Grand Slam Map
On March 21st in the Millennium Stadium, Ireland beat Wales by two points to win the RBS 6 Nations Championship, the Triple Crown and the Grand Slam.
The RBS 6 Nations Championship Trophy and Triple Crown will tour the four provinces of Ireland throughout 2009 and you can keep up to date with them on our Grand Slam Map.
The Grand Slam Trophy Tour is being co-ordinated through the four provincial branches. Taking in Rugby Clubs, Schools and various other venues the trophies will be on view to all the supporters of Irish Rugby.
This map will be updated throughout the year to show where the Trophies have been and where they are going. We will also be adding photo gallery links from the various clubs, schools and events so keep checking back for more.
Grand Slam Links
The Grand Slam Game on IrishRugby TV
In Pics: Ireland's Grand Slam Week
'We Had Dreams and Songs To Sing' - A Supporter's Diary of the Grand Slam Day
Grand Slam Merchandise in the Irish Rugby Shop
The RBS 6 Nations Trophy - A History
The Trophy was designed by James Brent-Ward, Designer and Managing Director of the London Silversmiths William Comyns who produced it.It was conceived in a classical style but not to a traditional design. It was designed to be substantial and have a distinctive shape.
The Trophy has fifteen sides – one for each player.
It has three handles, one for each official – the referee and the two touch judges.
The handles are large enough to make lifting the Trophy easy.
The capacity of the Trophy is exactly five bottles of Champagne, one for each of the original five competing nations.
It has the emblem of each nation around the base. These are fixed in such a way that they can be moved to accommodate the addition of new emblems when new nations join, as happened when Italy joined in the year 2000. The handle, or finial, on the lid is interchangeable and represents the current champions. The current champions are Ireland, so the finial on the Trophy at the moment is the one decorated with the Irish shamrock. The finials of the five challenging teams are kept in a hidden drawer inside the plinth throughout the Championship.
The construction of the Trophy is substantial. It is designed so that in the words of its designer: ‘If anyone tries to drop kick it up Princes Street it will break their toes rather than damage the Trophy.’
Previous Winners
The Trophy was presented to the Five Nations Committee on 6 March 1993
Year - Winners - Captain
1993 - France - Jeff Tordo
1994 - Wales - Ieuan Evans
1995 - England - Will Carling
1996 - England - Will Carling
1997 - France - Abdel Benazzi
1998 - France - Raphael Ibanez
1999 - Scotland - Gary Armstrong
2000 - England - Matt Dawson
2001 - England - Martin Johnson
2002 - France - Fabien Galthie
2003 - England - Martin Johnson
2004 - France - Fabien Pelous
2005 - Wales - Gareth Thomas
2006 - France - Fabien Pelous
2007 - France - Raphael Ibanez
2008 - Wales - Ryan Jones
2009 - Ireland - Brian O’Driscoll
