| 1995 Rugby League World Cup | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Host countries |  England Wales |
| Winner |  Australia (8th title) |
| Matches played | 15 |
| Attendance | 265,609 (17,707 per match) |
| Points scored | 718 (47.87 per match) |
| Top scorer | Andrew Johns (62) |
| Top try scorer | Steven Menzies (6) |
2000 > | |
The 1995 Rugby League World Cup (also known as Halifax Centenary World Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the eleventh World Cup for mens national rugby league teams. It was held between 7–28 October and hosted by England and Wales and was won by Australia who beat England at Wembley Stadium, their eighth World Cup win and fifth in succession.
Organised to celebrate the sports centenary, ten nations were invited to participate. The tournament had been preceded by doubts and pessimism; many feared that it would produce one-sided-matches that would be unattractive to supporters. The forthcoming Super League war also hung over the tournament, with the Australian Rugby League refusing to select players who had signed for the rival competition.[1] Those fears proved unfounded, and the tournament was acclaimed a great success.[2][3]
Although some early matches did prove as one-sided as feared, fans still flocked to see newer rugby league nations such as Fiji, Tonga, Western Samoa and South Africa. Large home crowds for the group involving Wales proved particularly encouraging for the sport.
For the 1995 tournament, a £10,000 cup was made by Tiffanys to celebrate the centenary of the game.[4]
- ^ Hadfield, Dave (1 October 1995). "Celebration a slow burn". The Independent. London: Independent Print. Retrieved 6 October 2009.
- ^ "1995 Rugby League World Cup". gillette4nations.co.uk. Rugby League International Federation. Archived from the original on 4 January 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
- ^ Masters, Roy (30 October 1995). "Cup recipe is a big winner". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
- ^ "A history of the Rugby League World Cup". St Helens Star. 1 October 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014.