The story of the Rugby World Cup: Springboks unite a nation in 1995

As we continue on our journey looking back on the history of the Rugby World Cup, the 1995 edition brings us to South Africa for the final major tournament of the amateur era.

To this day, the 1995 World Cup stands out as the most iconic of the lot, encapsulated by the sight of Nelson Mandela handing the Webb Ellis trophy to Springbok captain Francois Pienaar, a moment later portrayed by Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon in the 2009 movie 'Invictus'.

It was the second home-winner out of three since the first tournament in 1987, on this occasion South Africa defeating New Zealand 15-12 after a tryless final in Johannesburg, with Joel Stransky's dropgoal seven minutes from the end of extra time giving the home side a fairytale ending.

The 1995 Rugby World Cup also gave us the game’s first true superstar, as a 20-year-old All Black winger named Jonah Lomu (below) announced himself on the global stage with a joint-high seven tries before New Zealand came up short in the decider.

The Hosts

Having been readmitted to international rugby in 1992 following the end of apartheid, South Africa were awarded hosting rights for the tournament in 1993.

It was the first major international sports tournament to take place in the country since apartheid was abolished, while it's believed that the decision by the South African Rugby Board to vote in favour of the initial Rugby World Cup in 1987 played a major part in them being awarded the hosting rights.

With this being the first Rugby World Cup staged in a single country, there was finally a bit of sense to the stadiums used. With a ridiculous 19 different grounds staging games in the 1991 tournament across Britain, Ireland and France, a much more sensible nine venues were chosen for 1995.

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