Pacific Rim Rugby Championship
The Pacific Rim Rugby Championship, also known as the Epson Cup for sponsorship purposes,[1] was an international rugby union tournament contested by national teams from around the Pacific.[2] The championship was held annually between 1996 and 2001.
Epson Cup logo introduced in 1999 | |
Sport | Rugby union |
---|---|
Inaugural season | 1996 |
Ceased | 2001 |
No. of teams | 6 |
Last champion(s) | |
Most titles |
The competition was run by the International Rugby Board.[3] In the first three tournaments, Canada, United States, Japan and Hong Kong competed for the championship. The competition was expanded to six teams in 1999 with the Pacific Tri-Nations teams Fiji, Samoa and Tonga replacing Hong Kong for the last three tournaments.
Tournament winners
Year | Winner | Runner-up | Third place | Refs |
---|---|---|---|---|
1996 | [4] | |||
1997 | [5] | |||
1998 | [6] | |||
1999 | [7] | |||
2000 | [8] | |||
2001 | [9] |
Successor events
The Epson Cup series ended at the completion of the original sponsorship deal, but the Pacific Tri-Nations tournament continued for the next three years until the IRB expanded that competition to form the Pacific Nations Cup in 2006 (also known as the Pacific Six Nations).[10][11]
The Pacific Nations Cup, including Japan, Fiji, Samoa and Tonga, was expanded again in 2012 with Canada and the United States joining the competition.[12]
The United States, Russia, China, Japan, and eventually Canada and Romania, played in the Super Powers Cup (later renamed the Super Cup) from 2003 to 2005.[13]
See also
- Pacific Nations Cup
- Super Cup
References
- "IRB unaware of Epson Cup problems". ESPN Scrum. 12 October 2000. Archived from the original on 14 May 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- Sallay, Alvin (7 July 1996). "Pacific Rim teams urged to improve rugby standards". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 14 May 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- "Welcome to the home of the Epson Cup on the Internet". IRB. 2002. Archived from the original on 3 September 2002. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- Pacific Rim Championship. ESPN Scrum. 1996.
- Pacific Rim Championship. ESPN Scrum. 1997.
- Pacific Rim Championship. ESPN Scrum. 1998.
- Pacific Rim Championship. ESPN Scrum. 1999.
- Pacific Rim Championship. ESPN Scrum. 2000.
- Pacific Rim Championship. ESPN Scrum. 2001.
- "About Us: National Teams". Fiji Rugby. 2015. Archived from the original on 14 May 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- "IRB unveil plan to boost rugby worldwide". Irish Times. 5 August 2005. Archived from the original on 14 May 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- "Pacific Nations Cup expanded to Canada and USA". TVNZ. 23 January 2013. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
- "What a Week!". Nigel Melville Direct. 10 February 2009. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2015.
External links
- irb-epson.irb.org archive of official webpage