2008 Six Nations Championship

The Welsh team that won the Grand Slam

Date

4 February 2008 – 19 March 2008

Countries

England

France

Ireland

Italy

Scotland

Wales

Tournament statistics

Wales (24th title)

Wales (10th title)

Wales (19th title)

England

Ireland

Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy

France

Matches played

Tries scored

50 (3.33 per match)

Top point scorer(s)

Jonny Wilkinson (50)

Top try scorer(s)

Shane Williams (6)

Player of the tournament

Shane Williams

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(Next) 2009 →

The 2008 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2008 RBS 6 Nations because of the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the ninth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the 114th series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Fifteen matches were played over five weekends from 2 February to 15 March, resulting in Wales winning the Grand Slam, their second in the last four championships and tenth overall. In winning the Grand Slam, Wales also won the Triple Crown for beating each of the other Home Nations for the nineteenth time. Wales also conceded only two tries in the championship, beating England's previous record of four tries conceded. Wales' Shane Williams was named as the RBS Player of the Championship.^[1]

Participants

For the second year running, Ireland play their home games at Croke Park, while Lansdowne Road is being redeveloped.

The teams involved were:

Nation	Venue	City	Head coach	Captain
England	Twickenham	London	Brian Ashton	Phil Vickery
France	Stade de France	Saint-Denis	Marc Lièvremont	Lionel Nallet
Ireland	Croke Park^[2]	Dublin	Eddie O'Sullivan	Brian O'Driscoll^[3]
Italy	Stadio Flaminio	Rome	Nick Mallett	Sergio Parisse
Scotland	Murrayfield	Edinburgh	Frank Hadden	Jason White^[4]
Wales	Millennium Stadium	Cardiff	Warren Gatland	Ryan Jones

Squads

For each nation's squad for the 2008 Six Nations Championship, see 2008 Six Nations Championship squads.

Table

Position	Nation	Games				Points				Table points
Position	Nation	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Difference	Tries	Table points
1	Wales	5	5	0	0	148	66	+82	13	10
2	England	5	3	0	2	108	83	+25	8	6
3	France	5	3	0	2	103	93	+10	11	6
4	Ireland	5	2	0	3	93	99	−6	9	4
5	Scotland	5	1	0	4	69	123	−54	3	2
6	Italy	5	1	0	4	74	131	−57	6	2

Results

Week 1

2 February 2008
14:00 GMT

Ireland	16 – 11	Italy
Try: Dempsey 18' c Con: O'Gara (1/1) Pen: O'Gara (3/4) 12', 57', 66'	(Report)	Try: Castrogiovanni 60' m Pen: Bortolussi (2/3) 38', 70'

Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 75,387
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)

Although Italy's try was credited to Sergio Parisse during the game, he later stated that it had in fact been scored by Martin Castrogiovanni.^[5]

2 February 2008
16:30 GMT

England	19 – 26	Wales
Try: Flood 23' c Con: Wilkinson (1/1) Pen: Wilkinson (3/4) 1', 11', 45' Drop: Wilkinson (1/1) 17'	(Report)	Tries: Byrne 67' c Phillips 70' c Con: Hook (2/2) Pen: Hook (4/4) 4', 34', 57', 63'

Twickenham, London
Attendance: 82,000
Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)

This win was Wales' first over England at Twickenham for twenty years.

3 February 2008
15:00 GMT

Scotland	6 – 27	France
Pen: Parks (1/2) 30' Drop: Parks (1/2) 4'	(Report)	Tries: Clerc 12' c, 65' c Malzieu 23' c Con: Élissalde (2/2) Skrela(1/1) Pen: Traille (2/2) 18', 55'

Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Attendance: 67,800
Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland)^[6]

Week 2

9 February 2008
14:00 GMT

Wales	30 – 15	Scotland
Tries: S. Williams 13' c, 68' c Hook 46' c Con: Hook (2/2) S. Jones (1/1) Pen: Hook (1/1) 28' S. Jones (2/2) 63', 71'	(Report)	Pen: Paterson (5/5) 10', 32', 42', 50', 55

Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Attendance: 74,576
Referee: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)

9 February 2008
16:00 GMT

France	26 – 21	Ireland
Tries: Clerc 14' c, 18' m, 35' c Heymans 48' c Con: Élissalde (3/4)	(Report)	Tries: Penalty try 55' c D. Wallace 59' m Con: O'Gara (1/2) Pen: O'Gara (3/3) 17', 28', 74'

Stade de France, Saint-Denis
Attendance: 76,500
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)

10 February 2008
14:30 GMT

Italy	19 – 23	England
Try: Picone 76' c Con: Bortolussi (1/1) Pen: Bortolussi (4/4) 5', 11', 44', 54'	(Report)	Tries: Sackey 3' c Flood 15' c Con: Wilkinson (2/2) Pen: Wilkinson (3/4) 31', 37', 57'

Stadio Flaminio, Rome
Attendance: 30,625
Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland)

Week 3

23 February 2008
15:00 GMT

Wales	47 – 8	Italy
Tries: Byrne 28' c, 68' c Shanklin 42' c S. Williams 57' c, 74' c Con: S. Jones (3/3) Hook (2/2) Pen: S. Jones (4/4) 4', 11', 47', 50'	(Report)	Try: Castrogiovanni 12' m Pen: Marcato (1/2) 40+2'

Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Attendance: 74,305
Referee: Dave Pearson (England)

23 February 2008
17:00 GMT

Ireland	34 – 13	Scotland
Tries: D. Wallace 22' c Kearney 26' c Horan 41' m Bowe 62' c, 79' m Con: O'Gara (3/5) Pen: O'Gara (1/1) 50'	(Report)	Try: Webster 53' c Con: Paterson (1/1) Pen: Paterson (2/2) 24', 31'

Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 74,234
Referee: Christophe Berdos (France)

Ireland win the Centenary Quaich.

23 February 2008
20:00 GMT

France	13 – 24	England
Try: Nallet 24' c Con: Traille(1/1) Pen: Parra (1/1) 49' Yachvili (1/1) 74'	(Report)	Tries: Sackey 5' c Wigglesworth 79' m Con: Wilkinson (1/2) Pen: Wilkinson (3/5) 14', 29', 68' Drop: Wilkinson (1/2) 64'

Stade de France, Saint-Denis
Attendance: 79,593
Referee: Steve Walsh (New Zealand)

Jonny Wilkinson drew level with Wales' Neil Jenkins as the all-time leading point scorer in international rugby history. Including both men's points for the British and Irish Lions, the two have scored 1,090 career points.
This result left Wales as the only remaining team that could win the Grand Slam.
This was England's first Six Nations away win over France since their 15–9 win in 2000.

Week 4

8 March 2008
13:15 GMT

Ireland	12 – 16	Wales
Pen: O'Gara (4/4) 5', 19', 62', 68'	(Report)	Try: S. Williams 51' c Con: S. Jones (1/1) Pen: S. Jones (2/4) 26', 46' Hook (1/1) 76'

Croke Park, Dublin
Attendance: 75,000
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)

Shane Williams draws level with Gareth Thomas as the all-time try leader for Wales with his 40th try.
Wales win the Triple Crown.

8 March 2008
15:15 GMT

Scotland	15 – 9	England
Pen: Paterson (4/4) 9', 31', 40+2', 41' Parks (1/1) 48'	(Report)	Pen: Wilkinson (3/5) 27', 50', 53'

Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Attendance: 67,987
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)

England's Jonny Wilkinson becomes the all-time scoring leader in international rugby history, surpassing Wales' Neil Jenkins. Wilkinson's new record now stands at 1,099 points. This figure was reached due to a decision by the IRB to count the Lions' match against Argentina in 2005 as a Test match.
Scotland win the Calcutta Cup.

9 March 2008
15:00 GMT

France	25 – 13	Italy
Tries: Floch 13' c Jauzion 53' m Rougerie 66' c Con: Yachvili (2/3) Pen: Yachvili (2/2) 27', 37'	(Report)	Try: Castrogiovanni 58' c Con: Marcato (1/1) Pen: Marcato (2/2) 18', 31'

Stade de France, Saint-Denis
Attendance: 79,000
Referee: Alan Lewis (Ireland)

France win their second consecutive Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy.

Week 5

15 March 2008
13:00 GMT

Italy	23 – 20	Scotland
Tries: Penalty try 13' c Canale 59' c Con: Marcato (2/2) Drop: Marcato (1/1) 79' Pen: Marcato (2/4) 36', 68'	(Report)	Tries: Hogg 21' c Blair 40' c Con: Paterson (2/2) Pen: Parks (1/1) 25' Paterson (1/1) 72'

Stadio Flaminio, Rome
Attendance: 40,000
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)

Despite victory over the Scots, Italy win the "wooden spoon", having failed to win by the necessary five point margin required to avoid finishing at the bottom of the table.

15 March 2008
15:00 GMT

England	33 – 10	Ireland
Tries: Sackey 19' c Tait 57' c Noon 69' c Con: Cipriani (3/3) Pen: Cipriani (4/4) 12', 30', 44', 73'	(Report)	Try: Kearney 4' c Con: O'Gara (1/1) Pen: O'Gara (1/2) 7'

Twickenham, London
Attendance: 82,000
Referee: Stuart Dickinson (Australia)

England win the Millennium Trophy for the first time in 5 years.

15 March 2008
17:00 GMT

Wales	29 – 12	France
Tries: S. Williams 60' c M. Williams 77' c Con: S. Jones (2/2) Pen: Hook (3/5) 5', 18', 21' S. Jones (2/2) 63', 74'	(Report)	Pen: Élissalde (3/3) 19', 39', 46' Yachvili (1/1) 69'

Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Attendance: 74,609
Referee: Marius Jonker (South Africa)

Shane Williams takes sole possession of the all-time try scoring lead for Wales with his 41st try.
Wales win the Grand Slam for the second time in four championships.
By virtue of Wales beating France by more than three points, England finished second in the table – their best Six Nations finish since 2003.
Wales conceded just two tries all championship: the tightest ever defence in the Six Nations.

Scorers

Leading try scorers
Tries	Name	Pld	Team
6	Shane Williams	5	Wales
5	Vincent Clerc	5	France
3	Lee Byrne	5	Wales
	Martin Castrogiovanni	5	Italy
	Paul Sackey	5	England
2	Tommy Bowe	3	Ireland
	Toby Flood	5	England
	Rob Kearney	5	Ireland
	David Wallace	5	Ireland
1	Girvan Dempsey	2	Ireland
	Julien Malzieu	3	France
	Mike Blair	4	Scotland
	Cédric Heymans	4	France
	Allister Hogg	4	Scotland
	Simon Picone	4	Italy
	Simon Webster	4	Scotland
	Richard Wigglesworth	4	England
	Gonzalo Canale	5	Italy
	James Hook	5	Wales
	Mike Phillips	5	Wales
	Tom Shanklin	5	Wales
	Martyn Williams	5	Wales

Leading point scorers
Points	Name	Pld	Team
50	Jonny Wilkinson	5	England
48	Ronan O'Gara	5	Ireland
44	Stephen Jones	4	Wales
44	James Hook	5	Wales

Notes and references

↑ "Williams wins RBS player of the Championship". RBS 6 Nations. 19 March 2008. Retrieved 26 March 2008.
↑ Lansdowne Road, Ireland's traditional home, is being redeveloped and is expected to be back in use by 2009.
↑ Ronan O'Gara captained Ireland in their final match against England, which O'Driscoll missed due to a hamstring tear.
↑ White missed Scotland's third game because of concussion and started on the bench in the last two games. He was replaced as captain for these games by Mike Blair.
↑ "Ireland 16-11 Italy". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). 2 February 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2009.
↑ Rolland replaced original referee Paul Honiss, who was forced to return to New Zealand due to a serious family illness.

External links

The official RBS 6 Nations website
2008 Six Nations Championship Coverage at the Guardian

Six Nations Championship

Teams

Stadiums

Tournaments

Home	1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909

Five	1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931

Home	1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939

Five	1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999

Six	2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Honours

Championship records • Hat-tricks • Under 20s Championship • Women's Championship

Rugby union schedule for 2008
Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
H. Cup	Six Nations Championship		Heineken Cup		Mid-Year Tests				H. Cup	End of year Int'ls	H. Cup
Guinness Premiership								Guinness Premiership
Celtic League								Celtic League
Top 14							Top 14
			Shute Shield
					Currie Cup
Sevens											Sevens
			Pacific Rugby Cup		Churchill Cup	Air New Zealand Cup
	Super 14				Pacific Nations Cup	Tri Nations