Travel back to the Six Nations 2015 here at RugbyPass. Whether you want to revel in the glory of Ireland’s title or relive England’s Super Saturday regret, we’ve got all of the details right here in this review.
Keep scrolling to read about how Ireland became the 2015 Six Nations winner.
2015 Six Nations Stats: Who Won the Six Nations 2015?
Six Nations 2015 Winner: Ireland
The 2015 Six Nations Championship was the 16th edition of the current format and the 121st tournament overall. As usual, the tournament was contested over five rounds of fixtures; the Six Nations dates for 2015 spanned from 6 February until 21 March.
Ireland entered the 2015 Championship aiming to achieve back-to-back titles. After winning their Super Saturday match against Scotland, Ireland secured their 13th Championship Trophy. This was a milestone, as it was the first time Ireland had retained their outright title since the 1949 Five Nations.
Although Ireland triumphed, competition for the top spot was tight. The table finished with Ireland, England and Wales on eight points. In fact, Ireland won with a +63 points difference – six points higher than England (+57) and 10 points above Wales (+53).
With three teams fighting for first place, it was Ireland and England players who delivered the greatest performances. George Ford was the tournament’s top point scorer with 75, while Jonathan Joseph was the top try scorer with four. Additionally, Paul O’Connell was voted as the Player of the Tournament.
Round One Review
Match one: Wales 16-21 England (Millennium Stadium, Cardiff)
Match two: Italy 3-26 Ireland (Stadio Olimpico, Rome)
Match three: France 15-8 Scotland (Stade de France, Saint-Denis)
The Six Nations 2015 commenced with Wales suffering an unexpected defeat. The Welsh team delivered a masterful start, with Leigh Halfpenny scoring a penalty 60 seconds in. By half time, the score was 16-8 to Wales. However, the tables quickly turned. England pulled off a stunning comeback and edged past Wales 21-16.
Next, defending champions Ireland won their first match. They thrashed Italy 26-3 and entered the second round with a comfortable lead.
In the final clash of the round, France secured a second-half victory over Scotland. After starting the second half just one point ahead, Camille Lopez slotted two penalties and sealed France’s 15-8 win.
Round Two Review
Match one: England 47-17 Italy (Twickenham Stadium, London)
Match two: Ireland 18-11 France (Aviva Stadium, Dublin)
Match three: Scotland 23-26 Wales (Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh)
Round two started with England crushing Italy 47-17. Despite Sergio Parisse crossing the line three minutes in, the Azzurri failed to score another point until Luca Morisi’s second-half brace. In contrast, England scored six tries.
In match two, Johnny Sexton steered Ireland to their 18-11 victory. The Irish behemoth kicked five penalties as France tried and failed to recover.
Match three featured a battle between Scotland and Wales. After trading points early on, Scotland almost out-manoeuvred Wales with a last-minute try and conversion. Fortunately, Wales held onto their lead and triumphed 26-23.
Round Three Review
Match one: Scotland 19-22 Italy (Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh)
Match two: France 13-20 Wales (Stade de France, Saint-Denis)
Match three: Ireland 19-9 England (Aviva Stadium, Dublin)
In a shocking turn of events, round three kicked off with Italy storming past Scotland. Sure of their victory while holding onto a narrow 19-15 lead, Scotland fell in a last-second stunner. The Azzurri’s last-gasp points secured their first Six Nations win since 2013.
Next, Wales enjoyed a 20-13 win. While France wasted two penalties, the ever-impressive Halfpenny finished the match with a 100% record. Additionally, George North reached his 50th cap in this game – at 22, he was the youngest rugby player to reach 50 caps.
Continuing their winning campaign, Ireland went into the fourth round undefeated. They sailed past a sluggish England 19-9 and secured their first Millennium Trophy since 2011.
Round Four Review
Match one: Wales 23-16 Ireland (Millennium Stadium, Cardiff)
Match two: England 25-13 Scotland (Twickenham Stadium, London)
Match three: Italy 0-29 France (Stadio Olimpico, Rome)
In round four, Ireland’s unbeaten streak came to an end. They suffered their first loss of the 2015 Six Nations at the hands of an unrelenting and clinical Wales. With Wales’ win, no nation could claim the Triple Crown or the Grand Slam.
The match between England and Scotland resulted in Australia falling to their lowest ever world ranking, despite not playing. Following England’s 25-13 victory – and Wales’ 23-16 win – Australia dropped down to number six.
Next, Italy mourned their first scoreless match since the 2004 tournament. This was a confidence-boosting encounter for France, who finally secured their second win of the tournament.
Round Five Review
Match one: Italy 20-61 Wales (Stadio Olimpico, Rome)
Match two: Scotland 10-40 Ireland (Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh)
Match three: England 55-35 France (Twickenham Stadium, London)
With every chance of winning the Championship, Wales delivered a stellar Super Saturday performance. From George North’s hat trick to Dan Biggar kicking 12 points, the Welsh side bulldozed Italy 60-21 – a new record-winning margin for Wales against Italy.
After Wales’ triumph, Ireland needed a 21-point win to stand a chance of retaining their title. While Ireland applied the pressure, Scotland floundered. As Ireland climbed to the top of the table, Scotland’s error-strewn performance left them at the bottom for the first time since 2012.
The outcome of the 2015 Six Nations came down to the final: an extraordinary encounter between England and France. Despite scoring a record 55 points against France, England failed to secure the 26-point margin required to steal the title. As they only won by 20 points, Ireland celebrated victory.
Six Nations Table 2015
Here are the Six Nations results from 2015:
Team | Won | Lost | Points Difference | Tries For | Grand Slam Points | Total Points |
Ireland | 4 | 1 | +63 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
England | 4 | 1 | +57 | 18 | 0 | 8 |
Wales | 4 | 1 | +53 | 13 | 0 | 8 |
France | 2 | 3 | +2 | 9 | 0 | 4 |
Italy | 1 | 4 | -120 | 8 | 0 | 2 |
Scotland | 0 | 5 | -55 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
As the 2015 Six Nations entered round five, there were three teams still in contention: England, Ireland and Wales. Against all odds, Wales’ 41-point victory against Italy put them back in the running – but not for long. Meanwhile, England’s performance left them six points short of securing the win. Just one extra converted try would have been enough, but it wasn’t to be.
The result: Ireland were crowned the 2015 Six Nations winners. The emerald side defeated Scotland 40-10 and celebrated their first back-to-back titles since 1949.
