1.9 Million ABC1 Men Watch England Beat Australia

It was the big one on Saturday afternoon, as England took on match favourites Australia in the quarter finals of the Rugby World Cup.

As is usually the case when these two nations meet, there was no love lost between the sides, with Australia keen to avenge the final defeat of four years ago which saw Johnny Wilkinson kick England to glory in the dying minutes of an epic match.

Saturday’s game was also decided by the boot of Wilkinson, although this time it was the brute force of the England pack that really made the difference.

England deservedly triumphed 12-10 in a hard-fought game where the tension did not let up for a second. A peak of 1.9 million ABC1 Men (a 70.5% share) watched the coverage on ITV1.

The England match had a peak audience of 5.3 million adults (a 51.6% share), whilst 3.4 million adults stuck with the coverage from start to finish.

An honorary mention should go to France too, who beat tournament favourites New Zealand in Saturday evening’s game to set up a massive semi-final against ‘les rosbifs’.

A peak of 1.7 million ABC1 Men (a 39.8% share) watched France defeat the All Blacks.

Yesterday evening it was Scotland’s turn to try to upset the odds as they played Argentina, and it was yet another enthralling game in what many commentators are calling the best Rugby World Cup ever.

A peak audience of 1.9 million ABC1 Men (a 34.6% share) watched Scotland lose valiantly as Argentina ran out 19-13 winners, and the coverage, starting at 7.30pm, kept 1.4 million ABC1 Men hooked for its two and a half hour running time.

ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com