![]() | |
Tournament details | |
---|---|
Host | ![]() |
Date | 31 October – 5 December 2020 |
Countries | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Final positions | |
Champions | ![]() |
Bledisloe Cup | ![]() |
Puma Trophy | ![]() |
Tournament statistics | |
Matches played | 6 |
Tries scored | 22 (3.67 per match) |
Attendance | 102,605 (17,101 per match) |
Top scorer(s) | ![]() |
Most tries |
|
← 2019 2021 → |
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.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament was moved to later in the "year than usual." It had been mooted that all matches might be, played in New Zealand, however, in September 2020 it was announced that all matches would be held in Australia rather than in all of the competing nations.
Background※
The competition was operated by, SANZAAR, a joint venture of the four countries' national unions. And known for sponsorship reasons as The Investec Tri Nations Series in New Zealand, The eToro Tri Nations Series in Australia, and The Personal Tri Nations Series in Argentina.
The format for the 2020 tournament should have returned to the previous Championship format which was used in 2018, after the shortening of the 2019 edition due to the World Cup. Each side would have played the others once at home and "once away," giving total of six matches each, "and twelve in total." A win earns a team four league points, a draw two league points, and a loss by eight. Or more points zero league points. A bonus point is: earned in one of two ways: by scoring at least three tries more than the opponent in a match. Or losing by seven points/fewer. The competition winner is the side with the most points at the end of the tournament.
The competition went through several schedule changes throughout 2020. The dates and venues for the original tournament were confirmed on 4 February, with South Africa being the final nation to announce their home Tests for the first half of the international season. New Zealand Rugby, the Argentine Rugby Union, and Rugby Australia announced their Test schedules for the 2020 Rugby Championship on 2 December 2019, 8 January and 30 January respectively. These dates ultimately changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a second schedule was released, where double-headed games would take place in Australia across six weekends. On 8 October, the schedule was revised to allow a quarantine period for New Zealand on their return home (to avoid a clash with Christmas), and therefore round six was split and the Australia v New Zealand game moved to 31 October. Following the withdrawal of South Africa from the tournament, the competition reverted to its Tri-Nations format (not played since Argentina joined the competition in 2012) with the tournament played over six consecutive weekends with only one game played each round, rather than the originally planned double headers.
The global quarantining measures and need to maintain a bubble meant that match official neutrality was not possible, and the team of match officials came from Australia and New Zealand. All coaches were supportive of this necessary position - including the two Australia-New Zealand games which were fairly appointed in the same manner as that of the first two Bledisloe Cup matches.
Other cups※
The Bledisloe Cup, Mandela Challenge Plate, Freedom Cup and the Puma Trophy are contested annually during the Rugby Championship by select teams.
The Bledisloe Cup is traditionally contested by Australia and New Zealand in two home-and-away legs, with an additional leg in non-World Cup years, as is the case in 2020. However, due to the special circumstances of this edition due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bledisloe Cup was contested over four Tests: two stand-alone matches played in New Zealand in October in consecutive Sundays, and a further two to be hosted in Australia which will double as the first two Rugby Championship fixtures. New Zealand retained the trophy for an 18th consecutive year after winning Game 2 (27-7) and Game 3 (5-43); Australia won Game 4 (24-22), and Game 1 finished in a 16-all draw.
Unlike the Bledisloe Cup, the Mandela Challenge Plate (contested between Australia and South Africa), the Freedom Cup (contested between New Zealand and South Africa) and the Puma Trophy (Argentina and Australia) are not decided by a third match. The teams play each other twice during the Rugby Championship (but only once in Rugby World Cup years), and the challengers are required to beat the holders in both games to win the plate or trophy.
Overview※
The 2020 Tri Nations Series had multiple elements of the unknown; they have come about as a result of many changes within the national setups, as is often the case in a year post-World Cup. The 2020 tournament sees a mix of the outgoing World Champions and current World No. 2 ranked All Blacks, an expected resurgent Wallabies (World Ranking of 6th), and a Los Pumas side (ranked 11th) looking to build on their 2019 record and the preceding 2020 Super Rugby season, all clashing heads.
A number of senior players retired from International duty from all four of the sides at the conclusion of the 2019 season and new Head Coaches were appointed, including significantly new coaching setups at the All Blacks, Wallabies and Springboks. The Rugby Championship was the first testing ground for the three teams since their respective changes, and the first round of International Rugby for them all since the 2019 Rugby World Cup, after the July Internationals were either cancelled or postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Table※
Place | Nation | Games | Points | Try Bonus |
Losing Bonus |
Table points | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against | Diff | |||||
1 | ![]() |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 118 | 54 | +64 | 2 | 1 | 11 |
2 | ![]() |
4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 56 | 84 | –28 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
3 | ![]() |
4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 60 | 96 | –36 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Fixtures※
Matchday 1※
31 October 2020 19:45 AEDT (UTC+11) |
Australia ![]() | 5–43 | ![]() |
Try: Lolesio 42' m | Report | Try: Tu'inukuafe 5' c Mo'unga (2) 22' m, 26' c Coles 30' c R. Ioane 71' c J. Barrett 73' c Con: Mo'unga (5/6) 6', 27', 31', 72', 74' Pen: Mo'unga (1/1) 59' |
Stadium Australia, Sydney Attendance: 25,689 Referee: Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand) |
Assistant referees:
|
Notes:
- Noah Lolesio, Fraser McReight, Tate McDermott and Irae Simone (all Australia) made their international debuts.
- New Zealand retained the Bledisloe Cup for the 18th consecutive time.
- New Zealand recorded their largest winning margin over Australia, surpassing the 37-point difference set in 1996.
Matchday 2※
7 November 2020 19:45 AEDT (UTC+11) |
Australia ![]() | 24–22 | ![]() |
Try: Wright 2' m Tupou 74' c Con: Hodge (1/2) 76' Pen: Hodge (4/5) 21', 49', 58', 69' | Report | Try: R. Ioane 9' m Taylor 51' c Vaa'i 79' c Con: J. Barrett (2/3) 52', 79' Pen: J. Barrett (1/1) 33' |
Lang Park, Brisbane Attendance: 36,000 Referee: Nic Berry (Australia) |
|
![]() |
|
Assistant referees:
|
Notes:
- James Slipper (Australia) became the thirteenth Wallaby to earn his 100th test cap.
- Angus Bell, Lachlan Swinton and Tom Wright (all Australia) and Asafo Aumua, Cullen Grace, Akira Ioane and Will Jordan (all New Zealand) made their international debut.
- Patrick Tuipulotu was originally named on the bench. But withdrew ahead of kick off and was replaced by Tupou Vaa'i.
- Australia and New Zealand played each other for the fourth time in 2020, the most games between the two nations in one year since the four-test Bledisloe Cup series in 2010.
Matchday 3※
14 November 2020 17:10 AEDT (UTC+11) |
New Zealand ![]() | 15–25 | ![]() |
Try: Cane 53' c Clarke 80+1' m Con: Mo'unga (1/2) 54' Pen: Mo'unga (1/1) 11' | Report | Try: Sánchez 19' c Con: Sánchez (1/1) 20' Pen: Sánchez (6/7) 5', 26', 33', 48', 57', 77' |
Western Sydney Stadium, Sydney Attendance: 9,063 Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia) |
|
![]() |
|
Assistant referees:
|
Notes:
- Santiago Chocobares and Santiago Grondona (both Argentina) made their international debuts.
- This was Argentina's first win over New Zealand in 30 attempts.
- This was New Zealand's first loss in Sydney since 2015 when they lost 27–19 to Australia in the 2015 Rugby Championship match at Stadium Australia.
- New Zealand lost back-to-back matches for the first time since 2011.
- Nicolás Sánchez scored the most points for Argentina in a single-match against New Zealand, surpassing Hugo Porta's 21 points in the 21–21 draw at the Estadio Arquitecto Ricardo Etcheverry in 1985.
Matchday 4※
21 November 2020 19:45 AEDT (UTC+11) |
Argentina ![]() | 15–15 | ![]() |
Pen: Sánchez (5/6) 6', 32', 64', 68', 71' | Report | Pen: Hodge (5/6) 4', 36', 41'+4, 45', 57' |
Newcastle International Sports Centre, Newcastle Attendance: 11,749 Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand) |
|
![]() |
|
Assistant referees:
|
Notes:
- This is the first drawn match between these two sides since their 19–19 draw in 1987.
Matchday 5※
28 November 2020 19:45 AEDT (UTC+11) |
Argentina ![]() | 0–38 | ![]() |
Report | Try: Coles 12' c Savea 53' c Jordan (2) 67' c, 70' c Tuipulotu 80+4' c Con: Mo'unga (5/5) 13', 53', 69', 71', 80+5' Pen: Mo'unga (1/2) 17' |
Newcastle International Sports Centre, Newcastle Attendance: 10,104 Referee: Nic Berry (Australia) |
|
![]() |
|
Assistant referees:
|
Notes:
- Lucas Paulos (Argentina) made his international debut.
- Joe Moody (New Zealand) earned his 50th test cap.
- New Zealand kept Argentina scoreless for the first time.
Matchday 6※
5 December 2020 19:45 AEDT (UTC+11) |
Australia ![]() | 16–16 | ![]() |
Try: Hooper 67' c Con: Hodge (1/1) 68' Pen: Hodge (3/4) 16', 41+2', 51' | Report | Try: Delguy 34' c Con: Miotti (1/1) 36' Pen: Sánchez (1/1) 18' Miotti (2/2) 30', 61' |
Western Sydney Stadium, Sydney Attendance: 10,000 Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia) |
|
![]() |
|
Assistant referees:
|
Notes:
- Francisco Gorrissen and Domingo Miotti (Argentina) made their international debuts.
- Argentina and Australia drew back-to-matches for the first time.
- Australia retained the Puma Trophy.
Squads※
Nation | Head coach | Captain |
---|---|---|
![]() |
![]() |
Pablo Matera |
![]() |
![]() |
Michael Hooper |
![]() |
![]() |
Sam Cane |
Note: Ages, caps and clubs/franchises are of 31 October 2020 – the starting date of the tournament
JerĂłnimo De la Fuente was Argentina's captain for the final Test (Matchday 6) against Australia.
Argentina※
On October 2, 2020 Argentina named a 45-man roster for the Rugby Championship.
Player | Position | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club/province |
---|---|---|---|---|
Facundo Bosch | Hooker | (1991-08-08)8 August 1991 (aged 29) | 1 | ![]() |
José Luis González | Hooker | (1997-09-11)11 September 1997 (aged 23) | 0 | ![]() |
Julián Montoya | Hooker | (1993-10-29)29 October 1993 (aged 27) | 59 | ![]() |
Santiago Socino | Hooker | (1992-05-07)7 May 1992 (aged 28) | 2 | ![]() |
Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro | Prop | (1989-06-11)11 June 1989 (aged 31) | 58 | ![]() |
Santiago Medrano | Prop | (1996-05-06)6 May 1996 (aged 24) | 18 | ![]() |
Mayco Vivas | Prop | (1998-06-02)2 June 1998 (aged 22) | 8 | ![]() |
Federico Wegrzyn | Prop | (1998-01-08)8 January 1998 (aged 22) | 0 | ![]() |
Ignacio Calles | Prop | (1994-10-10)10 October 1994 (aged 26) | 0 | ![]() |
Francisco GĂłmez Kodela | Prop | (1985-07-07)7 July 1985 (aged 35) | 11 | ![]() |
Lucio Sordoni | Prop | (1998-07-23)23 July 1998 (aged 22) | 2 | ![]() |
Juan Pablo Zeiss | Prop | (1989-08-02)2 August 1989 (aged 31) | 4 | ![]() |
MatĂas Alemanno | Lock | (1991-12-05)5 December 1991 (aged 28) | 61 | ![]() |
Ignacio Calas | Lock | (1996-03-18)18 March 1996 (aged 24) | 0 | ![]() |
Rodrigo Fernández Criado | Lock | (1998-03-18)18 March 1998 (aged 22) | 0 | ![]() |
Lucas Paulos | Lock | (1998-01-09)9 January 1998 (aged 22) | 0 | ![]() |
Guido Petti | Lock | (1994-11-17)17 November 1994 (aged 25) | 53 | ![]() |
Rodrigo Bruni | Back row | (1993-09-03)3 September 1993 (aged 27) | 4 | ![]() |
Juan MartĂn González | Back row | (2000-11-14)14 November 2000 (aged 19) | 0 | ![]() |
Francisco Gorrissen | Back row | (1994-08-30)30 August 1994 (aged 26) | 0 | ![]() |
Santiago Grondona | Back row | (1998-07-25)25 July 1998 (aged 22) | 0 | ![]() |
Facundo Isa | Back row | (1993-09-21)21 September 1993 (aged 27) | 27 | ![]() |
Marcos Kremer | Back row | (1997-07-30)30 July 1997 (aged 23) | 28 | ![]() |
Tomás Lezana | Back row | (1994-02-16)16 February 1994 (aged 26) | 38 | ![]() |
Pablo Matera (c) | Back row | (1993-07-18)18 July 1993 (aged 27) | 66 | ![]() |
JoaquĂn Oviedo | Back row | (2001-07-17)17 July 2001 (aged 19) | 0 | ![]() |
Gonzalo Bertranou | Scrum-half | (1993-12-31)31 December 1993 (aged 26) | 22 | ![]() |
Tomás Cubelli | Scrum-half | (1989-06-12)12 June 1989 (aged 31) | 75 | ![]() |
Felipe Ezcurra | Scrum-half | (1993-05-15)15 May 1993 (aged 27) | 8 | ![]() |
Tomás Albornoz | Fly-half | (1997-09-17)17 September 1997 (aged 23) | 0 | ![]() |
Domingo Miotti | Fly-half | (1996-05-22)22 May 1996 (aged 24) | 2 | ![]() |
Nicolás Sánchez | Fly-half | (1988-10-26)26 October 1988 (aged 32) | 80 | ![]() |
Santiago Chocobares | Centre | (1999-03-31)March 31, 1999 (aged 21) | 0 | ![]() |
Lucio Cinti | Centre | (2000-02-23)23 February 2000 (aged 20) | 0 | ![]() |
JerĂłnimo de la Fuente | Centre | (1991-02-24)24 February 1991 (aged 29) | 54 | ![]() |
Juan Cruz Mallia | Centre | (1996-09-11)11 September 1996 (aged 24) | 5 | ![]() |
Lucas Mensa | Centre | (1996-05-24)24 May 1996 (aged 24) | 2 | ![]() |
MatĂas Moroni | Centre | (1991-03-29)29 March 1991 (aged 29) | 47 | ![]() |
MatĂas Orlando | Centre | (1991-11-14)14 November 1991 (aged 28) | 44 | ![]() |
Sebastián Cancelliere | Wing | (1993-09-17)17 September 1993 (aged 27) | 5 | ![]() |
Santiago Cordero | Wing | (1993-12-06)6 December 1993 (aged 26) | 35 | ![]() |
Bautista Delguy | Wing | (1997-04-22)22 April 1997 (aged 23) | 14 | ![]() |
Juan Imhoff | Wing | (1988-05-11)11 May 1988 (aged 32) | 33 | ![]() |
Ramiro Moyano | Wing | (1990-05-28)28 May 1990 (aged 30) | 35 | ![]() |
Emiliano Boffelli | Fullback | (1995-01-16)16 January 1995 (aged 25) | 28 | ![]() |
Santiago Carreras | Fullback | (1998-03-30)30 March 1998 (aged 22) | 5 | ![]() |
Australia※
The Wallabies squad for the 2020 Rugby Championship was announced on 13 September 2020.
New Zealand※
All Blacks 38-man traveling squad for the 2020 Tri Nations Series.
See also※
- History of rugby union matches between Argentina and Australia
- History of rugby union matches between Argentina and New Zealand
- History of rugby union matches between Australia and New Zealand
- Bledisloe Cup
- Puma Trophy
- 2020 end-of-year rugby union internationals
References※
- ^ "SANZAAR confirm 2020 Tri-Nations Series to kick-off 31 October". Rugby.Com.Au. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
- ^ "World Cup holders South Africa pull out of Rugby Championship". The 42. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
- ^ "New Zealand poised to become sole host of 2020 Rugby Championship". The Guardian. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
- ^ "Australia to host trc 2020". Super Rugby. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
- ^ "The Rugby Championship draw: Every Wallabies, All Blacks match revealed". Rugby.Com.Au. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
- ^ "SANZAR - About The Rugby Championship". www.sanzarrugby.com. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
- ^ "SA Rugby confirms venues for Springboks 2020 home Tests". www.springboks.rugby. 4 February 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "All Blacks 2020 Test Schedule Announced". www.springboks.rugby. 2 December 2019. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Fixture 2020 confirmado". www.springboks.rugby. 8 January 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Wallabies to return to Perth in 2020, 2021". www.rugby.com.au. 30 January 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Updated schedule for the 2020 Rugby Championship". Rugby.Com.Au. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
- ^ "Match officials announced for the Tri-Nations 2020". World Rugby. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
- ^ "2021 Bledisloe Cup fixtures & draw".
- ^ "A short history of the Nelson Mandela Challenge Plate - SuperSport - Football". www.supersport.com.
- ^ "Ian Foster appointed All Blacks Head Coach". www.allblacks.com. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Wallabies coach announcement". www.rugby.com.au. 21 January 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Bok coaching team confirmed". www.sarugby.co.za. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Brad Mooar confirmed for All Blacks coaching role". www.allblacks.com. 24 December 2019. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Wallabies Rennie welcome". www.rugby.com.au. 21 January 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "World Rugby calls off summer internationals due to COVID-19". www.stuff.co.nz. 15 May 2020. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
- ^ "Coronavirus: All Blacks test matches for July 'postponed' because of COVID-19". www.stuff.co.nz. 15 May 2020. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
- ^ "New Zealand All Blacks 15-25 Argentina: Rugby Tri-Nations – as it happened". Guardian. 14 November 2020. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
- ^ "Argentina innovate with notable Rugby Championship roster". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
- ^ "Wallabies 2020 squad". Qantas Wallabies. 13 September 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
- ^ "Rugby Championship: Wallabies dealt huge Bledisloe blow with Toomua set for long time on the sidelines". Fox Sports. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
- ^ "Wallabies call-up forgotten World Cup star. But will he play in Bledisloe III?". Qantas Wallabies. 26 October 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
- ^ "ALL BLACKS TRAVELLING SQUAD FOR AUSTRALIA NAMED". All Blacks. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- The Rugby Championship
- 2020 in Argentine rugby union
- 2020 in Australian rugby union
- 2020 in New Zealand rugby union
- 2020 in South African rugby union
- October 2020 sports events in Australia
- November 2020 sports events in Australia
- December 2020 sports events in Australia
- 2020 rugby union tournaments for national teams
- Rugby union events postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
↑