2011 Tri Nations Series

2011 Tri Nations Series
Date	23 July 2011–; 27 August 2011
Final positions
Champions	Australia (3rd title)
Bledisloe Cup	New Zealand
Freedom Cup	New Zealand
Mandela Challenge Plate	Australia
Tournament statistics
Matches played	6
Tries scored	26 (4.33 per match)
Attendance	278,981 (46,497 per match)
Top scorer(s)	Dan Carter (35)
Most tries	Digby Ioane; Ma'a Nonu; Cory Jane; Zac Guildford; John Smit; (2 tries)
	← 2010 2012 →

The 2011 Tri Nations Series was the sixteenth annual Tri Nations rugby union series between the national rugby union teams of New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, respectively nicknamed the All Blacks, Wallabies and Springboks. It was also the last series in which only these three teams participated. In 2012, Argentina's Pumas joined this competition,^[1] which was rebranded as The Rugby Championship.^[2] This made this series the last under the Tri Nations name until 2020, when South Africa withdrew due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[3]

The 2011 Rugby World Cup was held in New Zealand between 9 September and 23 October 2011. As a result, the 2011 Tri Nations was shortened to include only six games instead of the usual nine. Each team played the other two countries twice rather than three times. Australia won the series for the first time in ten years.^[4]^[5]^[6]

Standings[edit]

Place	Nation	Games				Points			Bonus points		Table points
Place	Nation	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	For	Against	Difference	Tries	Losing	Table points
1	Australia	4	3	0	1	92	79	+13	1	0	13
2	New Zealand	4	2	0	2	95	64	+31	1	1	10
3	South Africa	4	1	0	3	54	98	−44	0	1	5

Fixtures[edit]

All times are local

Australia vs South Africa, Sydney[edit]

23 July 2011
20:05 AEST (UTC+10)

Australia	39–20	South Africa
Try: Alexander 9' c Ioane 11' m O'Connor 43' c Moore 46' c Ashley-Cooper 54' c Con: O'Connor (4/5) Pen: O'Connor (2/2) 37', 50'	Report^[7]	Try: Ralepelle 58' c Smit 75' c Con: Lambie (2/2) Pen: M. Steyn (2/2) 30', 40'

ANZ Stadium, Sydney
Attendance: 52,718
Referee: Chris Pollock (New Zealand)


FB	15	Kurtley Beale	70'
RW	14	James O'Connor
OC	13	Adam Ashley-Cooper	63'
IC	12	Pat McCabe
LW	11	Digby Ioane
FH	10	Quade Cooper
SH	9	Will Genia	64'
N8	8	Ben McCalman
OF	7	David Pocock	64'
BF	6	Rocky Elsom (c)	56'
RL	5	James Horwill	56'
LL	4	Rob Simmons
TP	3	Ben Alexander
HK	2	Stephen Moore	60'
LP	1	Sekope Kepu
Substitutes:
HK	16	Saia Fainga'a	60'
PR	17	Pekahou Cowan	70'
LK	18	Nathan Sharpe	56'
FL	19	Matt Hodgson	64'
FL	20	Scott Higginbotham	56'
SH	21	Nick Phipps	64'
CE	22	Anthony Fainga'a	63'
Coach:
Robbie Deans


FB	15	Gio Aplon
RW	14	Bjorn Basson
OC	13	Juan de Jongh
IC	12	Wynand Olivier	66'
LW	11	Lwazi Mvovo
FH	10	Morné Steyn	56'
SH	9	Ruan Pienaar
N8	8	Ashley Johnson	51'
BF	7	Danie Rossouw
OF	6	Deon Stegmann
RL	5	Alistair Hargreaves
LL	4	Flip van der Merwe				33'
TP	3	Werner Kruger					60'
HK	2	John Smit (c)
LP	1	Dean Greyling	6' to 15'		23' to 33'		58'
Substitutes:
HK	16	Chiliboy Ralepelle					58'
PR	17	CJ van der Linde	6'	15'	23'	33'	60'
N8	18	Ryan Kankowski				33'
SH	19	Charl McLeod
FL	20	Jean Deysel	51'
CE	21	Adrian Jacobs	66'
FH	22	Patrick Lambie	56'
Coach:
Peter de Villiers

Touch judges:
Keith Brown (New Zealand)
Vinny Munro (New Zealand)
Television match official:
Matt Goddard (Australia)

New Zealand vs South Africa, Wellington[edit]

30 July 2011
19:35 NZST (UTC+12)

New Zealand	40–7	South Africa
Try: Crockett 13' m Guildford 14' m, 64' m Jane 32' m, 45' c Slade 70' c Con: Carter (2/6) Pen: Carter (2/2) 2', 49'	Report^[8]	Try: Smit 29' c Con: M. Steyn (1/1)

Westpac Stadium, Wellington
Attendance: 28,895
Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland)


FB	15	Mils Muliaina
RW	14	Cory Jane
OC	13	Conrad Smith	53'
IC	12	Ma'a Nonu	66'
LW	11	Zac Guildford
FH	10	Dan Carter
SH	9	Jimmy Cowan	56'
N8	8	Adam Thomson
OF	7	Richie McCaw (c)
BF	6	Jerome Kaino	56'
RL	5	Ali Williams
LL	4	Sam Whitelock	72'
TP	3	Ben Franks	42'	49'
HK	2	Andrew Hore	72'
LP	1	Wyatt Crockett
Substitutes:
HK	16	Corey Flynn	72'
PR	17	John Afoa	42'	49'
LK	18	Jarrad Hoeata	72'
N8	19	Liam Messam	56'
SH	20	Piri Weepu	56'
FH	21	Colin Slade	66'
CE	22	Sonny Bill Williams	53'
Coach:
Graham Henry


FB	15	Morné Steyn	66'
RW	14	Bjorn Basson	66'
OC	13	Adi Jacobs	67'
IC	12	Juan de Jongh
LW	11	Lwazi Mvovo
FH	10	Patrick Lambie
SH	9	Ruan Pienaar
N8	8	Danie Rossouw
OF	7	Jean Deysel	48'
BF	6	Deon Stegmann
RL	5	Alistair Hargreaves
LL	4	Gerhard Mostert	74'
TP	3	Werner Kruger	47'
HK	2	John Smit (c)
LP	1	Dean Greyling	47'
Substitutes:
HK	16	Chiliboy Ralepelle	47'
PR	17	CJ van der Linde	47'
N8	18	Ryan Kankowski	74'
N8	19	Ashley Johnson	48'
SH	20	Charl McLeod	66'
CE	21	Wynand Olivier	67'
WG	22	Odwa Ndungane	66'
Coach:
Peter de Villiers

Touch judges:
Stuart Dickinson (Australia)
James Leckie (Australia)
Television match official:
Garratt Williamson (New Zealand)

Dan Carter reclaimed the career lead in Test points from Jonny Wilkinson of England with his first penalty, ending the evening with 1,204 career points.^[9]

New Zealand vs Australia, Auckland[edit]

6 August 2011
19:35 NZST (UTC+12)

New Zealand	30–14	Australia
Try: Nonu 8' c Mealamu 27' c Sivivatu 54' c Con: Carter (3/3) Pen: Carter (2/2) 6', 68' Drop: Carter (1/1) 47'	Report^[10]	Try: Ioane 51' c Elsom 76' c Con: Cooper (2/2)

Eden Park, Auckland
Attendance: 52,182
Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)


FB	15	Mils Muliaina
RW	14	Sitiveni Sivivatu	56'
OC	13	Conrad Smith
IC	12	Ma'a Nonu	69'
LW	11	Hosea Gear
FH	10	Dan Carter
SH	9	Piri Weepu	60'
N8	8	Kieran Read
OF	7	Richie McCaw (c)
BF	6	Jerome Kaino	71'
RL	5	Ali Williams	65'
LL	4	Brad Thorn
TP	3	Owen Franks
HK	2	Keven Mealamu	60'
LP	1	Wyatt Crockett	50'
Substitutes:
HK	16	Andrew Hore	60'
PR	17	Ben Franks	50'
LK	18	Sam Whitelock	65'
FL	19	Adam Thomson	71'
SH	20	Andy Ellis	60'
FH	21	Colin Slade	56'
CE	22	Sonny Bill Williams	69'
Coach:
Graham Henry


FB	15	Kurtley Beale
RW	14	James O'Connor
OC	13	Adam Ashley-Cooper
IC	12	Pat McCabe
LW	11	Digby Ioane
FH	10	Quade Cooper
SH	9	Will Genia
N8	8	Ben McCalman	56'
OF	7	David Pocock
BF	6	Rocky Elsom (c)
RL	5	James Horwill
LL	4	Rob Simmons	54'
TP	3	Ben Alexander
HK	2	Stephen Moore	69'
LP	1	Sekope Kepu
Substitutes:
HK	16	Saia Fainga'a	69'
PR	17	Pekahou Cowan
LK	18	Dan Vickerman	54'
FL	19	Scott Higginbotham	56'
SH	20	Luke Burgess
CE	21	Anthony Fainga'a
WG	22	Lachie Turner
Coach:
Robbie Deans

Touch judges:
Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Christie du Preez (South Africa)
Television match official:
Glen Jackson (New Zealand)

South Africa vs Australia, Durban[edit]

13 August 2011
17:00 SAST (UTC+02)

South Africa	9–14	Australia
Pen: F. Steyn (1/1) 3' James (2/3) 16', 58'	Report^[11]	Try: Pat McCabe 48' m Pen: O'Connor (3/4) 42', 66', 74'

Mr Price Kings Park, Durban
Attendance: 47,850
Referee: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)


FB	15	François Steyn	51'
RW	14	JP Pietersen
OC	13	Jaque Fourie
IC	12	Jean de Villiers
LW	11	Bryan Habana	59'	70'
FH	10	Butch James	68'
SH	9	Fourie du Preez
N8	8	Pierre Spies
BF	7	Danie Rossouw
OF	6	Heinrich Brüssow	51'
RL	5	Victor Matfield
LL	4	Bakkies Botha	64'
TP	3	Jannie du Plessis	51'	78'
HK	2	John Smit (c)		78'
LP	1	Tendai Mtawarira	68'
Substitutes:
HK	16	Bismarck du Plessis	51'
PR	17	Gurthrö Steenkamp	68'
LK	18	Gerhard Mostert	64'
FL	19	Jean Deysel	51'
SH	20	Francois Hougaard	59'	70'
FH	21	Morné Steyn	68'
WG	22	Gio Aplon	51'
Coach:
Peter de Villiers


FB	15	Kurtley Beale
RW	14	James O'Connor
OC	13	Pat McCabe
IC	12	Adam Ashley-Cooper	60'
LW	11	Digby Ioane
FH	10	Quade Cooper
SH	9	Will Genia
N8	8	Scott Higginbotham	60'
OF	7	David Pocock
BF	6	Rocky Elsom (c)
RL	5	James Horwill
LL	4	Nathan Sharpe
TP	3	Ben Alexander
HK	2	Stephen Moore
LP	1	Sekope Kepu
Substitutes:
HK	16	Saia Fainga'a
PR	17	Salesi Ma'afu
LK	18	Sitaleki Timani
N8	19	Ben McCalman
N8	20	Radike Samo	60'
SH	21	Luke Burgess
CE	22	Anthony Fainga'a	60'
Coach:
Robbie Deans

Touch judges:
George Clancy (Ireland)
Carlo Damasco (Italy)
Television match official:
Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)

South Africa's starting XV had a total of 810 caps going into the match, an all-time record for the sport.^[12]

South Africa vs New Zealand, Port Elizabeth[edit]

20 August 2011
17:00 SAST (UTC+02)

South Africa	18–5	New Zealand
Pen: M. Steyn (5/5) 8', 10', 18' 27', 60' Drop: M. Steyn (1/2) 32'	Report^[13]	Try: Kahui 35' m

Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth*
Attendance: 45,478
Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)


FB	15	Patrick Lambie	21'
RW	14	JP Pietersen
OC	13	Jaque Fourie
IC	12	Jean de Villiers
LW	11	Bryan Habana
FH	10	Morné Steyn
SH	9	Fourie du Preez
N8	8	Pierre Spies
BF	7	Willem Alberts			69'
OF	6	Heinrich Brüssow	13'	27'
RL	5	Victor Matfield (c)
LL	4	Bakkies Botha	48'	58'	68'
TP	3	Jannie du Plessis	70'
HK	2	Bismarck du Plessis	61'
LP	1	Gurthrö Steenkamp	42'
Substitutes:
HK	16	John Smit	61'
PR	17	Tendai Mtawarira	42'
PR	18	CJ van der Linde	70'
FL	19	Danie Rossouw	48'	58'	68'
N8	20	Ashley Johnson	13'	27'	69'
SH	21	Francois Hougaard	21'
FH	22	Butch James
Coach:
Peter de Villiers


FB	15	Israel Dagg
RW	14	Isaia Toeava
OC	13	Richard Kahui
IC	12	Sonny Bill Williams
LW	11	Hosea Gear	73'
FH	10	Colin Slade	62'
SH	9	Jimmy Cowan	54'
N8	8	Liam Messam	71'
OF	7	Adam Thomson
BF	6	Jerome Kaino
RL	5	Ali Williams	70'
LL	4	Sam Whitelock
TP	3	John Afoa	51'	61'
HK	2	Keven Mealamu (c)	61'
LP	1	Tony Woodcock		61'
Substitutes:
HK	16	Andrew Hore	61'
PR	17	Ben Franks	51'
LK	18	Jarrad Hoeata	70'
FL	19	Victor Vito	71'
SH	20	Andy Ellis	54'
SH	21	Piri Weepu	62'
WG	22	Cory Jane	73'
Coach:
Graham Henry

Touch judges:
Andrew Small (England)
Carlo Damasco (Italy)
Television match official:
Johann Meuwesen (South Africa)

This was the first time that a Tri Nations test was played in Port Elizabeth.

Source: Fox Sports^[14] AllBlacks.com^[15]

Australia vs New Zealand, Brisbane[edit]

27 August 2011
20:05 AEST (UTC+10)

Australia	25–20	New Zealand
Try: Genia 13' c Samo 33' c Beale 60' m Con: Cooper (2/3) 14', 34' Pen: Cooper (2/3)	Report^[16]	Try: Smith 52' c Nonu 58' c Con: Carter (2/2) 53', 59' Pen: Carter (2/2) 23', 46'

Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Attendance: 51,858
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)


FB	15	Kurtley Beale
RW	14	Adam Ashley-Cooper
OC	13	Pat McCabe
IC	12	Anthony Fainga'a
LW	11	Digby Ioane
FH	10	Quade Cooper
SH	9	Will Genia	76'
N8	8	Radike Samo	61'
OF	7	David Pocock
BF	6	Rocky Elsom	72'
RL	5	James Horwill (c)
LL	4	Dan Vickerman	54'
TP	3	Ben Alexander
HK	2	Stephen Moore	76'
LP	1	Sekope Kepu	76'
Substitutes:
HK	16	Saia Fainga'a	76'
PR	17	Salesi Ma'afu	76'
LK	18	Rob Simmons	54'
N8	19	Ben McCalman	61'
FL	20	Scott Higginbotham	72'
SH	21	Luke Burgess	76'
CE	22	Rob Horne
Coach:
Robbie Deans


FB	15	Mils Muliaina
RW	14	Cory Jane
OC	13	Conrad Smith
IC	12	Ma'a Nonu
LW	11	Zac Guildford	54'
FH	10	Dan Carter
SH	9	Piri Weepu	64'
N8	8	Kieran Read	13'
OF	7	Richie McCaw (c)
BF	6	Adam Thomson	38'
RL	5	Sam Whitelock
LL	4	Brad Thorn
TP	3	Owen Franks	75'
HK	2	Keven Mealamu	75'
LP	1	Tony Woodcock
Substitutes:
HK	16	Andrew Hore	75'
PR	17	John Afoa	75'
LK	18	Ali Williams	38'
FL	19	Victor Vito	13'
SH	20	Andy Ellis	64'
FH	21	Colin Slade
WG	22	Isaia Toeava	54'
Coach:
Graham Henry

Touch judges:
Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Cobus Wessels (South Africa)
Television match official:
Matt Goddard (Australia)

Player statistics[edit]

Leading try scorers[edit]

Top try scorers
Rank	Name	Team	Tries
1	John Smit	South Africa	2
	Cory Jane	New Zealand
	Zac Guildford	New Zealand
	Digby Ioane	Australia
	Ma'a Nonu	New Zealand

Leading point scorers[edit]

Top point scorers
Rank	Name	Team	Points
1	Dan Carter	New Zealand	35
2	James O'Connor	Australia	28
3	Morné Steyn	South Africa	26
4	Quade Cooper	Australia	14
5	John Smit	South Africa	10
	Zac Guildford	New Zealand
	Cory Jane	New Zealand
	Digby Ioane	Australia
	Ma'a Nonu	New Zealand
10	Butch James	South Africa	6

References[edit]

^ "Rugby: IRB clears way for Argentina to join Tri-Nations". The New Zealand Herald. 13 May 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
^ ""The Rugby Championship" to replace Tri Nations" (Press release). Australian Rugby Union. 8 November 2011. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
^ "SANZAAR confirm 2020 Tri-Nations Series to kick-off 31 October". Rugby.Com.Au. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
^ "Australia clinch Tri Nations with victory over New Zealand". The Guardian. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
^ "Wallabies clinch Tri-Nations crown". ESPN Scrum. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
^ "Australia v New Zealand: match report". telegraph.co.uk. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
^ "SA Rugby Match Centre – Australia 39–20 South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
^ "New Zealand humble South Africa". 30 July 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.
^ "New Zealand 40–7 South Africa". BBC Sport. 30 July 2011. Retrieved 30 July 2011.
^ "Clinical New Zealand set Tri-Nations record in Australia win". 6 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.
^ "South Africa 9–14 Australia". 13 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.
^ Griffiths, John (22 August 2011). "The most experienced Test XV and internationals from Rugby, Eton and Harrow". Ask John. ESPN Scrum. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
^ "South Africa beat New Zealand 18–5 in Tri-Nations". 20 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.
^ "SANZAR release the draw for the shortened 2011 Tri Nations tournament". Tri Nations. Fox Sports News. 19 August 2010. Retrieved 21 August 2010.
^ "AllBlacks.com". Archived from the original on 19 June 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
^ "Australia 25–20 New Zealand". 27 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.

External links[edit]

[1] "Rugby: IRB clears way for Argentina to join Tri-Nations". The New Zealand Herald. 13 May 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2010.

[2] ""The Rugby Championship" to replace Tri Nations" (Press release). Australian Rugby Union. 8 November 2011. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2011.

[3] "SANZAAR confirm 2020 Tri-Nations Series to kick-off 31 October". Rugby.Com.Au. Retrieved 8 October 2020.

[4] "Australia clinch Tri Nations with victory over New Zealand". The Guardian. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2011.

[5] "Wallabies clinch Tri-Nations crown". ESPN Scrum. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2011.

[6] "Australia v New Zealand: match report". telegraph.co.uk. 27 August 2011. Retrieved 1 September 2011.

[Australia_39-20_South_Africa-7] "SA Rugby Match Centre – Australia 39–20 South Africa". South African Rugby Union. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 21 September 2016.

[8] "New Zealand humble South Africa". 30 July 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.

[9] "New Zealand 40–7 South Africa". BBC Sport. 30 July 2011. Retrieved 30 July 2011.

[10] "Clinical New Zealand set Tri-Nations record in Australia win". 6 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.

[11] "South Africa 9–14 Australia". 13 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.

[12] Griffiths, John (22 August 2011). "The most experienced Test XV and internationals from Rugby, Eton and Harrow". Ask John. ESPN Scrum. Retrieved 22 August 2011.

[13] "South Africa beat New Zealand 18–5 in Tri-Nations". 20 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.

[14] "SANZAR release the draw for the shortened 2011 Tri Nations tournament". Tri Nations. Fox Sports News. 19 August 2010. Retrieved 21 August 2010.

[15] "AllBlacks.com". Archived from the original on 19 June 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.

[16] "Australia 25–20 New Zealand". 27 August 2011. Retrieved 14 September 2017 – via BBC.

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v t e The Rugby Championship
Teams	Argentina Australia New Zealand South Africa
Tri Nations	1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2020
Rugby Championship	2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024
SANZAAR Tri Nations Series champions