inner confidence served him and his 2003 squad well in achieving their ultimate aim.

Single minded dedication is an oft-used mantra is sport, but Woodward and his team took it to new heights.

Everything was focussed on winning the World Cup in Australia and nothing was allowed to derail their campaign. Woodward's reign coincided with a superb group of mature hardened forwards - Lewis Moody, Neil Back, Lawrence Dallaglio and the inspirational Martin Johnson.

Wilkinson was an eerily accurate goal kicker and solid defender inside a fairly functional backline with the odd dash of flair provided by Jason Robinson and Ben Cohen.

Perhaps most importantly, the England squad paid scant regard to the opinions and comments of others. They shrugged off the Dad's Army tag and criticism of their one-dimensional playing style. There was extreme loyalty shown to senior players, as Woodward and his assistants showed an admirable ability to not be influenced by the media, ex-players or the public.

Even when their form waned at times during the event, Woodward was quick to point out it was a tournament and all that mattered was peaking at the right time.

There can be no argument they managed to do that. Sure, there were unconvincing displays - against Samoa (35-22) and Wales in the quarter final (down 3-17, they eventually won 28-17 thanks largely to some dismal Welsh goal kicking).

But England nailed it when they had to - in the crucial matches. They cleaned out South Africa 25-6 in their Pool C clash, which sent the Springboks on a death march, as they joined Australia, New Zealand and Scotland on one side of the draw.

France, who had been impressive in pool play were blown off the park in the Sydney semi-final. England won through sheer physical force and will and the 24-7 scoreline probably flattered the Gallic nation.

So Woodward and his team had their date with destiny, a World Cup final in Sydney. A fair portion of the squad knew it would be their last chance, a final dance at this level. Who would they face?

After a patchy All Black display against Wales, fears were allayed with a dominant display against the dangerous South African side, clearing out to a 29-9 quarter-final win.

Only Australia stood between John Mitchell's All Black side and a first World Cup final since 1987. Not much of a barrier, barely a rabbit proof fence. The Wallabies were derided as 'road kill' before the game in one newspaper and it is difficult to recall any New Zealand media giving consideration to any result other than a thorough All Black win.

It was still though, 15 men against 15 men in one 80-minute match. What had gone before can engender confidence, but gives you little if peak performance is not reached in the game.

In the semi-final the Wallabies exhibited once again their remarkable ability to win one-off games against all the odds while the New Zealand All Blacks showed their equally remarkable tendency to fall, on the biggest stage, when it matters most.

It was as much a match that Australia won on the field and New Zealand lost off the field.

The All Black coaching team nobly but naively insisted the World Cup could be won solely through tries and thus relied on the mercurial but inconsistent Carlos Spencer as first-five and goal kicker, refusing to consider Andrew Merhtens.

John Mitchell and Robbie Deans also counted on the free-flowing rugby of 2003 being effective during the tournament, when conventional wisdom, throughout Rugby World Cup history and across sport in general, says that while attack sells tickets, defence normally wins championships. The All Blacks though, failed to adjust their gameplan when faced with brutal and resolute Wallaby defence.

Perhaps most disappointingly, an attitude of complacency and arrogance which had permeated the 1999 campaign seemed to be ever present once again in 2003. During the event, players spent a good portion of their time and energy involved in heated negotiations over the size of their win bonuses come the inevitable victory; The team based themselves in Melbourne, earning a rebuke from organisers for failing to promote the tournament and criticism from fans and media as they jetted back to their sheltered, cloistered base after each encounter; And the players were perhaps distracted by all manner of social activities - just as in 1999 when the squad lapped up the sun in a four day holiday in France - the 2003 version were snapped, in fine fettle and full regalia, enjoying all the hospitality of the spring racing carnival at Flemington.

Most damagingly of all, Mitchell and Deans displayed an unwavering, unshakeable and probably flawed loyalty towards their anointed captain, Crusaders blindside flanker Reuben Thorne.

He was a controversial choice, as many failed to see how his abilities were sufficient to warrant selection in the first XV, let alone how his understated captaincy style could lead the team to glory.

Thorne was labelled 'the invisible man' by critics who questioned his prominence in key game situations. Indeed it did seem to be a strange case of the Emperor's new clothes, as Messer's Mitchell and Deans were the only ones capable of 'seeing' all of their captain's qualities.

It is history now that Australia out-thought and out-passioned a strangely subdued All Black team and won through to the final with a 22-10 victory. For All Black supporters this loss was probably harder to swallow than the failures of '91, '95 and '99 as the New Zealand team, that was by almost all measures superior to their opponents, did not play at anywhere near full potential.

Australia became the 4th host nation to contest the final (New Zealand 1987; England 1991; South Africa 1995) and were defending a perfect finals record.

It was a tough tight final, memorable for a spectacular try by English league convert Jason Robinson and two pieces of nerveless goal kicking by Australian second-five Elton Flatley.

Twice Flatley had a penalty attempt under the most incredible pressure. Amid tension that only could be compared to a football penalty shoot-out, a putt on the 18th hole at Augusta National or a serve facing match point at Wimbledon.

On both occasions Flatley showed incredible poise; First he kicked a tricky 35m penalty on the edge of 80 minutes to send the game into extra time, and then again, with the hopes of an entire nation on his shoulders, tied the match up with another three-pointer deep into the second period of extra time.

But not quite deep enough. England swept downfield, and Wilkinson, with one sweep of his (wrong) right foot, slotted a 35m drop goal to break a 17-all deadlock.

The 20-17 victory was redemption for Woodward and sweet glory for England as the William Webb Ellis trophy went to the Northern hemisphere for the first time.