Rugby
MOST CONSECUTIVE
INTERNATIONAL RUGBY UNION WINS BY A TIER 1 NATION
New Zealand won 18 consecutive internationals between 15 Aug 2015 and
22 Oct 2016. The All Blacks’ run finally came to an end on 5 Nov 2016, when
they suffered a 40–29 defeat to Ireland at Soldier Field in Chicago, USA. This
feat was subsequently matched by England, who won 18 consecutive games
from 10 Oct 2015 to 11 Mar 2017 before losing 13–9 on 18 Mar – also to Ireland.Fiji’s gold at the men’s rugby sevens tournament at
Rio 2016 was the country’s first ever Olympic medal.Most rugby union Five/Six Nations
grand slam wins
England’s victory in the 2016 Six Nations was
the 13th time they had completed a grand
slam by winning every game they played in the
tournament. Their previous grand slams were
achieved in 1913–14, 1921, 1923–24, 1928, 1957,
1980, 1991–92, 1995 and 2003.Most penalty goals kicked in a
rugby union Five/Six Nations match
On 19 Mar 2016, Maxime Machenaud (FRA) kicked
seven successful penalties against England at
the Stade de France in Paris, France. He became
only the eighth player ever to achieve this feat
in the competition.Most rugby union Rugby
Championship matches won
Formed in 2012 to replace
the Tri‑Nations, the Rugby
Championship features
New Zealand, Australia,
South Africa and
Argentina. On 8 Oct
2016, New Zealand
won their 24th game
in the competition.
The All Blacks have
only ever lost twice
in the history of
the tournament,
with one draw.MOST POINTS SCORED IN THE RUGBY
LEAGUE FOUR NATIONS BY AN INDIVIDUAL
Australian halfback legend Johnathan Thurston
amassed 126 points over three Four Nations
tournaments: 2009, 2011 and 2016, with injury
ruling him out in 2010 and 2014. Thurston also
set the record for most consecutive rugby
league State of Origin matches played – 36,
for Queensland from 25 May 2005 to 13 Jul 2016.Most rugby league
State of Origin matches played
Known as the greatest rivalry in Australian sport,
the State of Origin is an annual three‑game
series played between two state representative
sides: Queensland and New South Wales. Hooker
Cameron Smith (AUS) made 39 appearances for
Queensland in 2003–16. In that time, he missed
just one game, in 2010, owing to injury.Most NRL appearances by a forward
One‑club man Corey Parker (AUS) made
347 appearances for the Brisbane Broncos
from 24 Mar 2001 to 16 Sep 2016.SPORTS
MOST INTERNATIONAL RUGBY UNION
APPEARANCES (FEMALE)
England prop Rochelle “Rocky” Clark had won
122 international caps as of 17 Mar 2017. She
broke the record of 115 caps (held by Scotland’s
Donna Kennedy) on 19 Nov 2016, coming on as a
replacement against New Zealand. Clark made
her debut against Canada on 28 Jun 2003.MOST POINTS
SCORED IN
AN ENGLISH
PREMIERSHIP
RUGBY UNION
CAREER
Fly‑half Charlie
Hodgson (UK) retired
in 2016 having racked
up 2,623 points in the
English Premiership.
Over the course of
a 16 ‑year career at
Sale Sharks (2000–11)
and then Saracens
(2011–16), Hodgson
scored 39 tries,
332 conversions,
550 penalties and
38 drop goals. He also
won 38 international
caps for England.MOST TRIES IN A SUPER LEAGUE SEASON
New Zealand‑born winger Denny Solomona scored
40 tries for the Castleford Tigers (UK) from 7 Feb to
25 Sep 2016, finishing with his seventh hat‑trick of the
year in the final regular‑season game against Widnes
Vikings. Solomona beat the previous record of 36,
set in 2004 by Lesley Vainikolo. In
Dec 2016, Solomona switched codes
to join rugby union side Sale Sharks.Most consecutive wins in
international rugby union
New Zealand and England may share the Tier 1
record for consecutive wins (see above), but the
overall record is held by a lesser‑known rugby
nation: Cyprus. Nicknamed “The Mouflons”,
after a native wild sheep, they won 24 games on
the spin between 29 Nov 2008 and 1 Nov 2014
before suffering a 39–20 defeat to Latvia.Most points scored in a single Olympic
rugby union tournament (individual)
At Rio 2016, rugby returned to the Olympics for
the first time since 1924. With her 10 tries in the
women’s tournament, winger Portia Woodman
(NZ) racked up 50 points. She won a silver medal,
with the All Blacks losing 24–17 to Australia in
the final on 8 Aug 2016.On 8^ Oct
2016,^ Denny^
Solomona^ mad
e his^
international^
debut^ for^
Samoa^ when^ theyplayed^
Fiji^ in^ Apia,^ Samoa.It
was^ the^ first^ everhome^
fixture^ for^ the^ Samoan
rugby^ league^ team.
Fiji^ won^ the^ game
20–18.^