History : RBS 6 Nations Last Season 6 Nations History Played annually, the format of the Championship is simple: each team plays every other team once, with home field advantage alternating from one year to the next. Two points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss and unlike most other rugby union competitions the bonus point system is not used. Victory in every game results in a 'Grand Slam' and back-to-back Grand Slams have been won on five occasions. Wales achieved the first one in 1908 and 1909, England have done it three times in 1913 and 1914, 1923 and 1924 and 1991 and 1992 while France did it in 1997 and 1998. England hold the record for the number of Grand Slams won with 12, followed by Wales with 11, France with nine, Scotland with three and Ireland with two. Victory by any Home Nation over the other three Home Nations constitutes as a 'Triple Crown'.

The Triple Crown has twice been won on four consecutive occasions, once by Wales between 1976 and 1979 and once by England between 1995 and 1998. England hold the record for the number of Triple Crowns won with 23, followed by Wales with 20 and Scotland and Ireland both with ten. Although this achievement has long been a feature of the tournament, it was not until 2006 that a physical trophy, commissioned by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was awarded. Meanwhile, the last-placed nation at the end of the tournament is said to have won a purely figurative Wooden Spoon. Several individual competitions take place under the umbrella of the Six Nations tournament. The oldest is the Calcutta Cup, which has been running since 1879 and is contested annually between England and Scotland. The Millennium Trophy has been awarded to the winner of the game between England and Ireland with the first presented in 1989, and in the same year, the Centenary Quaich was contested between Ireland and Scotland for the first time.

Since 2007, France and Italy have also contested for their own silverware - the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy. It was created to honour the 200th anniversary of the birth of Giuseppe Garibaldi, who helped unify Italy and was also a French military general. Up to World War I In 1871, England and Scotland played the first rugby union international with the latter coming out on top. After 12 years of occasional friendly matches between the teams, the inaugural Home International Championship, comprising England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales was played in 1883. England won the first series, along with a Triple Crown, and up until 1893 when Wales won and 1894 when Ireland won only them and Scotland had been crowned champions. Wales' triumphs in 1908 and 1909, although won during the Home Nations era, were the first Grand Slams as they defeated France in both seasons. France officially joined in 1910, having played in four tournaments up to that point, with the Championship now referred to as the Five Nations.

England won the first Championship of the new era while Wales followed up winning the first ever Grand Slam by winning the first Grand Slam of the Five Nations a year later. The competition was suspended during World War I before France were ejected from the tournament in 1931, which reverted back to being the Home Nations from 1932 through to 1939. Post War Proceedings were halted again during World War II and resumed in 1947 as the Five Nations with France welcomed backed into the fold. France won their first shared title seven years later in 1954 and their first outright title in 1959 and by the 1970s the Five Nations had become the pre-eminent series in Northern hemisphere rugby union. Matches became all-ticket affairs, gaining huge popularity and a large television audience, however in 1972 the tournament was not finished after Scotland and Wales refused to travel to Dublin to play Ireland. The season after was unique for a five-way tie, with every nation having won and lost two games.

The 1970s marked the golden age for Welsh rugby as they won three Grand Slams and one Triple Crown during the decade, an achievement the modern team could yet surpass having won Grand Slams in 2005, 2008 and 2012. There was no tangible reward for winning the Five Nations Championship until 1993 when a trophy was presented for the first time to the winners - who were France. Prior to 1994 teams that finished equal on points shared the Championship but from then on ties were broken by considering the points differences between the teams. Professional Era Wales were the second team to get their hands on Five Nations silverware followed by England, while Scotland's first success came in 1999. Scotland were the last team to lift the Five Nations trophy as Italy joined the following year in 2000 and the tournament became known as the Six Nations. England won the first Six Nations competition in 2000 before repeating the trick in 2001, while Wales are the current holders having denied England the Grand Slam in 2013.

In 2005 Wales became the first team ever to win a Grand Slam by playing more games away than at home - a feat repeated by Ireland in 2009. A year later France pipped Ireland on points' difference however the latter did receive the Triple Crown in trophy format for the first time ever. Italy collected the Wooden Spoon that year but achieved a historic feat by earning their maiden point away from home after drawing with Wales. In 2007 with four teams having a mathematical chance of lifting the trophy France retained their crown on points' difference again. Italy made further history by winning their first away match against Scotland in Edinburgh and also by picking up two victories for the first time after beating Wales in Rome. Scotland replaced Italy in settling for the Wooden Spoon while Ireland won the Triple Crown for the second straight occasion and third time in four years. Wales ended France's run in 2008, winning the Grand Slam for the first time since 2005 after a remarkable opening against England.

Trailing by 13 points Wales came from behind to win 26-19, thanks mainly to Mike Phillips' 70th-minute try, and dispatched Scotland 30-15, Italy 47-8, France 29-12 and Ireland 16-12. Wales wing Shane Williams was named the RBS Player of the Championship after scoring six tries while England, World Cup finalists in 2007, were forced to settle for second. Professional Era Continued Ireland took a leaf out of Wales' book a year later ending a 61-year Grand Slam drought in a 2009 tournament in stark contrast to the 2008 one. Whereas the excitement in 2008 came at the start of the tournament it wasn't until the end when the 2009 Championship came alive. Wales hosted Ireland in Cardiff with a Triple Crown on the line as well as knowing a 13-point win would be enough to retain their title. Drama ensued as with Ireland leading 17-15 at the death Welsh stand-off Stephen Jones missed a 50-metre penalty from halfway.

England finished second as a result in their first tournament under Martin Johnson while France and Wales contested the first ever game played on a Friday night. The 2010 Six Nations belonged to France as they won the Grand Slam for the first time since 2004. Les Bleus were rarely troubled, opening up with an 18-9 win over Scotland before defeating Ireland 33-10, Wales 26-20 and Italy 46-20. France had already won the Championship going into their final game with England after Ireland lost their second game of the tournament to Scotland hours earlier. But despite being pushed by England, who scored the only try of the game, France came out on top 12-10 at the Stade de France to win the Grand Slam. Ireland's 23-20 loss to Scotland in the final game of the campaign not only denied Ireland the Triple Crown but saw Italy receive the dreaded Wooden Spoon for the third year running. England ended a run of eight years without a title as they wrapped up the 2011 RBS 6 Nations title.

Winger Chris Ashton was the spearhead, racking up six tries including four at home to Italy in a thumping 59-13 success. The Azzurri did however make history with a first championship win over France, stunning Les Bleus 22-21 in Rome. A controversial Mike Phillips try handed Wales a narrow 19-13 win over Ireland, but the Irish took their frustration out on England, denying them a Grand Slam with a convincing 24-8 win on the final weekend. And despite securing that historic victory over the French, Italy again had to settle for the Wooden Spoon after a 21-8 defeat in Scotland in their final match. Last Season The 2015 RBS 6 Nations will live long in the memory, not least because of a nerve-jangling final day that began with four teams still in the hunt for the title. It all began in Cardiff six weeks earlier, when England and Wales set the tone for a thrilling Championship.

A second-half comeback - kick-started by Jonathan Joseph, who would go on to shine throughout the competition - earned England a 21-16 triumph and a measure of revenge for their chastening defeat on the same turf two years earlier. Ireland and France also began with victories before facing one another in round two, when Jonathan Sexton kicked the men in green to victory. England, meanwhile, made it two from two as a pair of Joseph tries helped see off Italy and Scotland ran Wales close at BT Murrayfield in a 26-23 defeat. There was more heartbreak on home soil for Scotland, who lost 22-19 to Italy, in round three as Wales picked up a second win in as many games, at France's expense. But the biggest clash of the weekend was at the Aviva Stadium, where Robbie Henshaw's try ensured England tasted defeat for the first time in 2015. Ireland soon saw their unbeaten record slip, however, with a 23-16 defeat in Wales while England beat Scotland and France shut Italy out for a 29-0.

That left Ireland, England and Wales on six points with France on four and, with all three round-five clashes taking place on the same day, a nail-biting finale was on the cards. Wales were first up and they struck an ominous blow, not just moving to eight points but also boosting their points difference with a 61-20 triumph in Italy, George North grabbing a hat-trick. With a 20-point gap to bridge, Ireland did enough in Scotland - Paul O'Connell among the tries in his final RBS 6 Nations game as Joe Schmidt's side won 40-10. Attentions then turned to Twickenham, where England needed to beat France by 26 points or more to deny Ireland back-to-back Championships. A high-octane encounter kept everyone entertained, with 12 tries in total, but a 55-35 win was not enough for the Red Rose and celebrations began in the Scottish capital. The Six Nations Championship | Bodypower The Six Nations Championship Commentary Published 5th Feb 2016 15:00 The Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales.

The History In 1871, England and Scotland played the first rugby union international with the latter coming out on top. After 12 years of occasional friendly matches between the teams, the inaugural Home International Championship, comprising England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales was played in 1883. England won the first series, along with a Triple Crown, and up until 1893, when Wales won and 1894 when Ireland won, only them and Scotland had been crowned champions. Wales' triumphs in 1908 and 1909, although won during the Home Nations era, were the first Grand Slams as they defeated France in both seasons. France officially joined in 1910, having played in four tournaments up to that point, with the Championship now referred to as the Five Nations. England won the first Championship of the new era, while Wales followed up winning the first ever Grand Slam by winning the first Grand Slam of the Five Nations a year later. The competition was suspended during World War I before France were ejected from the tournament in 1931, which reverted back to being the Home Nations from 1932 through to 1939.

The Rules Played annually, the format of the Championship is simple: each team plays every other team once, with home field advantage alternating from one year to the next. Two points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss and unlike most other rugby union competitions the bonus point system is not used. Victory in every game results in a 'Grand Slam' and back-to-back Grand Slams have been won on five occasions. Wales achieved the first one in 1908 and 1909, England have done it three times in 1913 and 1914, 1923 and 1924 and 1991 and 1992 while France did it in 1997 and 1998. England hold the record for the number of Grand Slams won with 12, followed by Wales with 11, France with 9, Scotland with 3 and Ireland with 2. Victory by any Home Nation over the other three Home Nations constitutes as a 'Triple Crown'.

The Triple Crown has twice been won on four consecutive occasions, once by Wales between 1976 and 1979 and once by England between 1995 and 1998. England hold the record for the number of Triple Crowns won with 23, followed by Wales with 20 and Scotland and Ireland both with ten. Although this achievement has long been a feature of the tournament, it was not until 2006 that a physical trophy, commissioned by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was awarded. Meanwhile, the last-placed nation at the end of the tournament is said to have won a purely figurative Wooden Spoon. Several individual competitions take place under the umbrella of the Six Nations tournament. The oldest is the Calcutta Cup, which has been running since 1879 and is contested annually between England and Scotland. The Millennium Trophy has been awarded to the winner of the game between England and Ireland with the first presented in 1989, and in the same year, the Centenary Quaich was contested between Ireland and Scotland for the first time.

Since 2007, France and Italy have also contested for their own silverware - the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy. It was created to honour the 200th anniversary of the birth of Giuseppe Garibaldi, who helped unify Italy and was also a French military general. Last year’s champions For the first time in 66 years, Ireland won consecutive RBS 6 Nations titles after their 40-10 victory over Scotland at BT Murrayfield at last year’s Six Nations. Whilst they had finished on equal table points with Wales and England, they won the trophy by virtue of achieving a higher match points difference. “I’ve spent a lot of years in close calls, and we’d be very proud of what we’ve done in the last eight weeks, in terms of how we’ve addressed certain things in our performance, in attack, defence and our resolve to come out and produce a good performance like that after losing last week.” Said Paul O’Connell.

Main photo: Six Nations’ Facebook Page - #RSB6Nations Tags: The History of the Calcutta Cup By Ben Johnson | Comments The Calcutta Cup is the trophy presented to the winner of the England versus Scotland rugby union match which takes place during the annual Six Nations Championship – also currently known as the RBS 6 Nations – between England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France and Italy. The Six Nations Championships date back to 1883 in its original guise as the Home Nations Championships, when it was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. More recently, trophies have been awarded for a number of individual competitions during the Six Nations including the Millennium Trophy which is awarded to the winner of the game between England and Ireland; the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy which is awarded to the winner of the game between France and Italy and the Centenary Quaich which is awarded to the winner of the game between Scotland and Ireland. However, the Calcutta Cup pre-dates all of the other Six Nations trophies and indeed the competition itself. England v.

Scotland, 1901 Following the popular introduction of rugby to India in 1872, the Calcutta (Rugby) Football Club was established by former students of Rugby School in January 1873, joining the Rugby Football Union in 1874. However, with the departure of a local British army regiment (and perhaps more crucially the cancellation of the free bar at the club!), interest in rugby diminished in the area and sports such as cricket , tennis and polo began to thrive as they were better suited to the Indian climate. Whilst the Calcutta (Rugby) Football Club was disbanded in 1878, members decided to keep the memory of the club alive by having the remaining 270 silver rupees in their bank account melted down to be made into a trophy. The trophy was then presented to the Rugby Football Union (RFU) to be used as “the best means of doing some lasting good for the cause of Rugby Football.” The trophy, which stands at approximately 18 inches (45 cm) high, sits on a wooden base whose plates hold the date of each match played; the winning country and the names of both team captains.

The silver cup is delicately etched and decorated with three king cobras who form the handles of the cup and sitting atop the circular lid is an Indian elephant. The Calcutta Cup on display at Twickenham, 2007 The original trophy is still in existence but years of mistreatment (including a drunken kick about in 1988 on Princes Street in Edinburgh by the England player Dean Richards and the Scottish player John Jeffry in which the trophy was used as the ball) have left it too fragile to be moved from its permanent home at the Museum of Rugby in Twickenham. Instead both England and Scotland have full size models of the cup to be displayed by the winning team and when England are the victors the original trophy is displayed by the Museum of Rugby in a purpose built trophy cabinet with revolving stand. The Calcutta Club had thought that the trophy would be used as an annual prize for club competitions, similarly to the Football FA Cup which was introduced around the same time.

Indeed in 1884 the Calcutta Cricket and Football Club re-established rugby in Calcutta in 1884 and a club trophy called the Calcutta Rugby Union Challenge Cup - which also became known as the Calcutta Cup - was introduced in 1890. However, the RFU preferred to keep the competition at international level to retain the ‘gentlemanly’ rather than competitive nature of the sport and run the risk of a move to professionalism. England rugby captain Martin Johnson signing autographs on the Close at the birthplace of rugby football, Rugby School As Wales didn’t have a national team and Ireland’s team lagged far behind the English and Scottish sides, the Calcutta Cup became the victor’s trophy in the annual England versus Scotland game following its arrival in the UK in 1878. Since the first game in 1879 (which was declared a draw) England has won 54% of the 118 matches played and Scotland 39%, with 13% of matches ending in a draw between the two sides.

Annual matches between the two sides have continued every year since, with the exception of the World War years between 1915-1919 and 1940-1946 . The venue for the match is always the Murrayfield Stadium in Scotland during even years and the Twickenham Stadium in England during odd years. With the introduction of the Home Nations competition in 1883 and the vast improvement in the Irish and Welsh sides it was suggested that the Calcutta Cup went to the winner of the Home Nations competition. However, the tradition of the trophy going to the victors of the England versus Scotland game was a popular one and the suggestion was overruled. Today the trophy resides with the English team, as it has done since 2009. Interestingly it was only as recently as 1993 that the winners of the tournament (now known as the Six Nations Championship following the introduction of France and Italy) received a trophy at all, when the Championship Trophy was unveiled. Tweet If you enjoyed this article, you might also like... C.B.

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With the Six Nations Championship finished again for another year and seeing England rise to victory, making them the current champions, with the ultimate triumph of a Grand Slam win, we look into the trophies that all the teams inspire to win. With more than one trophy and each team having their own history behind them we look at the meaning for what they represent to those who are victorious in in lifting them at the end of the championship. The major trophies on offer When it comes to the Six Nations Championship, there are appropriately six trophies that can be won by the various teams competing. Most of them are ones that can be won within the main competition, but which act as contests between pairs of teams, as opposed to all of them. The most significant of all is of course the Championship Trophy, with which the winners are presented with at the end of the competition. This sterling silver trophy was first given out during the 1993 championship after being conceived by the Earl of Westmorland. It was made by a team of eight silversmiths from William Comyns, a London firm, based on a design by James Brent-War.

For the 2015 Championship, a new trophy was introduced because it was decided that the previous one only represented the nations from the Five Nations Championship, which now includes Italy. This new one was both designed and crafted by silversmiths in Thomas Lyte, an English luxury company. After the Championship Trophy, the next one of most significance is probably the Triple Crown Trophy, which can be won by England, Scotland, Wales or Ireland when one nation wins all three of their matches against each other during the competition. It is something that has been featured for a while, but only came with an actual trophy since 2006 with the 2016 championship winners, England, having the honour of winning it this year. The other trophies that can be won The Six Nations Championship is noted for having several smaller competitions within the main one, meaning that there are quite a few trophies to be won by various teams. These happen when matches are won between two particular teams, which happen at different points during the lead-up to the actual final match. Although the Championship Trophy is the most important one that all the teams aim to win, there is no denying the merit that comes with the others.

The Calcutta Cup is a trophy that is awarded to the winner of the match between England and Scotland. It has been a fixture since 1879. It was crafted in India, explaining the cobra and elephant decorations on it, though it is extremely fragile due to years of mistreatment. England has been the holders of the trophy since 2009. The Centenary Quaich is a trophy that has been awarded since 1989 and is given to the winner of the match between Scotland and Ireland. A quaich is a Celtic drinking vessel, taken from the Gaelic word cuach, which means cup. It is currently held by Ireland. The Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy is awarded to the winner of the match between France and Italy, having been in effect since 2007. It is in memory of Giuseppe Garibaldi (an Italian general, politician and nationalist) and was introduced as part of the celebrations of the bicentenary of his birth. This year being won by France after their 23 -21 win. The Millennium Trophy is awarded to the winner of the match between England and Ireland.

It is something that was introduced in 1988 to coincide with Dublin's millennial celebrations. It was donated by Digital and is designed in the shape of a horned Viking helmet. England currently holds the trophy, having won it a total of eighteen times. There is such an extensive history behind the trophies As you can see, the Six Nations Championship has a whole host of trophies to win within the main competition making each match even more exciting. No two trophies are the same for the Six Nations Championship, making them all unique in some way, with their own history and reason for conception. Aford Awards are trophy and engraving specialists. We hope that you have enjoyed our recount of the history on the trophies available for the Six Nations Championship. If you like the post please share it! :-) © Note : unfortunately comments must be screened and may not appear immediately under posts. Blog Archive Get exclusive benefits when you join Irish Rugby Supporters Club click the logo to learn more NewsNow THE SPIRIT OF 70-6 Of course Leinster should be easily beating a poor outfit like Zebre, especially when we send out a starting lineu...

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5 years ago Rugby Football History The Rugby Championship The Antim Cup is contested between the rugby union teams of Romania ("The Oaks") and Georgia ("The Lelos"). It is named after the Romanian Orthodox Metropolitan Antim Iverianul, who came from Georgia. The Antim Cup is contested every time Georgia and Romania meet in a senior international match BUT not at Rugby World Cup Finals and Qualifiers. The holder retains the Cup unless the challenger wins the match (no extra time whatsoever). There was a motion from Georgia RU just before ENC 2000 decider in Tbilissi, to establish a Challenge Cup, a la Calcutta and Bledisloe Cups, which would be played for annually by Oaks and Lelos Georgian rugby folks have weighted up options and decided that the Cup should be named after whom else but reverend Antimoz Iverieli = Antim Ivirianu (c 1650 - 1716) He introduced Romanian language into liturgy, built a couple of monasteries in Bucuresti and even became arch-bishop of Muntenia (historical region in Southern Romania) Actually, Antim was Georgian by origin.

He was abducted by Ottomans in his childhood and sold as slave but then ransomed by Partiarch of Jerusalem Albeit a great patriot of his adopting country Romania, Antim always kept tight links with Georgia (Iveria) and even founded in Tbilissi, his homeland's Capital, first print-house where the first printed Bible was produced in Georgian Both Romanian and Georgian Churches regard Antim as saint, and these days the Georgia - Romania Friendship Society was also named after him Last year through influential go-betweens Rugby Supporters' League (RML) of Georgia approached on the Antim Cup issue the Patriarch of Georgian Orthodox Church, ILIA the 2nd and got His Holyness's blessing and full support This spring famous Georgian sculptor, himself a great rugby player of yesteryear, Guia Japaridze cast the Cup in guilded bronze and the RML will unveil it on Friday, 5th April, in good time for the inaugural challenge. The Bledisloe Cup was donated in 1931 by the Governor-General of New Zealand, Lord Bledisloe.

Competitions for the Cup have varied from one to three matches, sometimes with three-or four-year gaps between series, but since 1982 both countries have agreed to play at least one game for the Cup annually. The Tri-Nations ensures that the nations play each other at least two times a year. The Bledisloe Cup was first played for in 1931, when New Zealand beat Australia 20-13 in Auckland. The Cup was first won by Australia in 1934. Bledisloe Cup Fast Facts (March 1, 2004) This will be the 144th time Australia has played New Zealand since the two teams first met in 1903. In that time, NZ has won 96 Tests, Australia has won 42 and there have been 5 draws. The Bledisloe Cup has been contested 44 times over 100 Tests matches.

New Zealand has won the Cup 32 times, while Australia has won it 12 times (in 1934, 1949, 1979, 1980, 1986, 1992, 1994, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 & 2002). A Bledisloe Cup Test is responsible for the world record for attendance at a Rugby match. In 2000, 109,874 people witnessed Australia and New Zealand at Stadium Australia, in what is widely regarded as one of the best Test matches ever. This is the first Bledisloe Cup Test George Gregan has missed since 1996. Although Gregan (who has 99 Test caps) is closing in on David Campese's Australian record (101 Test caps), Campese is still the clear leader in terms of the number of Bledisloe Cup Tests played.

Campese has played New Zealand 29 times, followed by Tim Horan on 21, John Eales on 20 and Gregan on 19. The Calcutta cupwas presented to the RFU to be awarded for the winner of the annual England vs .Scotland international. The trophy originated in India. The Calcutta football club which had been started by former students of rugby school 4 years earlier had been wound up and the remaining rupees in the club's funds were melted down to be re-worked into the trophy. The Cook cup was established in 1997 when Australia and England contracted to play each other bi-annually for 10 years, on a home and away basis. The cup is named after Captain James Cook representing a notable English/Australian connection. The cup is made from crystal and was designed by Royal Doulton in London. The Gallaher Cup - France and New Zealand. (in memory of charismatic AB capt. killed during WWI). France captain Thierry Dusautoir holds the Dave Gallaher Trophy 2009 (credit Getty Images) The Hopetoun Cup was established as a perpetual trophy between Australia and Scotland in 1998.

In the spirit of the link between the two countries, it is named after the Seventh Earl of Hopetoun, a Scotsman, who, as the then Governor-General of Australia, presided over the Federation of Australia in 1901. Like the Cook Cup, the Hopetoun Cup is crystal and was designed by Royal Doulton in London. The Junior World Championships Established in 1999, the Lansdowne cup was donated to the Australian Rugby Union by the Lansdowne Club of Sydney as a perpetual trophy between Australia and Ireland. Like the Lansdowne Club, the cup is named after Dublin's famous rugby ground and was designed and made by Waterford Crystal of Ireland. The Mandela Plate Played between Australia and South Africa, this perpetual trophy was first contested in 2000 at the Colonial Stadium in Melbourne and Nelson Mandela addressed the crowd live from Sth Africa, via the electronic score board. That evening the roof of the stadium was shut, making it the world's first indoor Rugby Test. Like the Bledisloe Cup, the Mandela trophy is contested between Sth Africa and Australia on a two match home and away basis within the Tri Nations Series. The Millennium Trophy - England and Ireland. The Puma Trophy.

Established as a perpetual trophy between Argentina and Australia, the trophy is a bronzed statue of a Puma. Argentina and Australia first played against each other in 1979. The Ranfurly shield. In 1901, the Earl of Ranfurly, Governor of New Zealand, announced his intention of presenting a cup to the New Zealand Rugby Football Union, of which he was patron. Ranfurly made no stipulation as to what form the competition for the trophy should take, leaving the national union to decide. The annual general meeting of the NZRFU in 1902 decided that the cup should be for competition among affiliated unions on a challenge basis, the first holder to be the union with the best record for the 1902 season. When the trophy arrived it was found to be a shield, rather than a cup, and had obviously been designed for a soccer competition. The centre-piece was duly altered and on 13 September, 1902, the shield was presented by the Governor to G.H. Dixon, the Auckland delegate to the NZRFU. Auckland, with an unbeaten record, was declared the first winner of the Ranfurly Shield.

The shield has since become known as the Ranfurly Shield, or Log of Wood, and is played for when the holders accept challenges from other unions, scheduling home games to defend it. Every year, along with more fancied sides, second and third division sides are given chances to play for it. Those teams lift for the occasion, and bring thousands of supporters with them to the challenge venue to parade their colours. The players themselves play the hardest eighty minutes of their lives, gallantly trying to achieve what should be impossible but is shown not to be every now and then, by a team who enter the rugby folklore of this country in doing so. (Text from nzrugby.com & ranfurlyshield.com) 6 Nations. The idea of a Trophy for the Six Nations Championship was first thought of by the Earl of Westmorland, and was first presented in 1993 to France (the winners that season). It is held in trust by the Six Nations Championship Trophy Trust. The Trophy is made of 200 ounces of sterling silver and is insured for £55,000.

It was designed by James Brent-Ward, a silversmith designer, and made by eight craftsmen at the London silversmith firm William Comyns. The inside of the Trophy was originally silver, but it became so tarnished from repeated fillings with champagne that it has been lined with 22 carat gold to protect it. There are fifteen sides to the Trophy, representing each player, and three handles representing each official ie the referee and two touch judges. Around the wooden base of the Trophy is the emblem of each of the six national unions. The handle, or finial, on the lid is interchangeable and represents the current champions. The current champions are England so at the moment the finial is the one decorated with the English rose. The finials of the five challenging teams are kept in a hidden drawer in the plinth throughout the Championship. The capacity of the Trophy is exactly five bottles of champagne, one for each of the original Five Nations, and the trophy has a lip at the rim, designed so that it is easy to drink from. The Sir Edmund Hillary Shield was crafted to commemorate the achievements of the legendary conqueror of Mt Everest, New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and will be competed for whenever England play New Zealand.

Sir Hillary passed away in January 2008 aged 88. Photo: Getty Images New Zealand Captain Richie McCaw and England captain Steve Borthwick at a photo call with Lady June Hillary ahead of the game at Twickenham Nov 29th, 2008. The Shield was designed and crafted by English trophy manufacturer Thomas Lyte Silver, who have created a number of major rugby trophies and are also responsible for the care of football's famous FA Cup and golf's Ryder Cup. The circular shield features a centre circle with Sir Ed's head set against a backdrop of Mt Everest and the Himalayas. The English rose and the All Blacks logo are on either side. The trophy honours Sir Edmund's lifetime of achievements as a mountaineer, adventurer, humanitarian, and as Knight of the Garter. The Tom Richard's trophy was made for the British Lions tour to Australia in 2001 and will be contested whenever Australia and the British Lions meet. It was named after Tom Richards, the only Wallaby to have also been a British Lion*. Made of crystal, it has a portrait of Tom Richards etched into the glass.

Tom Richard's went to England with the 1908 Wallabies and later played for Gloucester which qualified him to play for the Lions. He was living in Sth Africa when the Lions toured there in 1910 and became a member of the team as a replacement for an injured player. The Tri-Nations championship is held annually between the three main rugby nations in the southern hemisphere, namely Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The TriNations is administered by SANZAR - a co-operative venture between the South African, New Zealand and Australian Rugby unions. Despite the history of the Triple Crown there has never been a permanent trophy produced. The Trophy is a silver dish measuring 42cm wide and 5cm deep and weighing a hefty three kilos. The Trophy was produced by Hamilton and Inches of Edinburgh and took over four months to make.

Triple Crown history: The new Triple Crown Trophy was presented for the first time in 2006 The Triple Crown has been won 59 times The four Home Unions have been competing against each other for 125 years, since the first international between England and Wales in 1882 The Triple Crown was first won in 1893 when Wales became the first holders of the then mythical trophy Trophée des Bicentenaires. To celebrate the bi-centenaries of Australia and France in 1988 and 1989 respectively, the French Rugby Union donated this trophy to be played in perpetuity between the two countries. It is a bronze sculpture featuring two players in a tackle. Although the trophy dates from 1988, it was first contested in 1989. The Webb Ellis Cup. The Cup was made by Garrard's workshop in 1906. Garrards was appointed crown jeweler in 1843 by Queen Victoria. Garrard's first famous sporting trophy was the Royal Yacht Squadron's Cup presented in 1848 by the Marques of Anglesey.

It is better known as the America's Cup, from the first winner of the cup in 1851, the yacht America. The RWC is a Victorian copy of a cup made in 1740 by the gold and silversmith Paul de Lamerie (1688-1751), whose parents, Huguenots, had fled to London and set up a shop in Soho. The Cup is silver, gilded in gold, 38 centimetres tall with two cast scroll handles. On one there perches the head of a satyr, on the other the head of a nymph, the nymph, beautiful spirit of nature, forever safe from the randy aspirations of the goat-man. The terminals are a bearded mask, a lion mask and a vine. It was not selected for use as the RWC trophy until February 1987. John Kendall-Carpenter, the famous England forward and the Chairman of the Rugby World Cup and Air Commodore Bob Weighill, the secretary of the IRB and a former England forward,visited Garrard's, the crown jeweler in Regent Street, London.

Richard Jarvis, the Managing Director of the company, brought the Cup down from the vault and showed it to the two men. Eventually Ronnie Dawson of Ireland, Keith Rowlands of Wales, Bob Stuart and Dick Littlejohn of New Zealand and the Australians Nick Shehadie and Ross Turnbull approved of the choice. They named it 'The Webb Ellis Cup'. Information on the RWC mainly sourced from Planet rugby. Women's World Cup. Women's 6 Nation Trophy Introduced in June 2011 to be presented to the winners of the three Super Rugby Conferences. The expansion of the Super Rugby tournament meant three new trophies were needed and SANZAR have also opted to change the Super Rugby overall champion's trophy. SANZAR chief executive Greg Peters said "The chosen trophy design reflects the core elements of Rugby - tradition, physical toughness, camaraderie, and skill." Bill Beaumont Cup - English Country Championship cup. The Rugby Championship will be one of the world’s premier international rugby competitions and the new trophy that will represent the ultimate symbol of Southern Hemisphere supremacy has been revealed by SANZAR.

The exciting new evolution of the Tri-Nations kicks off on 18 August with the Rugby Championship featuring three double World Champions in the All Blacks, Springboks and Wallabies, as well as the exciting addition of the Argentinean Pumas. The new trophy will be presented to the winner each year from 2012 onwards. Each team is to play the other three at home and away with the total competition points after the 12 matches deciding the winner. SANZAR CEO Greg Peters explained the thinking behind the trophy. “The new trophy embodies all the elements of The Rugby Championship,” he said. “A competition of the best versus the best in world rugby, with the four teams competing ranked one, two, three and eight in the world. Over the years the competition and trophy will develop its own heritage and legacy and we look forward to that evolving.” The stainless-steel trophy was designed by Sydney based consultancy Blue Sky, and reflects The Rugby Championship logo by incorporating the ‘H’s’ as the goal posts to support the bowl. The gold panels on the bowl signify the status of the trophy and will recognise the winner of the championship. The trophy stands 56cm tall, and weighs approximately 5kg.

It was made using the latest materials and state-of-the-art design processes, before being completed with a polish to bring the new trophy up with a mirror finish.

Question: In the Six Nations Rugby Championship, the Millennium Trophy is awarded to the winner of the game between which two countries?
Answer: England and Ireland