Zimbabwe at the Rugby World Cup
The Zimbabwe national rugby union team has appeared at two Rugby World Cups – in 1987 and 1991.
In 1987, Zimbabwe was the only African nation invited to compete; South Africa was disqualified from the tournament due to a sporting boycott adopted by the international community in response to apartheid. Four years later, Zimbabwe succeeded in getting through qualifying, and hosted the Africa qualifications. In more recent years, the Namibia national rugby union team has generally defeated Zimbabwe in African qualifying rounds.
| Nation | Number of appearances | First appearance | Most recent appearance | Streak | Best result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zimbabwe | 2 | 1987 | 1991 | 2 | No games won |
By position
| Rugby World Cup record | Qualification | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | Squad | Head coach | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | |
| 1987 | Pool stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 53 | 151 | Squad | B. Murphy | Invited | |||||||
| 1991 | Pool stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 31 | 158 | Squad | I. Buchanan | 1st | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 62 | 12 | |
| 1995 | Did not qualify | 3rd | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 169 | 120 | |||||||||
| 1999 | 3rd | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 124 | 95 | ||||||||||
| 2003 | 2nd | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 82 | 45 | ||||||||||
| 2007 | P/O | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 55 | 84 | ||||||||||
| 2011 | 3rd | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 35 | ||||||||||
| 2015 | P/O | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 175 | 126 | ||||||||||
| 2019 | 5th | 10 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 250 | 319 | ||||||||||
| 2023 | P/O | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 253 | 53 | ||||||||||
| 2027 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||||
| 2031 | |||||||||||||||||
| Total | — | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 84 | 309 | — | — | — | 41 | 19 | 1 | 21 | 1191 | 899 | |
| |||||||||||||||||
Matches
1987 Rugby World Cup
Pool 4
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | T | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 145 | 44 | +101 | 25 | 5[a] | Knockout stage |
| Scotland | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 135 | 69 | +66 | 22 | 5[a] | |
| Romania | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 61 | 130 | −69 | 6 | 2 | |
| Zimbabwe | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 53 | 151 | −98 | 5 | 0 |
Source:
Notes:
Notes:
| 23 May 1987 |
| Romania | 21–20 | Zimbabwe |
| Try: Paraschiv Toader Hodorcă Pen: Alexandru (3) | Try: Tsimba (2) Neill Con: Ferreira Pen: Ferreira (2) |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 4,500 Referee: Stephen Hilditch (Ireland) |
| 30 May 1987 |
| Scotland | 60–21 | Zimbabwe |
| Try: Tait (2) Tukalo (2) Duncan (2) Paxton (2) Oliver Hastings Jeffrey Con: Hastings (8) | Try: Buitendag Con: Grobler Pen: Grobler (5) |
| Athletic Park, Wellington Attendance: 12,000 Referee: David Burnett (Ireland) |
| 2 June 1987 |
| France | 70–12 | Zimbabwe |
| Try: Modin (3) Camberabero (3) Charvet (2) Rodriguez (2) Dubroca Estève Laporte Con: Camberabero (9) | Try: Kaulback Con: Grobler Pen: Grobler (2) |
| Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 3,000 Referee: Derek Bevan (Wales) |
1991 Rugby World Cup
Pool 2
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 122 | 36 | +86 | 6 |
| Ireland | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 102 | 51 | +51 | 4 |
| Japan | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 77 | 87 | −10 | 2 |
| Zimbabwe | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 31 | 158 | −127 | 0 |
Source:
| 6 October 1991 |
| Ireland | 55–11 | Zimbabwe |
| Tries: Robinson (4), Popplewell (2), Geoghegan, Curtis Con: Keyes (4) Pen: Keyes (5) | Tries: Dawson, Schultz Pen: Ferreira |
| Lansdowne Road, Dublin Referee: Keith Lawrence (New Zealand) |
| 9 October 1991 |
| Scotland | 51–12 | Zimbabwe |
| Tries: Tukalo (3), Turnbull, S. Hastings, Stanger, Weir, White Con: Dods (5) Pen: Dods (2) Drop: Wylie | Tries: Garvey (2) Con: Currin (2) |
| Murrayfield, Edinburgh Referee: Don Reordan (United States) |
| 14 October 1991 |
| Japan | 52–8 | Zimbabwe |
| Tries: Yoshida (2), Mashuho (2), Kutsuki (2), Horikoshi, Luaiufi, Matsuo Con: Hosokawa (2) Pen: Hosokawa (4) | Tries: Tsimba, Nguruve |
| Ravenhill, Belfast Referee: Rene Hourquet (France) |
1995 Rugby World Cup
Did not qualify.
1999 Rugby World Cup
Did not qualify.
2003 Rugby World Cup
Did not qualify.
2007 Rugby World Cup
Did not qualify.
2011 Rugby World Cup
Did not qualify.
2015 Rugby World Cup
Did not qualify.
2019 Rugby World Cup
Did not qualify.
Overall record
| Country | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | +/− | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romania | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 21 | −1 | 0 |
| Ireland | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 55 | −44 | 0 |
| Japan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 52 | −44 | 0 |
| France | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 70 | −58 | 0 |
| Scotland | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 33 | 113 | −80 | 0 |
| Total | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 105 | 373 | −268 | 0 |
Team Records
- Most points in a tournament
- 53 (1987)
- 31 (1991)
- Most points scored in a game
- Biggest winning margin
- n/a
- Most points conceded in a game
- 70 vs France (1987)
- 60 vs Scotland (1987)
- 55 vs Ireland (1991)
- 52 vs Japan (1991)
- 51 vs Scotland (1991)
- Biggest losing margin
- 58 vs France (1987)
- 44 vs Ireland (1991)
- 44 vs Japan (1991)
- 39 vs Scotland (1987)
- 39 vs Scotland (1991)
- Most tries scored in a game
Individual records
- Most appearances
- 6 Michael Martin (1987, 1991)
- 5 Richard Tsimba (1987, 1991)
- 4 Andy Ferreria (1987, 1991)
- 4 Craig Brown (1987, 1991)
- 4 Alex Nicholis (1987, 1991)
- Most points overall
- 25 Marthinus Grobler (1987)
- 12 Richard Tsimba (1987, 1991)
- 11 Andy Ferreria (1987, 1991)
- 8 Adrian Garvey (1991)
- Most points in a game
- 17 vs Scotland – Marthinus Grobler (1987)
- 8 vs Scotland – Adrian Garvey (1991)
- 8 vs Romania – Andy Ferreria (1987)
- 6 vs Romania – Richard Tsimba (1987)
- Most tries overall
- 2 Richard Tsimba (1987, 1991)
- 2 Adrian Garvey (1991)
- Most penalty goals
- 7 Marthinus Grobler (1987)
- 3 Andy Ferreria (1987, 1991)
- Most penalty goals in a game
- 5 vs Scotland – Marthinus Grobler (1987)
- 2 vs France – Marthinus Grobler (1987)
- 2 vs Romania – Andy Ferreria (1987)
- 1 vs Ireland – Andy Ferreria (1991)
References
- Davies, Gerald (2004). The History of the Rugby World Cup. Sanctuary Publishing. ISBN 1860746020.
- Farr-Jones, Nick (2003). Story of the Rugby World Cup. Australian Post Corporation. ISBN 0-642-36811-2.