Rugby World Cup history : Home rule for New Zealand in 1987
All Blacks dominate inaugural tournament.
Friday 11 September 2015 14:49, UK
The power of the All Blacks and the brilliance of the French catch the eye as the World Cup is given a rip-roaring start...
The inaugural tournament saw seven members of the International Rugby Football Board - New Zealand, Australia, England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales - joined by nine invited sides.
South Africa were the notable omission due to the international sports boycott over apartheid, while Western Samoa were overlooked and the USSR turned down the chance to compete.
That left Argentina, Fiji, Tonga, Zimbabwe, Romania, Italy, Canada , Japan and the USA to fill the remaining places in the four-pool tournament.
Predictably, the IRFB sides were far too strong for the minnows, with New Zealand's opening match thrashing of Italy setting the tone for the tournament.
The hosts romped to a 70-6 victory over the Azzurri, with John Kirwan, who would later coach Italy, scoring one of the best tries in RWC history.
The disparity in class was highlighted by the fact 12 of the pool matches saw one side score at least 40 points, while the most individual RWC points (Grant Fox, 126) and the most RWC tries by a team (New Zealand, 43) relate to this tournament.
New Zealand, Australia, England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales were joined by Fiji in progressing to the quarter-finals.
Roared on by their home fans, New Zealand and Australia (who hosted a handful of the games) overcame Scotland and Ireland, while France accounted for Fiji and England succumbed to Wales.
Agony
The All Blacks ended the Welsh challenge, though, as they ran away with a 49-6 victory to secure their place in the inaugural final at Eden Park, while there was a rip-roaring second semi-final between Australia and France.
The Wallabies had been the pre-tournament favourites - and seemed on course to join their fellow Antipodeans in the final as they led France three times, and had their chances to put the game out of sight.
Les Bleus had other ideas, though, as they snatched a 30-24 victory - with the late winning try coming in true Gallic fashion as France attacked from deep in their own half. The ball worked its way through 11 pairs of hands before Serge Blanco applied the finish.
There was further agony for Australia as they lost the third-place play-off 22-21 to Wales.
The final, somewhat predictably, was a disappointment compared to the highs of the semi-finals - with New Zealand dominating France from the off.
Grant Fox, who finished with 17 points, kicked the life out of the French resistance, while Michael Jones, captain David Kirk and John Kirwan crossed for tries.
