| 1979 Five Nations Championship | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | 20 January - 17 March 1979 | ||
| Countries |  England Ireland France Scotland Wales | ||
| Tournament statistics | |||
| Champions | Wales (21st title) | ||
| Triple Crown | Wales (16th title) | ||
| Matches played | 10 | ||
| Tries scored | 32 (3.2 per match) | ||
| Top point scorer(s) | Steve Fenwick (38) | ||
| Top try scorer(s) | Colin Patterson (3) Andy Irvine (3) | ||
| |||
The 1979 Five Nations Championship was the fiftieth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the eighty-fifth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between 20 January and 17 March.
Wales were the champions for the second consecutive season, winning a record twenty-first outright title. They had also shared the championship on nine other occasions. In beating Scotland, Ireland and England they also won the Triple Crown for a record fourth successive season and extended their record number of Triple Crown wins to sixteen. This would be the last time that Wales won back-to-back championships until 2013.
Participants
The teams involved were:
Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wales |
4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 83 | 51 | +32 | 6 |
| 2 | France |
4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50 | 46 | +4 | 5 |
| 3 | Ireland |
4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 53 | 51 | +2 | 4 |
| 4 | England |
4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 24 | 52 | −28 | 3 |
| 5 | Scotland |
4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 48 | 58 | −10 | 2 |
Squads
Results
| 1979-01-20 |
| Ireland | 9–9 | France |
| Pen.: Ward (3) | Tries: Caussade Con.: Aguirre Pen.: Aguirre |
| Lansdowne Road, Dublin Attendance: 51,000 Referee: R. C. Quittenton (England) |
| 1979-01-20 |
| Scotland | 13–19 | Wales |
| Tries: Irvine Pen.: Irvine (3) | Tries: Holmes Rees Con.: Fenwick Pen.: Fenwick (3) |
| Murrayfield, Edinburgh Referee: F. Palmade (France) |
| 1979-02-03 |
| Wales | 24–21 | Ireland |
| Tries: Martin Ringer Con.: Fenwick (2) Pen.: Fenwick (4) | Tries: McLennan Patterson Con.: Ward (2) Pen.: Ward (3) |
| National Stadium, Cardiff Referee: Alan Hosie (Scotland) |
| 1979-02-03 |
| England | 7–7 | Scotland |
| Tries: Slemen Pen.: Bennett | Tries: Rutherford Pen.: Irvine |
| Twickenham, London Referee: C. Norling (Wales) |
| 1979-02-17 |
| France | 14–13 | Wales |
| Tries: Gourdon (2) Pen.: Aguirre (2) | Tries: Holmes Pen.: Fenwick (3) |
| Parc des Princes, Paris Attendance: 45,259 Referee: D. I. H. Burnett (Ireland) |
| 1979-02-17 |
| Ireland | 12–7 | England |
| Tries: McLennan Con.: Ward Pen.: Ward Drops: Ward | Tries: Bennett Pen.: Bennett |
| Lansdowne Road, Dublin Referee: Alan Hosie (Scotland) |
| 1979-03-03 |
| England | 7–6 | France |
| Tries: Bennett Pen.: Bennett | Tries: Costes Con.: Aguirre |
| Twickenham, London Attendance: 67,800 Referee: J. R. West (Ireland) |
| 1979-03-03 |
| Scotland | 11–11 | Ireland |
| Tries: Irvine Robertson Pen.: Irvine | Tries: Patterson (2) Pen.: Ward |
| Murrayfield, Edinburgh Referee: C. Thomas (Wales) |
External links