Rugby World Cup
It's rugger time, so this week we have an RWC focussed quiz.
Q 1 What is the name of the cup awarded to the winner of the World Cup?
A The William Webb Ellis Cup
William Webb Ellis is believed to have invented the game while at Rugby School, a boarding school in Warwickshire, England. Ellis picked up the ball (in a football match) and ran with it. That's just not cricket.
Q 2 What was the biggest winning margin in a World Cup game?
A Australia v Namibia in 2003
The Wallabies won by 142 points to 0. Namibia have never one a single World Cup game.
Q 3 Which team has scored the most points in a game?
A New Zealand
They beat Japan in 1995, 145-17. The runner up is Australia, with 142-0 against Namibia.
Q 4 Which is the only stadium to host two World Cup finals?
A Eden Park in Auckland
Twice, and both times New Zealand played against France. In 1987 New Zealand won 29-9 and in 2011 they won again 8-7
The finals played at the other venues were:
2003: England won against Australia (20-17) at Telstra Dome
1991: Australia beat England (12-6) at Twickenham Stadium
1995: South Africa defeated New Zealand (15-12) at Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Q 5 Which country has been runner-up the most times?
Q 6 Which New Zealander has scored the most points in any single RWC tournament?
A Grant Fox
Grant Fox MBE scored 127 points during the 1987 tournament, all of them from kicking. Despite scoring 645 points from a career spanning 46 All Black Test Matches he only scored 1 try.
Q 7 Which New Zealander holds the record for the most points scored in a World Cup match?
A Simon Culhane
Simon Culhane scored 45 points against Japan in 1995, his debut game. He scored one try and nailed 20 out 21 conversion attempts.
Q 8 Who is the only coach to win the major rugby club championships in both hemispheres?
A Michael Cheika
The Australia coach Michael Cheika won the Heineken Cup with Leinster in 2009 and Super Rugby with the Waratahs in 2014.
Q 9 All Blacks Captain Richie McCaw is expected to announce his retirement post the Rugby World Cup final. Who was the coach when he played his first Test match in 2001?
A John Mitchell, the former mooloo man
At the time, Josh Kronfeld, another fantastic All Black openside, described the 20-year-old McCaw's selection thus: "You might as well just give All Black jerseys to everybody. The fact they picked guys off one NPC season is bloody incredible".
McCaw's first test cap was against Ireland at Lansdowne Rd on November 17. He duly won the man of the match award and received a standing ovation at the post-match function. In your face Josh Kronfeld.
Q 10 What country is hosting the 2019 World Cup?
A Japan
Bids for that season had to be in by 15 August 2008. Each World Cup takes a lot of planning, and in many cases host nations have built new stadiums to host some of the matches. Existing stadiums often require extensive work to bring them up to the standards required by the RWC organising committee.
