Lansdowne Cup The Prize In IRFU 150 Celebration Match

An Ireland v Australia Test Match doesn’t need anything in the way of incentive for either team. Both countries have been evenly matched and produced some enthralling games, but Saturday afternoon in Aviva Stadium also marks the final game of the Autumn Nations Series and the second of the IRFU 150 Celebration Test Matches with the Lansdowne Cup at stake.

The cup was introduced in 1999 when it was presented by the Lansdowne Club in Sydney to mark the the two match test series. Made of Waterford Crystal, the cup has been presented to the winning team ever since.

Australia won that test series in ’99 and held the Lansdowne Cup until November 2002 when Ireland won it for the first time beating the Wallabies 18-9 in the old Lansdowne Road.

The trophy changed hands several times in the intervening seasons until 2014 when Ireland won 26-23 at Aviva Stadium. Another win in 2016 and a test series win in 2018 followed and the trophy was retained through the most recent meeting when Ireland won 13-10 in the Autumn Nations Series.