2015 Copenhagen shootings, Victims
Film director Finn Nørgaard, aged 55, was killed with a single shot from an M/95 in the Krudttønden attack. Nørgaard directed and produced documentaries for Danish television.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Victims
Dan Uzan, a 37-year-old volunteer security guard, was killed in the Great Synagogue attack. At the time, a bat mitzvah ceremony was taking place in the synagogue, with about 80 people in attendance. Uzan, the son of a Danish mother and Israeli father, was Jewish, and his family are active members of the Copenhagen Jewish community. Uzan was buried at Copenhagen's Jewish Western Cemetery on 18 February 2015, with Prime Minister Thorning-Schmidt among those attending. Police snipers guarded the funeral.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Victims
Five police officers were wounded in the attacks, but none of their injuries were life-threatening and all had been discharged from hospital within three days of the Great Synagogue attack.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Investigation
Danish police stated that they investigated the case as an act of terror, and possibly an assassination attempt on Vilks, though they did not know the motive of the perpetrator.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Investigation
On 16 February 2015, the police reported that one of the injured officers had received a shot to the chest but his bulletproof vest prevented it from seriously injuring him.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Investigation
Later the same day, the police reported that at Krudttønden the attacker used a variant of the Colt Canada C7 rifle issued as M/95 to the armed forces in Denmark, while he used a pistol at the synagogue. The police further reported that two men aged 19 and 22 have been charged with helping the attacker dispose of the assault rifle.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Investigation
On 17 February, police confirmed the shooter's identity, that the two pistols fired during the synagogue attack were recovered from the shooter at Svanevej, and that the M/95 recovered near Mjølnerparken was indeed used during the attack at Krudttønden. The following day, the police reported that the M/95 had been issued to the Danish Home Guard but had been burgled from a private home.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Aftermath
Dagbladet Information published a photo of flowers laid where the killer died. Politiken reported "the perpetrator also gets flowers". The Jyllands-Posten reported that at 16:30 local time the same day, a group of 30 young masked men removed the flowers. The New York Times reported that the group "shouted 'Allahu akbar', or 'God is great', as they removed flowers laid in memorial". The Local of Sweden reported, "One of the men told reporters that they removed the flowers because it is not a Muslim tradition to lay flowers for dead people."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Aftermath
A wire from Agence France Presse published by La Dernière Heure of Belgium read, "An elderly woman, who brought flowers but did not wish to be identified, said 'the boy didn't know what he was doing'". The National Post of Canada reported, "'We've put flowers here because we must remember him,' said a young Arab man, who gave his name as Mohammed. ' He was a good guy. We don't believe he did anything wrong.'"


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Aftermath
TV2 Denmark reported, "The many flowers at the perpetrator's death place has led to many reactions both in Danish and international media."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Aftermath
On 20 February around 600–700 people, the majority of whom were young Muslim men, attended the burial of the killer who was interred at the Muslim burial site in Brøndby. The Friday prayer at the mosque, which had been followed by a brief ceremony for the gunman, drew an estimated 3,000 people, reported by mosque guards to be double the usual number, leading many to have to stand outside the mosque during the sermon.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, National
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark wrote in response, "It is with sadness that I learn the extent of the past days' events. My thoughts are with the slain filmmaker and the young guard from the Jewish community, who became the target of the perpetrator's actions. It is important that we in such a serious situation stand together and cherish the values that Denmark is based on."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, National
Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt condemned the "cynical act of terror" and stated, "We don't know the motive for the attacks but we know that there are forces that want to harm Denmark, that want to crush our freedom of expression, our belief in liberty. We are not facing a fight between Islam and the West, it is not a fight between Muslims and non-Muslims." Danish ambassador to Israel Jesper Vahr urged Danish Jews not to leave Denmark and said, "We will do everything in our power so that the Jewish community in Denmark feels safe."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, National
The synagogue's Rabbi Jair Melchior stated, "Terror is not a reason to move to Israel ... Hopefully the [police] should do what they do, but our lives have to continue naturally. Terror's goal is to change our lives and we won't let it ... We lost a dear member of the community and now we have to continue doing what he did, which was helping to continue regular Jewish lives in Denmark. This is the real answer to [this] vicious, cruel and cowardly act of terror." The Danish Islamic Council condemned the attack, saying, "The Danish Islamic Council invites everyone in Danish society to unite in the fight against extremism and terrorism."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, Security
Jens Madsen of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service resigned in May just a few hours before the release of a report detailing the police response to the two shooting. It revealed that it took four hours from the first shooting for police protection to be present at the synagogue, which Justice Minister Mette Frederiksen deemed "not satisfactory." Despite prison authorities warning that El-Hussein was at risk of radicalisation, the Danish Intelligence Service stated that it had "no reason" to believe he was planning the attacks.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, International
The attacks were condemned by foreign leaders, including Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, French President François Hollande, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, Sahrawi President Mohamed Abdelaziz and British Prime Minister David Cameron.


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, International
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (campaigning for reelection at the time) stated, "We send our condolences to the Danish people, and also to the Jewish community in Denmark. Once again Jews are murdered on the soil of Europe just for being Jews. This wave of terror attacks is expected to continue, including these murderous anti-Semitic attacks. Obviously Jews deserve protection in every country, but ... Israel is the home of every Jew ... Israel awaits you with open arms." In response to Netanyahu's statement, Danish Chief Rabbi Melchior declared himself "disappointed", and said that, "Terror is not a reason to move to Israel".


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, International organizations
The European Commission released a statement condemning the attack, saying, "The European Commission and the High Representative deplore the attacks in Copenhagen costing the life of at least two citizens and injuring several others. Even one life is one too many. Our thoughts are with the victims and their families. Europe stands united with Denmark in upholding freedom of speech and freedom of expression. We stand against anti-Semitism and all forms of discrimination. Europe will not be intimidated." European Council President Donald Tusk called the attack "another brutal terrorist attack targeted at our fundamental values and freedoms, including the freedom of expression."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, International organizations
Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of Index on Censorship, said, "The ability to express ourselves freely, to attend meetings and debates without fear of violence, is fundamental to a free society. Free speech must be protected."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, International organizations
The Norwegian Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, running Scandinavia's largest mosque, condemned the attacks. Haroon Chaudhry, a spokesman of the mosque, spoke of the importance of mosques to publicly denounce acts of terrorism and extremism. Claiming that these acts of terror were in contradiction to Quranic teachings, he said, "The Quran states explicitly that blasphemy is not punishable."


2015 Copenhagen shootings, Reactions, International organizations
In a press release, the Scandinavian branch of Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir did not condemn the attacks but said Danish politicians, among others, were to blame. They specifically said, "Danish politicians and opinion-formers hold no moral authority to designate neither Muslims nor Islam as violent, when you consider how much blood they have on their hands. ... We, as a Muslim community, should under no circumstances succumb to pressure and accept the premise that Islam is on trial."


2015 Coppa Bernocchi
The 2015 Coppa Bernocchi was a one-day cycling semi-classic that took place on 17 September 2015, starting and finishing in Legnano in northern Italy. It was the second leg of the 2015 Trittico Lombardo and the 97th edition of the Coppa Bernocchi. The race was won by Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), who took a solo victory a second ahead of a small group. Mauro Finetto (Southeast Pro Cycling) came second, with Matteo Trentin (riding for the Italian national team) third. Nibali had come second in the Coppa Ugo Agostoni and went on to win the Tre Valli Varesine to win the Trittico Lombardo competition.


2015 Coppa Italia Final
The 2015 Coppa Italia Final decided the winner of the 2014–15 Coppa Italia, the 68th season of Italy's main football cup. It was played on 20 May 2015 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, between Juventus and Lazio. Juventus won 2–1 after extra time for a record tenth title.


2015 Coppa Italia Final
As Juventus won the 2014–15 Serie A, Lazio qualified automatically as the cup representative in the 2015 Supercoppa Italiana.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Background
Juventus played a 15th final, second only to Roma's 17. They had won nine, a joint record with Roma. Their most recent final was in 2012, losing 0–2 to Napoli, and their last victory was in 1995, defeating Parma 3–0 on aggregate. It was Lazio's eighth, of which they had won six, most recently a 1–0 win in 2013 against Roma. Juventus and Lazio contested the 2004 final, which Lazio won 4–2 on aggregate.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Road to the final, Juventus
Juventus, of Serie A, began the competition in the last 16, hosting fellow top-flight team Hellas Verona at Juventus Stadium on 15 January 2015. Sebastian Giovinco scored twice in addition to Roberto Pereyra's first Juventus goal for a 3–0 lead at half-time. After Paul Pogba extended Juventus' lead, Nenê scored a consolation goal for Verona. Rafael Márquez fouled Giovinco for a penalty which Álvaro Morata converted, and 18-year-old substitute Kingsley Coman scored his first Juventus goal to conclude a 6–1 victory.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Road to the final, Juventus
In the quarter-finals 13 days later, Juventus played Parma away, winning with a goal by substitute Morata in the 89th minute.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Road to the final, Juventus
On 5 March, Juventus began their two-legged semi-final against the last season's finalists Fiorentina. In the home match, Mohamed Salah gave the visitors the lead, but Fernando Llorente equalized before half-time. Salah then scored a second to win the match. In the second leg on 7 April, Juventus travelled to the Stadio Artemio Franchi and won 3–0 to triumph 4–2 on aggregate. Alessandro Matri, Pereyra and Leonardo Bonucci scored, but Morata was sent off with two minutes remaining for a poor challenge on Alessandro Diamanti.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Road to the final, Lazio
Lazio, also of Serie A, began in the third round with a home match against Lega Pro team Bassano Virtus on 24 August 2014. They won 7–0 with goals by Antonio Candreva, Keita (2), Stefan de Vrij, Marco Parolo, Dušan Basta and Miroslav Klose. They hosted Serie B club Varese in the fourth round on 2 December, winning 3–0; an own goal by on-loan defender Stefan Šimić was followed two minutes later by Filip Đorđević, with Felipe Anderson scoring a late third.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Road to the final, Lazio
In the last 16 on 14 January 2015, Lazio travelled to the Stadio Olimpico to face their first top-flight opponent of the campaign, Torino. Keita and Klose put them ahead before half time, with Josef Martínez scoring four minutes into the second half. Torino goalkeeper Daniele Padelli was sent off for fouling Klose for a penalty, which Cristian Daniel Ledesma converted. Thirteen days later in the quarter-finals at the San Siro, Lazio defeated Milan 1–0 with a penalty by Lucas Biglia, awarded after Michelangelo Albertazzi handled his cross. Lorik Cana was sent off for Lazio shortly afterwards.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Road to the final, Lazio
On 4 March, Lazio hosted holders Napoli in the first leg of the semi-final and led at half time after Felipe Anderson had set up a goal for Klose. Napoli equalised in the second half when Gonzalo Higuaín went around Lazio goalkeeper Etrit Berisha and provided a goal for Manolo Gabbiadini. In the second leg on 8 April, substitute Senad Lulić scored in the 79th minute to win the tie 2–1 on aggregate from a low cross by Felipe Anderson. In the final moments of the match, Lulić slid to clear a sure goal off the goal-line from Napoli's Lorenzo Insigne.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Match, Date change
The 2015 Coppa Italia Final was originally scheduled to be played on 7 June, however with the qualification of Juventus to the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final on 6 June, the date was changed to 20 May.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Match, Team selection
Juventus were without forward Álvaro Morata, who was sent off in the second leg of the semi-final, as well as midfielder Claudio Marchisio, who was given a yellow card in that match. In Morata's absence, Fernando Llorente and Carlos Tevez started up front, and Giorgio Chiellini captained the team who were without regular goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, replaced by Marco Storari.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Match, Summary
Lazio scored the first goal in the fourth minute, when defender Ștefan Radu headed in a free kick by Danilo Cataldi. Juventus equalised seven minutes later: Andrea Pirlo sent in a free kick which Patrice Evra headed down to Chiellini six yards from goal, and the captain scored past Etrit Berisha. There were chances for both teams in the remainder of the first half: Llorente missed a header from Evra's cross and Storari saved from Cataldi who had been set up by Felipe Anderson. Marco Parolo hit a 25-yard shot wide of the target.


2015 Coppa Italia Final, Match, Summary
Early in the second half, Berisha saved when Llorente had an opportunity to score. For Juventus, Tevez set up Paul Pogba, but his shot was blocked. Lazio missed from long range, another Parolo strike and a free kick by Santiago Gentiletti. Shortly after he came on in place of Miroslav Klose, Lazio forward Filip Đorđević had an attempt saved by Storari, and the Juventus substitute Alessandro Matri had a goal disallowed for offside. Đorđević had another opportunity before the end of regulation time, striking both goalposts. In the first half of extra time, Matri scored past Berisha from ten yards, the eventual winner.


2015 Coppa Ugo Agostoni
The 2015 Ugo Agostoni was a one-day cycling semi-classic that took place on 16 September 2015, starting in Monza and finishing in Lissone in northern Italy. It was the first leg of the 2015 Trittico Lombardo and the 69th edition of the Coppa Ugo Agostoni. The race was won by Davide Rebellin (CCC–Sprandi–Polkowice), who sprinted to the race victory ahead of his breakaway companion Vincenzo Nibali (Astana). Niccolò Bonifazio (Lampre–Merida won the sprint for third. Nibali went on to win the Coppa Bernocchi and the Tre Valli Varesine to win the Trittico Lombardo competition.


2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge
The 2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge was a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor hard courts. It was the first edition of the tournament and part of the 2015 ITF Women's Circuit, offering a total of $50,000 in prize money. It took place in Scottsdale, United States, on 9–15 November 2015.


2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following player received entry by a lucky loser spot:


2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge – Doubles
This was a new event in the ITF Women's Circuit.


2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge – Doubles
Julia Glushko and Rebecca Peterson won the inaugural title, defeating Viktorija Golubic and Stephanie Vogt in the final, 4–6, 7–5, [10–6].


2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge – Singles
This was a new event in the ITF Women's Circuit.


2015 CopperWynd Pro Women's Challenge – Singles
Samantha Crawford won the inaugural edition, defeating Viktorija Golubic in the final, 6–3, 4–6, 6–2.


2015 Corby Borough Council election
The 2015 Corby Borough Council election took place on 7 May 2015 to elect members of Corby Borough Council in Northamptonshire, England. This was on the same day as other local elections. The Labour Party retained control of the council, which it has held continuously since 1979.


2015 Corinthia Hotel attack
In January 2015, the Corinthia Hotel in Tripoli was attacked by men affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). The hotel was popular with foreign officials and government workers; it had previously housed the Libyan Prime Minister.


2015 Corinthia Hotel attack, Attack
In the early hours of 27 January 2015, ISIL-affiliated men detonated a car bomb in the parking garage of the hotel. In the chaos, an estimated 5 gunmen stormed past the local guard and entered the hotel, intent on killing guests.


2015 Corinthia Hotel attack, Attack
Some of the attackers survived the initial contact, leading to a protracted hostage situation.


2015 Corinthia Hotel attack, Victims
Five foreigners died in the attack: one American, one Frenchman, and three Tajiks (including two women). The American, David Berry, was working as a contractor for an American security firm named Crucible. Five Libyan security personnel are also reported to have died in the attack.


2015 Corinthia Hotel attack, Perpetrators and motivations
The attack was carried out by men belonging to ISIL's "Tripoli Province", who are believed to have been natives of Libya. The attackers' stated objective was revenge for the death of Abu Anas al-Libi, a Libyan Al-Qaeda operative who was involved in the bombing of two American embassies in 1998. He was captured by American forces inside Libya in 2013, and died in an American hospital on 2 January 2015.


2015 Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship
The 2015 Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship was the 106th staging of the Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Cork County Board in 1909. The draw for the opening round fixture took place on 14 December 2014. The championship began on 16 May 2015 and ended on 24 October 2015.


2015 Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship
On 24 October 2015, Charleville won the championship following a 5-24 to 1-10 defeat of Dripsey in the final at Páirc Uí Rinn. This was their fourth championship title overall and their first title since 1947.


2015 Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship
Dripsey's Diarmuid O'Riordan was the championship's top scorer with 2-41.


2015 Cork Junior A Hurling Championship
The 2015 Cork Junior Hurling Championship was the 118th staging of the Cork Junior Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Cork County Board in 1895. The championship began on 13 September 2015 and ended on 30 October 2015.


2015 Cork Junior A Hurling Championship
On 30 October 2015, Dungourney won the championship following a 1-21 to 0-11 defeat of Cloughduv in a replay of the final. This was their first championship title in the grade.


2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Football Championship
The 2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Football Championship was the 10th staging of the Cork Premier Intermediate Football Championship since its establishment by the Cork County Board in 2006. The championship began on 1 May 2015 and ended on 18 October 2015.


2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Football Championship
On 18 October 2015, Carrigaline won the championship following a 0-12 to 0-11 defeat of St Michael's in the final at Páirc Uí Rinn. It was their first ever championship title.


2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Football Championship
Éire Óg's Daniel Goulding was the championship's top scorer with 1-34.


2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship
The 2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship was the 12th staging of the Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Cork County Board in 2004. The draw for the opening round of the championship took place at the County Convention on 14 December 2014. The championship began on 16 May 2015 and ended on 11 October 2015.


2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship
On 11 October 2015, Newcestown won the championship following a 1-23 to 0-8 defeat of Valley Rovers in the final. This remains their only championship title in the grade.


2015 Cork Premier Intermediate Hurling Championship
Mallow's Seán Hayes was the championship's top scorer with 4-36.


2015 Cork Senior Football Championship
The 2014 Cork Senior Football Championship was the 127th staging of the Cork Senior Football Championship since its establishment by the Cork County Board in 1887. The draw for the opening round fixtures took place on 14 December 2014. The championship began on 6 April 2015 and ended on 25 October 2015.


2015 Cork Senior Football Championship
Ballincollig were the defending champions, however, they were defeated by Castlehaven at the quarter-final stage.


2015 Cork Senior Football Championship
On 25 October 2015, Nemo Rangers won the championship following a 1-10 to 0-11 defeat of Castlehaven in a final replay at Páirc Uí Rinn. It was their 19th championship title overall and their first title since 2010.


2015 Cork Senior Hurling Championship
The 2015 Cork Senior Hurling Championship was the 127th staging of the Cork Senior Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Cork County Board in 1887. The draw for the 2015 fixtures took place on 14 December 2014 at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. The championship began on 11 April 2015 and ended on 11 October 2015.


2015 Cork Senior Hurling Championship
The championship was won by Glen Rovers who secured the title following a 2-17 to 1-13 defeat of Sarsfields in the final. This was their 26th championship title, their first in 26 years.


2015 Cornell Big Red football team
The 2015 Cornell Big Red football team represented Cornell University during the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season as a member of the Ivy League. They were led by third-year head coach David Archer and played their home games at Schoellkopf Field. Cornell finished the season 1–9 overall and 1–6 in Ivy League play to tie for seventh place.


2015 Corrientes Challenger
The 2015 Corrientes Challenger was a professional tennis tournament played on clay courts. It was the inaugural edition of the tournament which was part of the 2015 ATP Challenger Tour. It took place in Corrientes, Argentina between 12 and 18 October 2015.


2015 Corrientes Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2015 Corrientes Challenger, Singles main draw entrants, Other Entrants
The following player received entry into the singles main draw with a protected ranking:


2015 Corrientes Challenger – Doubles
This was the first edition of the tournament, Julio Peralta and Horacio Zeballos won the title defeating Guillermo Durán and Máximo González in the final 6–2, 6–3.


2015 Corrientes Challenger – Singles
This was the first edition of the tournament, Máximo González won the title defeating Diego Schwartzman in the final 3–6, 7–5, 6–4.


2015 Corsican protests
The 2015 Corsican protests were a series of marches by several hundred Corsican nationalists that began on 25 December, in Ajaccio, capital of Corsica. During the initial demonstrations, a Muslim prayer hall was burned down and Qur'ans were set alight. Further protests were organised after the initial march despite a government ban on protests until 4 January 2016. The protesters claimed to be acting in revenge for an incident that occurred the day prior when firefighters and police were assaulted in the neighbourhood of Les Jardins de l'Empereur; however, outside observers labeled the ensuing riots as anti-Arab and anti-Muslim. The Corsican nationalist politicians have claimed their view does not legitimise xenophobia, blaming the protest on French nationalism instead. Scholarly opinions on this claim are divided.


2015 Corsican protests, Background
Over the past several decades, Corsican nationalists have been calling for the island's recognition as a nation since French annexation. Following years of violence by the FLNC (stopped in 2014), a referendum on increased devolution failed by a narrow majority. The Corsican language is also labeled as a "definitely endangered language" by UNESCO.


2015 Corsican protests, Background
While racial tensions linger, in the December 2015 French regional elections in Corsica, the pro-autonomy party Pè a Corsica got 35.34% of the vote, winning 24 seats out of 51. Gilles Simeoni, already mayor of Bastia, said: "It's a victory for Corsica and all the Corsicans. My first thoughts go to all those early campaigners who have battled for our cause for half a century – among them the youngsters, some of whom are in prison. It's a victory for an alternative policy to that which has failed Corsicans for decades. [


2015 Corsican protests, Background
Corsicans had a] thirst for democracy, economic development and social justice." The leader of the pro-independence group Corsica Libera, Jean-Guy Talamoni, added: "It's been a 40-year-long march to arrive here. Corsica is not just a French administrative constituency – it's a country, a nation, a people." He further noted the result of "those who have never accepted French rule... and have never ceased to fight for the survival of the Corsican nation" and also called for amnesty for "political prisoners" and "those still in hiding."


2015 Corsican protests, Background
Negotiations were imminent for the creation of a single Corsican region by 2018 that would merge the executive with its two départements. Republicans leader Nicolas Sarkozy said before the vote that "Mr Talamoni does not want the French Republic? Well, the French Republic does not want Mr Talamoni. This is France." Following the election, the former FLNC's Jean-Pierre Susini said: "This is the culmination of 40 years of struggle. I have always called for independence but after 200 years of (French) colonialism...the nationalists have an enormous amount of work to do." He added: "We have only two years before us. We must not disappoint, otherwise the valets of colonialism will take back control." The election was said to play a part in the rise of nationalist sentiment.


2015 Corsican protests, Arson and protests
On 24 December in the poor neighbourhood of Les Jardins de l'Empereur, firefighters were ambushed by unidentified "hooded youths" with iron bars and baseball bats, resulting in injuries to two firefighters and a police officer. A local official, François Lalanne, said a fire was deliberately lit in the area and when the emergency services arrived they were attacked. An unnamed fireman said that about 20 men tried to break the windows of their truck with bars and bats. According to Corse Matin, the firefighters were told "Sales Corses de merde, cassez-vous, vous n'êtes pas chez vous ici!"


2015 Corsican protests, Arson and protests
(Dirty shitty Corsicans, go fuck yourselves, you are not in your home here!). On 25 December, a Muslim prayer hall in Les Jardins de l'Empereur was burned with at least part of a Quran set on fire. It was raided by crowds the next day after accusations that the firefighters were attacked by local Arab residents.


2015 Corsican protests, Arson and protests
On 27 December, following the initial arson, as well as a consequent protest ban, several hundred people marched in Corsica, though they avoided the affected neighbourhood, instead rallying in other areas. Previous marches had seen slogans such as : "Arabs get out!" On the day, they also rejected accusations that their rally was racist and chanted: "We fight against scum, not against Arabs!" and "We aren't thugs, we aren't racists!" Police were also deployed around Les Jardins de l'Empereur, home to many immigrants, to prevent any clashes.


2015 Corsican protests, Arrests
Two men in their 20s were arrested for the initial attack and were due to be charged.


2015 Corsican protests, Arrests
In December 2018, six men were sentenced for their part in the initial attack: Nabil Khallouk and Aziz Doudouch received 30 months in prison, Christian Richard received two years, and Karim Khallouk received 18 months. Nordine Doudouch got 10 months in prison for transporting weapons, and Abdelkarim El Youssfi received a six-month suspended sentence and community service for tresspassing and vandalism.


2015 Corsican protests, Reactions, Politics
Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the attack was "an unacceptable desecration," while Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve pledged that the perpetrators of the attacks on the firefighters and the prayer hall would be identified and arrested. He further commented that there was no place for "racism and xenophobia" in France. The French Council of the Muslim Faith denounced the violence. A ban was issued on protests in the mostly Muslim neighbourhood until at least 4 January 2016.


2015 Corsican protests, Reactions, Politics
President of the Corsican Assembly Jean-Guy Talamoni blamed the "imported" ideology of the National Front and claimed the protests and arson were anethema to Corsican nationalism, which had established the Corsican Republic. He also said the perpetrators tended to support the National Front and were not nationalists. In response the National Front issued a statement that read "the unacceptable violence which shook Ajaccio on 25 December is the unfortunately expected consequence of lax and weak politics, which leaves neighbourhoods to become no-go areas where representatives of the emergency services are assaulted daily." Corsica's administrator Christophe Mirmand said: "This behaviour must stop. It hurts Corsica's image."


2015 Corsican protests, Reactions, Religion
Olivier de Germay, Bishop of Ajaccio, condemned the violence, stating that "those who commit violent acts in the name of the Christian faith are fooling themselves."


2015 Corsican protests, Reactions, Academia
Eugène Gherardi, a professor of Corsican culture and history, shares the view that xenophobic forms of nationalism reached the island through the National Front. However, Emmanuel Martin of the Institute for Economic Studies in Europe noted that the protesters were chanting in Corsican and displaying the island's flag, theorising that the alleged xenophobia would be stronger in Corsica where some locals already believe that their homeland has been colonised by the French.


2015 Costa Book Awards
The Costa Book Awards (before 2006 known as the Whitbread Awards) are among the United Kingdom's most prestigious literary awards. They were launched in 1971, are given both for high literary merit but also for works that are enjoyable reading and whose aim is to convey the enjoyment of reading to the widest possible audience. This page gives details of the awards given in the year 2015.


2015 Costa Book Awards
The shortlist was announced c. 17 November 2015. The category winners were announced c. 4 January 2016, and the overall winner was announced on 26 January 2016.


2015 Costa Book Awards, Biography
Winner: Andrea Wulf, The Invention of Nature: The Adventures of Alexander Von Humboldt, The Lost Hero of Science


2015 Costa Rican Cup
The 2015 Costa Rican Cup (known as Torneo de Copa Banco Popular for sponsorship reasons) is the 3rd staging of the Costa Rican Cup. The competition began on July 4 and finished on November 19 with the final at the Estadio Nacional. The cup featured 20 teams, composed of all 12 teams of the FPD and 8 from the Liga de Ascenso. Originally, teams from the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Aficionado were expected to participate as well, but were withdrawn due to lack of budget.


2015 Costa Rican Cup
The format of the tournament marked several differences to that of its predecessor, such as the lack of a group stage (similar to the 2013 edition), and the addition of a "best loser" rule, in which a team could still qualify to a further round, despite having lost a match.


2015 Costa Rican Cup
The tournament saw the defending champions Cartaginés earning a second title by defeating Herediano in the final.


2015 Costa Rican Cup, Qualified teams
The following teams were announced to participate in the 2015 Costa Rican Cup:


2015 Costa Rican Cup, First round
The draw for the first round was held on 26 June 2015.


2015 Costa Rican Cup, Second round
The draw for the second round was held on 6 July 2015.


2015 Cotswold District Council election
The 2015 Cotswold District Council election took place on 7 May 2015 to elect all members of Cotswold District Council in England. The whole council was up for election. Turnout was substantially up across the district due to the election being held on the same day as the general election and other local elections in England.


2015 Cotswold District Council election
Boundary changes had reduced the number of seats from 44 to 34, making exact comparisons with 2011 difficult. The election produced a slightly reduced majority for the ruling Conservative Group but other than a single gain by the Liberal Democrats to produce this result no other ward changed hands.


2015 Cotswold District Council election, By-elections between 2015 and 2019, Stow
A by-election was held on Thursday 29 September 2016 for the Stow ward due to the death of Conservative councillor Barry Dare. The subsequent election was won by the Liberal Democrats.


2015 Cotswold District Council election, By-elections between 2015 and 2019, Fairford North
A by-election was held on Thursday 9 February 2017 for the Fairford North ward due to the resignation of Conservative councillor Abigail Beccle. The subsequent election was won by the Liberal Democrats.


2015 Cotswold District Council election, By-elections between 2015 and 2019, Grumbolds Ash with Avening
A by-election was held on Thursday 23 November 2017 for the Grumbolds Ash with Avening Ward due to the death of Conservative councillor Jim Parsons. The subsequent election was won by the Conservatives.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December)
The 2015 Cotton Bowl Classic was a college football bowl game played on December 31, 2015 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The 80th Cotton Bowl Classic was a College Football Playoff semifinal between Alabama and Michigan State with the winner to compete in the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship. It was one of the 2015–16 bowl games that concluded the 2015 FBS football season.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December)
The game was broadcast on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio and XM Satellite Radio. It was sponsored by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and was officially known as the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December)
Alabama defeated Michigan State 38–0 and later won the National Championship by defeating Clemson in the National Championship game.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December), Teams
The Cotton Bowl acted as one of the two College Football Playoff semifinal games. The two teams selected for the game were No. 2 Alabama and No. 3 Michigan State. Michigan State returned to the Cotton Bowl after defeating Baylor in a non-playoff version of the bowl game on January 1, 2015. Michigan State became just the third school in history to play in the same bowl twice in a calendar year, joining Auburn, which played in the Gator Bowl on January 1 and December 31, 1954, and Oklahoma, which played in the Sugar Bowl on January 1 and December 31, 1972.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December), Teams
The game was a rematch of the 2011 Capital One Bowl, where Alabama defeated Michigan State 49–7.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December), Game summary
After Oklahoma lost to Clemson 17–37 in the Orange Bowl Semifinal, Michigan State was throttled by Alabama 38–0. A tight first half saw Alabama take a 10–0 lead into half time. Near the end of the second quarter, Michigan State had its best drive of the night, but all-time winningest MSU quarterback, Connor Cook, was intercepted by Cyrus Jones. Alabama scored a touchdown on the opening possession of the second half and MSU turned the ball over on its first possession.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December), Game summary
Alabama could not capitalize on the turnover, but did return MSU's next punt for a touchdown, putting the game out of reach at 24–0 with a little over three minutes remaining in the third quarter. MSU's offense could not muster any points and were held to a total of 249 yards. Cook finished the night with zero touchdowns and two interceptions.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December), Game summary
Alabama would go on to defeat Clemson 45–40 for the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January)
The 2015 Cotton Bowl Classic was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 2015 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The 79th Cotton Bowl Classic was one of the "New Year's Six" bowls of the College Football Playoff. It was one of the 2014–15 bowl games that concluded the 2014 FBS football season. The game kicked off at 12:30 PM EST and was broadcast on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio and XM Satellite Radio. It was sponsored by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and was officially known as the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January)
From 1997 to 2013, the Cotton Bowl Classic pitted Big 12 Conference and Southeastern Conference teams against each other. In 2014, Michigan State was runner-up in the Big Ten Conference's East Division, and Baylor was Big 12 co-champion with TCU.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January)
After falling behind by 20 points, Michigan State staged a dramatic comeback in the fourth quarter to beat Baylor by a score of 42–41. This was the highest scoring Cotton Bowl ever, and the fourth bowl game in a row for Michigan State where they won after trailing at halftime.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Teams
The two participants for the game were  the Michigan State Spartans and the Baylor Bears.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Pregame
The 79th Cotton Bowl Classic featured the Michigan State Spartans (10–2, 7–1 Big Ten) against the Big 12 Co-Champion Baylor Bears (11–1, 8–1 Big 12). Michigan State was making its first Cotton Bowl appearance while Baylor was making their third. Michigan State was delegated as the away team and wore their typical white uniform with green helmet. Baylor, being the home team, wore an all green uniform with a gold chrome helmet (previously worn during their thrilling 61–58 win over TCU). Michigan State won the coin toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, First Quarter
On Michigan State's first possession, Jeremy Langford broke open a career long 65 yard run down to the Baylor one yard line. Three plays later, Langford would finish the drive with a two-yard touchdown run. Baylor would quickly respond on the next drive. After driving the ball to midfield, quarterback Bryce Petty hit KD Cannon for a 49-yard touchdown to tie the game at seven. On the ensuing kickoff return MSU's RJ Shelton was able to reach the MSU 40 yard line, giving MSU great field position. Taking advantage, Connor Cook quickly hit Tony Lippett for a 24-yard gain. A few plays later RJ Shelton scored a touchdown on an 11-yard sweep, giving the Spartans a 14–7 lead. After stalled drives by both teams, Baylor tied the game on a 53-yard pass by wide receiver Jay Lee to Corey Coleman with 2:32 remaining in the quarter.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Second Quarter
To begin the second quarter, MSU drove the ball down to the Baylor 28 yard line. On third down Connor Cook attempted to option the ball to RJ Shelton, but the pass fell behind Williams and resulted in a loss of five yards. After a timeout, MSU lined up for a 50-yard field goal. Instead of kicking the ball, holder Mike Sadler flung the ball to kicker Michael Geiger attempted to run for the first down. Baylor quickly responded and stopped him short.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Second Quarter
With the ball, Baylor drove down the Spartan goal line and scored on a Bryce Petty QB sneak. Baylor led 21–14 with 8:13 remaining in the 1st half. After MSU's drive stalled at midfield Baylor drove the field and tacked on three points with a 25-yard field goal by Chris Callahan, which ended the scoring in the first half.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Third Quarter
Baylor received the ball to begin the second half and quickly took advantage. On the second play, KD Cannon split the MSU secondary or a 74-yard touchdown reception (Cannon's second TD of the day) from Petty and increased Baylor's lead to 31–14. After a MSU three and out Baylor drove down and got in position for a 46-yard field goal by Callahan, giving the Bears a 34–14 lead with 11:23 remaining in the third. On the next drive, MSU drove to Baylor 45 yard line where they faced a 3rd and 4.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Third Quarter
On a key play of the second half, Cook hit Shelton on a shallow crossing pattern for a 19-yard gain. The following play saw Lippett gain 19 yards on a double reverse giving the Spartan's first and goal from the eight yard line. Three plays later the Spartan's punched it in on a two-yard Langford run, closing the score to 34–21. Baylor's next drive began with Shilique Calhoun sacking and forcing a Petty fumble, which was recovered by the Bears. On second down, Petty hit KD Cannon for another big gain to the MSU 44 yard line.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Third Quarter
Five plays later Petty hit wide open backup offensive guard LaQuan McGowan for an 18-yard TD, which set off a wild celebration amongst the Baylor sideline and their fans throughout AT&T Stadium. The score gave Baylor a 41–21 lead with 4:03 left in the quarter. On their next drive the Spartans were able to drive down to the Baylor 26, but the drive ended when Cook threw a pass into double coverage and was ultimately intercepted by Alfred Pullom. Baylor responded by moving the ball deep into MSU territory, but a penalty and an Ed Davis sack to close the quarter resulted in a third a 28 from the MSU 43 yard line. Baylor led the game 41–21 at the end of the third quarter.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Fourth Quarter
After failing to convert on third down, Chris Callahan set up for a 46-yard field goal attempt that would bounce off the right upright. MSU took over at their own 29 yard line. On the first play of the drive, Cook connected with Keith Mumphery for a 50-yard gain. Four plays later, Cook passed to Josiah Price in the corner of the end zone for an eight-yard touchdown. The score made it 41–28 with 12:09 remaining. On the ensuing kick-off, MSU kicker Kevin Cronin executed a successful onside kick (recovered by Jermaine Edmonson).


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Fourth Quarter
With the ball and momentum, Cook connected down the Baylor sideline with Aaron Burbridge for a 39-yard gain to the Bear's 14 yard line. The ensuing play gave Baylor all of the momentum back as Connor Cook threw an interception to linebacker Taylor Young, who returned the ball all the way to the end zone for an apparent touchdown. Instead, a block in the back during the return brought the ball back to the Baylor 43 yard line. Six plays later Baylor would give the ball back to Michigan State after failing to convert on fourth down from the MSU 39.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Fourth Quarter
With 9:15 remaining in the game, MSU began their drive in an attempt to make the game closer. MSU managed to move the ball down to the Bear 11 yard line where Cook scrambled for an apparent touchdown. After instant replay overturned the score, Jeremy Langford ran it in to bring the score to 41–35 with 4:55 remaining in the game. Instead of attempting an onside kick, Michigan State elected to kick the ball deep and put the game in the hands of their defense.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Fourth Quarter
Baylor was able to move the ball downfield to the MSU 33 yard line and appeared in control of the game when a slant pass to Corey Coleman reached inside the five yard line. However, Coleman was flagged for an offensive facemask which brought the ball back to the 22 yard line. A false start, a short pass to the sideline for one yard, a rush for loss, and a short four yard gain to the flat resulted in a fourth down from the 27 yard line. With the clock under 1:15, Baylor attempted a 44-yard field goal.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Fourth Quarter
Chris Callahan moved the ball up two feet closer to the line and during the kick MSU senior defensive end Marcus Rush was able to get a hand on the ball, which resulted in the ball popping up and into RJ Williamson's hands. Williamson began to return the ball for MSU and was aided by a block on Chris Callahan by Tony Lippett. Williamson returned the ball to the Baylor 45 yard line where he was run out of bounds with 1:06 remaining.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Fourth Quarter
With new life the MSU offense lined up and quickly completed a 17-yard pass to Mumphery. After failing to complete a pass during the following three plays, MSU faced fourth and ten. With the game on the line, Connor Cook was able to complete a 16-yard pass to Lippett. With first and goal, 33 seconds remaining and no timeouts, MSU had four chances to get a touchdown. After two poor throws from Cook, the Spartans faced third and goal with 22 seconds left. On third down, Cook hit Keith Mumphery for the go ahead touchdown with 17 seconds left. Baylor would get the ball back with only a field goal needed for the win.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Fourth Quarter
On first down from their own 25 yard line, Petty was sacked by defensive tackle Lawrence Thomas for a six-yard loss. After a quick timeout and with only 13 seconds left on a second and long Petty was sacked again, this time by Marcus Rush and Riley Bullough, forcing Baylor to call a second timeout. Facing third and 23 from their own 12 yard line with only seven seconds left, Petty attempted to hit a quick slant over the middle. His pass was intercepted by a diving Riley Bullough, who essentially ended the game with only two seconds remaining. The MSU offense returned to the field for one kneel down, which ended the game and gave the Spartans the victory. Bowl chairman Dan Novakov awarded MSU head coach Mark Dantonio the Field Scovell Trophy in a post game ceremony.


2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (January), Game summary, Aftermath
The win resulted in Michigan State's school record fourth straight bowl win and second straight New Year's Day bowl win. Baylor's loss made it their third in the Cotton Bowl (0–3 all time). Despite losing, Baylor quarterback Bryce Petty and linebacker Taylor Young were awarded offensive and defensive MVP respectively. Michigan State finished the season ranked #5 in both polls (tied with Florida State in the AP poll) while Baylor finished #7 in the AP and #8 in the Coaches. Several Cotton Bowl records were set in the matchup including:- Most combined points scored:  83- Most combined yards:  1,146 yards- Most passing yards:  Bryce Petty – 550 yards


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill
A leadership spill of the Country Liberal Party in the Northern Territory occurred 2–3 February 2015.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill
Minister for Primary Industry and Mines Willem Westra van Holthe announced in a late night press conference on 2 February that the CLP had elected him as its new leader, and hence Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, replacing Adam Giles. According to Westra van Holthe, the vote in the party room was 9 votes to 5 in favour of rolling Giles. Attorney-General John Elferink had been named as deputy leader, and hence Deputy Chief Minister.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill
However, Giles refused to resign, and the Administrator of the Northern Territory, John Hardy, declined to sack Giles. Hardy cited perceived irregularities in the spill process and doubt over whether Westra van Holthe would be able to maintain the confidence of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly. While Westra van Holthe appeared to have the support of the majority of the CLP party room, there was no guarantee he could command a majority on the floor of the Assembly—and with it, enough support to govern.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill
Under pressure from the CLP's organisational wing, the CLP party room met on the afternoon of 3 February to break the impasse. At that meeting, an agreement was reached between the Giles and Westra van Holthe factions whereby Giles would continue as leader, and Westra van Holthe would become his deputy. Westra van Holthe ruled out another leadership challenge against Giles.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Background
Adam Giles became Chief Minister of the Northern Territory in March 2013, replacing long-term Country Liberal leader Terry Mills in a party-room coup while Mills was attending a trade mission in Japan, becoming the first Indigenous head of government in modern Australian history. Initially he was popular with the electorate, however a series of scandals and problems shook his authority, including the defection of MPs Alison Anderson and Larisa Lee, and the resignation under a cloud of Northern Territory police commissioner John McRoberts. Giles' style was frequently compared to that of Queensland Premier Campbell Newman, which became a liability when Newman lost his seat in the 2015 state election.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Impasse
At his press conference, Westra van Holthe promised to govern in a more consultative manner than Giles. He also stated that Giles had agreed to stand down. However, the swearing-in ceremony scheduled for 3 February was cancelled when Giles refused to resign. Australian constitutional practice calls for a first minister (Prime Minister at the federal level, premier at the state level, and chief minister at the territorial level) to stay in office unless they resign or are defeated in the legislature. The Legislative Assembly was in recess and was not due to sit again for two weeks. Hardy refused to call the legislature back to Darwin. This prompted Westra van Holthe to draw up an instrument allowing Hardy to use his reserve power to sack Giles and commission Westra van Holthe in his place.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Impasse
At a press conference later that day, Giles declared that he was still Chief Minister because he had the support of the legislature—implying that he would topple Westra van Holthe and force new elections unless Westra van Holthe backed down. If the CLP members who supported Giles in the leadership vote joined Giles in breaking party discipline, Westra van Holthe would have faced being defeated on the floor of the Assembly at his first sitting.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Impasse
Additionally, if Giles and his close friend, Dave Tollner, had resigned, the CLP faced the prospect of losing government if it lost Giles' seat of Braitling and Tollner's seat of Fong Lim at by-elections. A wave of resignations raised doubts about whether the CLP had enough members to retain its registration. Opposition Leader Delia Lawrie and federal Labor MP Warren Snowdon both called for new elections.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Impasse
Rolf Gerritsen, a research fellow at Charles Darwin University, likened the spill to the party-room coups that characterised the CLP in the 1980s and 1990s—an era which saw four chief ministers in 15 years, including three in four years.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Resolution
Under pressure from the CLP's organisational wing, the CLP party room met on the afternoon of 3 February to break the impasse. At that meeting, an agreement was reached between the Giles and Westra van Holthe factions whereby Giles would continue as leader, with Westra van Holthe as his deputy. Westra van Holthe ruled out another leadership challenge against Giles. Giles later dumped Westra van Holthe supporter Robyn Lambley from cabinet, labelling her a "conspirator".


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Resolution
Giles announced a new cabinet on 10 February; Transport Minister Matt Conlan, a supporter of the spill, resigned and moved to the backbench "to spend time with his family", and former Treasurer Dave Tollner, who had been forced to resign in August 2014, was reinstated into the ministry and as Treasurer. The Guardian reported that Conlan's departure had been expected following the failure of the spill.


2015 Country Liberal Party leadership spill, Resolution
A year after the spill, the CLP was thrown from office in the worst defeat ever suffered by a sitting government in Territory history. Both Giles and Westra van Holthe lost their own seats.


2015 County Championship
The 2015 County Championship season, known as the LV= County Championship for sponsorship reasons, was the 116th cricket County Championship season. It was contested through two divisions: Division One and Division Two. Each team played all the others in their division both home and away.


2015 County Championship, Standings
Teams receive 16 points for a win, 8 for a tie and 5 for a draw. Bonus points (a maximum of 5 batting points and 3 bowling points) may be scored during the first 110 overs of each team's first innings.


2015 County Championship, Results summary
The first fixtures began on 12 April 2015. The final set of fixtures commenced on 22 September 2015.


2015 County Championship Plate
The 2015 County Championship Plate, also known as Bill Beaumont Cup Division 2, was the 14th version of the annual English rugby union, County Championship organized by the RFU for the tier 2 English counties. Each county drew its players from rugby union clubs from the third tier and below of the English rugby union league system (typically National League 1, National League 2 South or National League 2 North).


2015 County Championship Plate
The counties were divided into two regional pools (north/south) with three teams in the north division and four in the south, with the winners of each pool meeting in the final held at Twickenham Stadium. New counties to the division included North Midlands and Northumberland who were demoted from the 2014 Bill Beaumont Cup while Surrey came up from the 2014 County Championship Shield having beaten Leicestershire the previous year in the Shield final having won the competition three years in a row.


2015 County Championship Plate
At the end of the group stage the northern division was won by Eastern Counties who edged out Northumberland while the southern division was won with ease by Surrey who steamrolled through their group. The counties went through to the final and as group winners will be promoted to the top tier with Surrey making it two promotions in a row. Surrey then defeated Eastern Counties in the early kickoff at Twickenham Stadium, winning 17 – 3, in what was their fourth consecutive Twickenham appearance. In terms of individual player performances the top try scorer was Surrey's Ryan Jeffrey who got six tries in the tournament – all coming in the one game against North Midlands.


2015 County Championship Plate, Competition format
The competition format was two regional group stages divided into north and south, with each team playing each other once. In the north group each team played one home game (there were three teams in the group) while in the south group, two teams in the group had two home games, while the other two had just the one. The top side in each group went through to the final held at Twickenham Stadium on 31 May 2015, with both teams also being promoted to the top tier for the following season. Typically there was no relegation although teams have dropped out of the division in the past.


2015 County Championship Shield
The 2015 County Championship Shield was the 11th version of the annual English rugby union County Championship, organized by the RFU for the tier 3 English counties. Each county drew its players from rugby union clubs from the fifth tier and below of the English rugby union league system. The counties were divided into three pools of four teams each, based roughly on regional lines, with the winner of each group plus the best runner-up going through to the semi-finals, with the winners of those games meeting in the final held at Twickenham Stadium. At the moment there is no promotion or relegation out of or into the County Championship Shield, although the 2014 champions Surrey moved up into tier 2, having won the competition three years in a row.


2015 County Championship Shield
After winning their respective groups and semi final matches Leicestershire faced Cumbria in the late kick off game at Twickenham Stadium. Leicestershire made up for their defeat the previous season by defeating Cumbria 34 – 17 to win their first ever Shield trophy.


2015 County Championship Shield, Competition format
The competition format consisted of three groups of four counties each, based roughly on regional lines where possible, with each team playing each other once. The top side of each group automatically qualified for the semi-finals, as did the best group runner-up. The winners of the semi-finals  played in the final held at Twickenham Stadium on 31 May 2015, As the lowest tier in the county championship there is no relegation while promotion is not given every season, although outstanding county performances (such as Surrey's) can lead to counties moving up to tier 2.


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale
The 2015 Coupe Banque Nationale was a tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was the 23rd edition of the Tournoi de Québec and part of the WTA International tournaments of the 2015 WTA Tour. It took place at the PEPS de l'Université Laval in Quebec City, Canada, from September 14 through September 20, 2015.


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following player entered the singles main draw with a protected ranking:


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pair received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale – Doubles
Lucie Hradecká and Mirjana Lučić-Baroni were the defending champions, but lost in the quarterfinals to Barbora Krejčíková and An-Sophie Mestach.


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale – Doubles
Krejčíková and Mestach went on to win the title, defeating María Irigoyen and Paula Kania 4–6, 6–3, [12–10] in the final.


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale – Singles
Mirjana Lučić-Baroni was the defending champion, but lost in the semifinals to Annika Beck.


2015 Coupe Banque Nationale – Singles
Beck went on to win the title, defeating Jeļena Ostapenko 6–2, 6–2 in the final.


2015 Coupe de France Final
The 2015 Coupe de France Final decided the winner of the 2014–15 Coupe de France, the 98th season of France's premier football cup. It was played on 30 May at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Paris, between Ligue 2 club Auxerre and Paris Saint-Germain of Ligue 1. Paris Saint-Germain won the match 1–0 with a goal by Edinson Cavani, thus achieving their ninth title.


2015 Coupe de France Final, Background
It was Auxerre's sixth final, of which they had previously won four and lost one. Their last final was in 2005, a 2–1 win over Sedan, and their last defeat was their first final, losing 1–4 after extra time to Nantes in 1979. PSG played in their 13th final, having won 8 (second only to Marseille's 10). Their most recent final was in 2011, a 0–1 defeat to Lille, and their last victory was the season before that, a 1–0 win over Monaco after extra time. The two teams met in the 2003 final, which Auxerre won 2–1.


2015 Coupe de France Final, Road to the final, Auxerre
Auxerre, of Ligue 2, entered the competition in the seventh round, winning 2–0 at seventh-tier Dinsheim on 15 November. In the eighth round on 6 December, they won 3–0 away to Sarreguemines of the Championnat de France amateur 2.


2015 Coupe de France Final, Road to the final, Auxerre
In the last 64 on 4 January 2015, Auxerre won 1–0 against Championnat National club Strasbourg at the Stade de l'Abbé-Deschamps with a goal by Vincent Gragnic in the last minute of the first half. Sixteen days later in the last 32 they triumphed by the same score away to Championnat de France amateur club Jura Sud Lavans, with a first-half goal by Samed Kılıç.


2015 Coupe de France Final, Road to the final, Auxerre
Auxerre played away to third-tier Le Poiré in the last 16 on 10 February. Livio Nabab put them ahead in the second half, with Loïc Dufau equalising in added time. Auxerre won 6–5 in a penalty shootout. A shootout was also required on 5 March in the quarter-finals after a goalless draw at fellow Ligue 2 club Brest. Youssef Adnane missed their first attempt before Thomas Fontaine missed for Brest, with Frédéric Sammaritano scoring the decisive goal for Auxerre. On 7 April, Sammartino scored the only goal of a semi-final victory against Ligue 1 club and cup holders Guingamp, but Jamel Aït Ben Idir was sent off.


2015 Coupe de France Final, Road to the final, Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain, of Ligue 1, began the tournament in the last 64 with a 3–0 win away to fellow top-flight side Montpellier on 5 January 2015, with second-half goals by Clément Chantôme, Zlatan Ibrahimović and Lucas Moura. Sixteen days later in the last 32, they hosted Bordeaux and won 2–1. An Edinson Cavani header and a Javier Pastore goal gave PSG the lead at half time, although Diego Rolán scored for Bordeaux in the first minute of the second half and the hosts had Zoumana Camara sent off.


2015 Coupe de France Final, Road to the final, Paris Saint-Germain
On 11 February, PSG defeated Nantes 2–0 at home in the last 16 with goals by Cavani and Yohan Cabaye while Ibrahimović was rested. In the quarter-finals on 4 March they won by the same score against Monaco, David Luiz opening the scoring after three minutes and Cavani doubling the lead later on. PSG won 4–1 in their semi-final against Saint-Étienne on 8 April, with a hat-trick by Ibrahimović which took him to 102 goals for the club, starting with a penalty for the 100th.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final
The 2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final was the 21st final of France's football league cup competition, the Coupe de la Ligue, a competition for the 42 teams that the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) manages. The final took place on 11 April 2015 at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis and was contested by reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain, and Bastia, the two teams who also contested the tournament's first ever final in 1995.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final
PSG won 4–0, with two goals in the first half by Zlatan Ibrahimović and a further two in the second by Edinson Cavani. As winners, they would have qualified for the third qualifying round of the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League, but qualified for the season's UEFA Champions League by winning Ligue 1 instead.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Background
Paris Saint-Germain were the reigning champions, having won a record fourth title in the previous year's final with a 2–1 win over Lyon. It was PSG's sixth final — a joint record with Bordeaux — and they had previously won four (1995, 1998, 2008, 2014) and lost one (2000).


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Background
Bastia's only previous Coupe de la Ligue Final was the inaugural edition in 1995. There, they lost 0–2 to PSG.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Route to the final, Bastia
Bastia, as a Ligue 1 club not competing in Europe, entered the tournament in the third round with a home match against Ligue 2 AJ Auxerre at the Stade Armand Cesari on 28 October. They trailed at half time due to Yannis Mbombo's goal for the visitors, but eventually won 3–1 after an equaliser by Floyd Ayité and a brace from Djibril Cissé.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Route to the final, Bastia
In the last 16, Bastia won 3–2 at home against top-flight Caen. Sloan Privat opened the scoring for the visitors, with Guillaume Gillet equalising before half time. In the second half José Saez put Caen back into the lead, and substitute Famoussa Koné equalised again for Bastia with a minute left. They advanced due to an extra-time goal from another substitute, Benjamin Mokulu.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Route to the final, Bastia
Bastia were again the hosts in their quarter-final, a 3–1 win over Rennes. They conceded an early goal by Sylvain Armand, with Sebastian Squillaci equalising two minutes into the second half. Rennes captain Romain Danzé then scored an own goal to give Bastia the lead, and Cissé extended their advantage in added time. The Corsican club travelled for the first time in their semi-final on 5 February, to Monaco, where the game finished goalless after extra time at the Stade Louis II. In the penalty shootout, João Moutinho missed a chance to win the shootout after Giovanni Sio had his attempt saved by Maarten Stekelenburg. It went to sudden death, in which Nabil Dirar missed and Squillaci scored to put Bastia into the final.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Route to the final, Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain, due to competing in the UEFA Champions League, entered the tournament in the last 16 away to Ligue 2 club Ajaccio at the Stade François Coty. They were a goal down at half time, after Serge Aurier fouled Mouaad Madri for a penalty which Johan Cavalli converted past Nicolas Douchez. After the break, Edinson Cavani equalised, Aurier put PSG into the lead and Jean Christophe Bahebeck scored the final goal of a 3–1 win.


2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final, Route to the final, Paris Saint-Germain
On 13 January 2015, away again in the quarter-finals, PSG defeated Ligue 1 club Saint-Étienne by a single goal from Zlatan Ibrahimović. The home team's fans did not believe that the ball had crossed the line, and threw objects onto the pitch, disrupting play for 10 minutes. PSG won away by a single goal again in the semi-final on 4 February, a strike from full-back Maxwell to defeat Lille.


2015 Coventry Bears season
In the 2015 Season Coventry Bears competed in the RFL League 1 and was the first time in the club's history that they competed in the professional leagues of rugby league. Although they won just 5 league matches in their debut season, it was in many ways a successful start to life in the professional leagues with the club attracting an average attendance of 458 and being awarded the League 1 Project of the Year.


2015 Coventry City Council election
The 2015 Coventry City Council election took take place on 7 May 2015 to elect members of Coventry City Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections.


2015 Craven District Council election
The 2015 Craven District Council election took place on 7 May 2015 to elect members of the Craven District Council in England. It was held on the same day as other local elections.


2015 Crawley Borough Council election
The 2015 Crawley Borough Council election took place on 7 May 2015 to elect third of the members of Crawley Borough Council in West Sussex, England as part of the English local elections coinciding with the 2015 General Election. The seats up for election were last contested in 2011.


2015 Crawley Borough Council election, Results
The Labour Party governing group of councillors saw their majority reduced to one councillor, with one gained by a Conservative, keeping some areas of the authority having no representatives within the group with control of the council. Five of six seats held were retained by Labour candidates, keeping some areas with sole majority party representation. None of the unrepresented parties achieved a first or second place in any of the seats for which the election took place. Seats from two lower-population wards were without elections in 2015.


2015 Crescent Cup
The 2015 Crescent Cup or the 2015 Islamic Nations Rugby Championship was the first edition of the expanded annual Muslim nation teams Crescent Cup. The tournament was held in Malacca, Malaysia from 6 to 14 June 2015, sanctioned by World Rugby and Co Organised with the Malaysia Rugby Union under the hospices of the Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation.


2015 Crescent Cup
Five teams still took part to the competition, Algeria, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Malaysia and Uzbekistan. Iran normally the sixth team withdrew from the tournament. Malaysia won the Championship, becoming the first team to win the tournament beating in the controversial final match Algeria, the final match was abandoned after savage all-in brawl involving players, officials and spectators.


2015 Crescent Women World Cup Vårgårda
The 2015 Crescent Women World Cup Vårgårda featured as the ninth round of the 2015 UCI Women's Road World Cup. It was held on 23 August 2015, in Vårgårda, Sweden. Jolien D'Hoore (Wiggle–Honda) won, beating Giorgia Bronzini (Wiggle–Honda) and Lisa Brennauer (Velocio–SRAM).


2015 Crescent Women World Cup Vårgårda TTT
The 2015 Crescent Women World Cup Vårgårda Team time trial featured as the eighth round of the 2015 UCI Women's Road World Cup. It was held on 21 August 2015, in Vårgårda, Sweden. Rabo–Liv won, beating Velocio–SRAM and Boels–Dolmans.


2015 Cricket World Cup
The 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup was a One Day International cricket tournament to decide the 11th Cricket World Cup. It was jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand from 14 February to 29 March 2015, and was won by Australia. This was the second time the tournament was held in Australia and New Zealand, the first having been the 1992 Cricket World Cup.


2015 Cricket World Cup
The tournament consisted of 14 teams, which were split into two pools of seven, with each team playing every other team in their pool once. The top four teams from each pool progressed to the knockout stage, which consisted of quarter-finals, semi-finals and a final.


2015 Cricket World Cup
The final was between the co-hosts Australia and New Zealand. Australia won by seven wickets, to win their fifth Cricket World Cup.


2015 Cricket World Cup
The total attendance was 1,016,420, with an average of 21,175 per game. The final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground had a crowd of 93,013, a record one day cricket crowd for Australia The tournament is estimated to have been watched by over 1.5 billion people; and the most widely watched match during the tournament was India vs. Pakistan, which is estimated to have drawn over 1 billion viewers. Tickets for this match reportedly sold out within 12 minutes of going on sale.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Host selection, Bids
The ICC announced the hosts for the previous World Cup, the 2011 competition, on 30 April 2006. Australia and New Zealand had also bid for the tournament and a successful Australasian bid for the 2011 World Cup would have seen a 50–50 split in games, with the final still up for negotiation. The Trans-Tasman bid, Beyond Boundaries, was the only bid for 2011 delivered to the ICC headquarters at Dubai before 1 March deadline.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Host selection, Bids
Considerable merits of the bid included the superior venues and infrastructure, and the total support of the Australian and New Zealand governments on tax and custom issues during the tournament, according to Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland. The New Zealand government had also assured that the Zimbabwean team would be allowed to take part in the tournament after political discussions about whether their team would be allowed to tour Zimbabwe in 2005.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Host selection, Bids
ICC President Ehsan Mani said that the extra time required by the Asian bloc to hand over its bid had harmed the four-nation bid. However, when it came to the voting, the Asians won by seven votes to four; according to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), it was the vote of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) that turned the matter. It was reported in Pakistani newspaper Dawn that the Asian countries promised to hold fundraising events for West Indian cricket during the 2007 Cricket World Cup, which may have influenced the vote. However, I.S. Bindra, chairman of the monitoring committee of the Asian bid, denied that, saying that it was their promise of extra profits of US$400 million that swung the vote their way.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Host selection, Bids
The ICC was so impressed by the efficiency of the Trans-Tasman bid that they decided to award the next World Cup, to be held in 2015, to them.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Host selection, Bids
Australia and New Zealand last jointly hosted the Cricket World Cup in 1992.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Format
The tournament featured 14 teams, the same number as the 2011 World Cup, giving associate and affiliate member nations a chance to participate.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Format
The format was the same as the 2011 edition: 14 teams take part in the initial stages, divided into two groups of seven; the seven teams play each other once before the top four teams from each group qualify for the quarter-finals.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Format
On 29 January 2015, ICC reinstated the use of the Super Over for Cricket World Cup Final match if the match finished as a tie.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Qualification
Per ICC regulations, the 10 ICC full member nations qualify for the tournament automatically. Immediately after the 2011 World Cup, it was decided that the next tournament would be reduced to only feature the 10 full members. This was met with heavy criticism from a number of associate nations, especially from the Ireland cricket team, who had performed well in 2007 and 2011, including victories over Pakistan and England, both full member nations. Following support shown by the ICC Cricket Committee for a qualification process, the ICC reversed their decision in June 2011 and decided that 14 teams would participate in the 2015 World Cup, including four associate or affiliate member nations.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Qualification
At the ICC Chief Executives' Committee meeting in September 2011, the ICC decided on a new qualifying format. The top two teams of the 2011–13 ICC World Cricket League Championship qualify directly. The remaining six teams join the third and fourth-placed teams of 2011 ICC World Cricket League Division Two and the top two teams of 2013 ICC World Cricket League Division Three in a 10-team World Cup Qualifier to decide the remaining two places.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Qualification
On 9 July 2013, as a result of a tied match against the Netherlands, Ireland became the first country to qualify for the 2015 World Cup. On 4 October 2013, Afghanistan qualified for their first Cricket World Cup after beating Kenya to finish in second place behind Ireland.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Qualification
Scotland defeated the United Arab Emirates in the final of the 2014 Cricket World Cup Qualifier and both teams qualified for the last two spots in the 2015 Cricket World Cup.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Preparations, Local organising committee
In preparation for the 2015 Cricket World Cup, the organising committee of the tournament was finalised. John Harnden was named chief executive, James Strong as chairman, and Ralph Waters was named as the deputy chairman.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Preparations, Allocation of matches
When Australia and New Zealand bid for the 2011 Cricket World Cup in 2006, they said that it will see a 50–50 split in games. Finally, it was decided on 30 July 2013 that Australia would host 26 matches, while New Zealand got a share of 23 matches in the tournament. There was a tense battle between Melbourne and Sydney to host the final. On 30 July 2013, it was announced that Melbourne would host the final, with Sydney and Auckland hosting the semi-finals.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Preparations, Visas
It was announced that spectators travelling to World Cup matches in New Zealand who would otherwise not be entitled to a visa waiver, would be able to enter New Zealand if they held an Australian visitor visa. This was a special Trans-Tasman Visa Arrangement for the 2015 Cricket World Cup.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Preparations, Media and promotion
The World Cup has grown as a media event with each tournament. The International Cricket Council has sold the rights for broadcasting of the 2015 Cricket World Cup for US$2 billion to ESPN Star Sports and Star Sports. According to Strong, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) wants to make the tournament the most fan-friendly event of its kind and take cricket to a wide range of communities throughout Australia and New Zealand.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Preparations, Media and promotion
Sachin Tendulkar was named by the ICC as the World Cup Ambassador for the second time, after filling the role at the 2011 Cricket World Cup.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Opening ceremony
The opening ceremonies were held separately in Christchurch, New Zealand and Melbourne, Australia, on 12 February 2015, two days before the first two matches.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Prize money
The International Cricket Council declared a total prize money pool of $10 million for the tournament, which was 20 percent more than the 2011 edition. The prize money was distributed according to the performance of the team as follows:


2015 Cricket World Cup, Prize money
This means that if the winner had remained undefeated throughout the group stage of the tournament, they would have won a total of $4,245,000 (winner's prize plus $45,000 for each group stage win), while a team eliminated in the group stage without any wins would have gotten $35,000.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Venues
Each venue hosted 3 pool stage matches. The quarter-finals were in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Wellington, the semi-finals were played in Auckland and Sydney, and the final was played in Melbourne. Altogether there were 49 matches in 14 venues, with Australia hosting 26 games and New Zealand hosting 23 games.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Umpires
The umpire selection panel selected 20 umpires to officiate at the World Cup: five each from Australia and England, five from Asia, two each from New Zealand and South Africa and one from the West Indies.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Squads
The teams, after initially naming a provisional 30-member squad, were required to finalise a 15-member squad for the tournament on or before 7 January 2015.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Warm-up matches
Fourteen non-ODI warm-up matches were played from 8 to 13 February.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Group stage
A total of 42 matches were played throughout the group stage of the tournament. The top four teams from each pool qualified for the quarter-finals. In the event that two or more teams are tied on points after six matches the team with the most wins was to be ranked higher. If tied teams also had the same number of wins then they had to be ranked according to net run rate.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Knockout stage
While the dates and venues were fixed, which match-up they host was subject to change to accommodate the host countries should they qualify. Both hosts qualified for the quarter-finals; Australia played the match on 20 March in Adelaide, and New Zealand played the match on 21 March in Wellington. Since Sri Lanka, the next highest ranked team, progressed to the quarter-finals, they played in Sydney. If England had advanced, as they were the third-highest ranked team, they would have played in Melbourne. As England failed to qualify for the quarter-finals, Bangladesh took their place. The teams from each pool was paired based on the A1 v B4, A2 v B3, A3 v B2, A4 v B1 format.


2015 Cricket World Cup, Knockout stage
New Zealand's semi-final against South Africa was played on 24 March in Auckland while Australia's semi-final against India was played on 26 March in Sydney. Both the host nations qualified for the final, where Australia defeated New Zealand by 7 wickets.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final
The final of the 2015 Cricket World Cup took place on 29 March 2015 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia. It was played between the tournament's two co-hosts, New Zealand and Australia. Australia went into the game as favourites and won by 7 wickets for a fifth World Cup triumph. The match was played in front of 93,013 spectators, a record crowd for a day of cricket in Australia.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Background
The 2015 Cricket World Cup started on 14 February and was co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia across 14 venues. Fourteen teams were divided into two pools of seven, with the top four from each pool progressing to the quarter-finals. The final was played on 29 March and was a day-night match contested between New Zealand and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Background
It was New Zealand's first World Cup Final. They had previously lost the semi-final on six occasions between 1975 and 2011. Australia played in their record seventh final, having won four (1987, 1999, 2003 and 2007) and lost two (1975, 1996).


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Background
It was the second consecutive time that two co-hosts contested the final: in 2011, India defeated Sri Lanka in the final while a third co-host Bangladesh exited in the pool stages. It was also the first time since 1987 that there was no Asian team in the final.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Background
The match was also the last One Day International (ODI) for Australian captain Michael Clarke (who announced that he would retire before the match), Brad Haddin, and New Zealand's Daniel Vettori, the latter two announcing their retirements after the match.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Road to the final, New Zealand
New Zealand finished top of Pool A, winning all six games against Sri Lanka, Scotland, England, Australia, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. They faced the West Indies in the quarter-final at the Wellington Regional Stadium, winning by 143 runs. Martin Guptil scored 237 individual runs when New Zealand batted, the highest score at any World Cup and the second highest in ODI matches. In the semi-final at Auckland's Eden Park by 4 wickets in a rain-affected match against South Africa, with Grant Elliott hitting a six off the penultimate ball to win the game.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Road to the final, Australia
Australia finished second in Pool A, losing against New Zealand, having a game cancelled due to rain against Bangladesh and winning their other four matches. In their quarter-final, they defeated Pakistan by 6 wickets at the Adelaide Oval, with Josh Hazlewood taking 4 wickets to help restrict Pakistan to 213 runs. They then qualified for the final by beating defending champions India by 95 runs in the semi-final at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Man of the match was Steven Smith, who scored 105 runs for Australia.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Buildup
Australia entered the final as strong favourites to win. Australia had a strong record at home, winning 24 of their last 26 games and former Australian cricketer Matthew Hayden suggested New Zealand would struggle with the larger field size at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), especially after playing all their tournament games on the smaller New Zealand grounds. Additionally, Australia had a much stronger record at the World Cup, having already won it four times. At the MCG Australia had won their last six matches, although they did lose the last time they played New Zealand there in 2009. Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting stated that Australia were overwhelming favourites and one could not find a weakness in the Australian team.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Buildup
New Zealand's captain, Brendon McCullum, maintained an aggressive approach throughout the tournament, and said the final match would be no different. Australia's captain Michael Clarke said the loss against New Zealand during the group stages gave his side the "kick up the backside" they needed.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Match officials
The match was umpired by Sri Lanka's Kumar Dharmasena and England's Richard Kettleborough, both of whom were on the Elite Panel of ICC Umpires. Kettleborough was named the ICC umpire of the year in 2013 and 2014 with Dharmasena winning the award in 2012. Dharmasena was part of the Sri Lanka team which won the 1996 final against Australia, and became the first person to feature in the final as a player and as an umpire. Sri Lankan Ranjan Madugalle was the match referee, South Africa's Marais Erasmus was the TV umpire and former England ODI international cricketer Ian Gould was the fourth umpire.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Details
New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat. Brendon McCullum was bowled in the fifth ball of the first over by Mitchell Starc. By the time the second wicket had fallen, that of Martin Guptill, New Zealand were making slow progress and were 38 for 2 from 12 overs. Kane Williamson was caught and bowled the following over by Mitchell Johnson for 12 runs, followed by a maiden from Josh Hazlewood. By the halfway mark, New Zealand were 93 for 3 with Grant Elliott on 39 and Ross Taylor on 20.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Details
Taylor lasted until the 36th over when he was caught behind off the bowling of James Faulkner for 40. Faulkner enhanced his wicket maiden by bowling Corey Anderson for a duck, with New Zealand on 150 for 5 after 36 overs. Clarke caught Luke Ronchi from Starc's bowling for a duck and Daniel Vettori was dismissed three overs later for eight, leaving New Zealand on 167 for 7 from 41 overs. Elliot fell to Faulkner the following over, caught by Brad Haddin for 83, leaving both Matt Henry and Tim Southee at the crease on zero. Both were dismissed in the 45th over, Henry caught by Starc off Johnson and Southee run out. New Zealand's innings closed with them 183 all out.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Details
Australia's start was equally ignominious with Aaron Finch being caught and bowled by Trent Boult in the second over for a duck. By the end of the 10th over, Australia were 56 for 1, with David Warner on 39 and Steve Smith on 13. Warner was dismissed in the 13th over for 45, being caught by Elliott off the bowling of Henry but Australia remained resolute to end the 20th over on 98 for 2, Clarke on 21 and the steady Smith on 25.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Details
By the end of the 30th over, Clarke, who received the majority of deliveries, was on 57 while Smith had 47. Clarke was dismissed in the 32nd, bowled by Henry for 74, but by now Australia required just nine runs from 113 deliveries. Shane Watson came in to support Smith as he struck the winning shot, a four off Henry from the first ball of the 34th over, to win the match by seven wickets.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Details
Australian captain Clarke dedicated the victory to Phillip Hughes who had died after being struck on the neck by a bouncer the previous November.


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Details
Fall of wickets: 1/1 (McCullum, 0.5 ov), 2/33 (Guptill, 11.2 ov), 3/39 (Williamson, 12.2 ov), 4/150 (Taylor, 35.1 ov), 5/150 (Anderson, 35.3 ov), 6/151 (Ronchi, 36.2 ov), 7/167 (Vettori, 40.6 ov), 8/171 (Elliott, 41.5 ov), 9/182 (Henry, 44.5 ov), 10/183 (Southee, 44.6 ov)


2015 Cricket World Cup Final, Match, Details
Fall of wickets: 1/2 (Finch, 1.4 ov), 2/63 (Warner, 12.2 ov), 3/175 (Clarke, 31.1 ov)


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A
Pool A of the 2015 Cricket World Cup took place from 14 February to 14 March 2015. The group consisted of co-hosts Australia and New Zealand, and along with them, England, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Scotland. This phase of the tournament was played as a full round-robin between all seven teams, with the top four teams, New Zealand, Australia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, advancing to the quarter-finals.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs Sri Lanka
The opening game of the 2015 Cricket World Cup saw hosts New Zealand playing Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field. Kumar Sangakkara (SL) moved into second place in the list of players with the most runs in ODI matches, overtaking Ricky Ponting (Aus).


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, Australia vs England
Australia were put in to bat by England who won the toss. After opener Aaron Finch was dropped in the first over without having scored, Australia raced away to 52, before David Warner and Shane Watson were dismissed off consecutive balls in the eighth over. In the 11th over, the dismissal of Steve Smith left Australia at 70/3. Captain George Bailey then joined Finch and the two added 146 runs in 26 overs for the fourth wicket. Finch was run out for 135 and soon Bailey was also sent back for 55.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, Australia vs England
Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh then put on 53 runs in 7 overs for the sixth wicket before Marsh fell and the Australian score read 281/6 in the 46th over. Brad Haddin came into bat at 9 and shared a partnership of 61 runs off just 27 balls with Maxwell. In the final over of the innings, Steven Finn removed Haddin for a 14-ball 31 and Maxwell for a 40-ball 66 off consecutive balls. Finn completed the hat-trick getting the wicket of Mitchell Johnson off the final ball, and Australia finished at 342/9.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, Australia vs England
England's chase started with Mitchell Starc breaking the opening stand of 25, following which Marsh picked the next five wickets. England were reduced to 92/6, before James Taylor and Chris Woakes steadied the innings with a 92-run partnership. After Woakes fell for 37, Australia picked two more wickets off consecutive overs. From 195/9, England could add 36 runs for the last wicket before a controversial run out ended their innings. Taylor remained unbeaten on 98 as Australia secured a 111-run victory. Finch won the Man of the Match award for his knock.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs Scotland
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum won the toss and put Scotland in to bat. Trent Boult and Tim Southee picked up two wickets each within the first five overs of the innings which left Scotland at 12/4. Both Matt Machan and Richie Berrington then scored fifties before being dismissed by Corey Anderson. Scotland's lower order offered little resistance and their innings ended in 36.2 overs at 142. Anderson and Daniel Vettori picked 3 wickets each for New Zealand.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs Scotland
In reply, New Zealand lost wickets at regular intervals from the start and were 66/3 in the 11th over. Kane Williamson and Grant Elliott put on 40 runs for the fourth wicket, before Williamson fell for 38. Scotland picked another three wickets in quick time to leave New Zealand 137/7 in the 24th over. Vettori scored an unbeaten 8 from 4 balls and New Zealand went on to win the match by 3 wickets. Boult was awarded the Man of the Match for his bowling figures of 6-1-21-2 in Scotland's innings.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs England
England captain Eoin Morgan, after winning the toss, elected to bat first. England were bowled out for 123 in the 34th over, having lost their last seven wickets for 19 runs in eight overs. New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee picked up 7/33 in his 9 overs, which was the third-best haul in World Cup history. Joe Root, who scored 46, was the only England batsman to show some resilience.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs England
New Zealand's chase got off to a brisk start, mainly due to their captain Brendon McCullum who scored the fastest World Cup fifty reaching the landmark in just 18 balls. New Zealand had made 105 in 7 overs without losing a wicket. McCullum was dismissed off the first ball of the eighth over for 77, and the other opener, Martin Guptill also fell to the bowling of Chris Woakes in the tenth over. New Zealand consolidated the innings following this and went on to win the game by 8 wickets with more than 37 overs to spare. Southee won the Man of the Match for his bowling efforts.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan captain Angelo Mathews won the toss and elected to field. Afghanistan got off to a solid start before both their openers were dismissed off consecutive overs and the score read 40/2 in the tenth over. Asghar Stanikzai and Samiullah Shenwari built a steady third-wicket partnership which was broken when Afghanistan had reached 128 in the 28th over. Following this, Afghanistan started losing wickets at regular intervals to the Sri Lankan pace bowlers before finally being bowled out for 232 in 49.4 overs. Lasith Malinga and Mathews picked 3 wickets each for Sri Lanka.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka's innings got off to a disastrous start as both openers fell for ducks within the second over. Then in the sixth over, they lost the wicket of Kumar Sangakkara with the score at 18/3. They slipped into further trouble when Dimuth Karunaratne was dismissed in the 12th over with the Sri Lankan total still at 51. Mahela Jayawardene and Mathews then added 126 runs for the fifth wicket. Mathews was run out for 44 and Jayawardene was dismissed soon after completing his 19th ODI hundred.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka
Thisara Perera, who came in to bat with Sri Lanka in a precarious position of 178/6, struck an unbeaten 47 from 26 balls to guide his team to a four-wicket win with ten balls to spare. Jayawardene was awarded the Man of the Match for his innings of 100 from 120 balls.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs Australia
Australian captain Michael Clarke won the toss and elected to bat first. Australia got off to a brisk start, putting up 48/1 at the end of the first five overs. However, Shane Watson and David Warner were dismissed off consecutive balls with the score at 80. This triggered a collapse, with Trent Boult picking up five wickets in the first three overs of his second spell. Australia were left struggling at 106/9 at the end of 22 overs, before Brad Haddin and Pat Cummins put on 45 runs for the 10th wicket to take the Australian total to 151.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs Australia
New Zealand started off rapidly in their chase, thanks to a 21-ball fifty from their captain Brendon McCullum who took his team to 72/1 after 7 overs. Soon after, Australia fought back picking up three wickets in five deliveries. New Zealand began rebuilding with a 52-run partnership between Kane Williamson and Corey Anderson. The partnership was broken when Anderson was dismissed by Glenn Maxwell and the score read 131/5. In the next three overs, Mitchell Starc and Cummins took four more wickets between them, leaving New Zealand at 146/9 in 23 overs.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, New Zealand vs Australia
With 6 runs needed from 27 overs, Williamson struck a six off the bowling of Cummins to give New Zealand a memorable one-wicket victory. Williamson ended up with an unbeaten 45 and the Man of the Match was awarded to Boult who had figures of 5/27 in his 10 overs, including three maidens. New Zealand also won the Chappell–Hadlee Trophy as a result of this win.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, England vs Sri Lanka
England captain Eoin Morgan won the toss and elected for his side to bat first. The England openers started solidly, but they were reduced from 62/0 in the 10th over to 101/3 in the 21st. Joe Root and Morgan added 60 runs for the fourth wicket before the dismissal of Morgan. The fifth wicket partnership between Root and James Taylor yielded 98 runs in 11 overs. Taylor fell for 25, following which Root was also dismissed for a 108-ball 121. England were 265/6 in the 47th over, before Jos Buttler struck an unbeaten 39 in 19 balls to take the total to 309/6 at the end of 50 overs.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, England vs Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan innings began with Lahiru Thirimanne being dropped on 3. His opening partner Tillakaratne Dilshan was out for 44 immediately after their partnership had reached 100 runs. Kumar Sangakkara joined Thirimanne and the left-hand duo punished the England bowlers with each of the batsmen making hundreds. Thirimanne struck a six off the third ball of the 48th over to complete an emphatic 9-wicket victory. Thirimanne remained unbeaten on a 143-ball 139, while Sangakkara won the Man of the Match for his unbeaten 117 off just 86 balls.


2015 Cricket World Cup Pool A, Matches, Australia vs Afghanistan
Afghanistan captain Mohammad Nabi won the toss and put Australia in to bat. After losing the wicket of Aaron Finch in the third over, Australia put on a 260-run second wicket partnership between David Warner and Steve Smith, before Warner was dismissed for 178 off 133 balls. Smith and Glenn Maxwell then shared 65 runs in 32 balls for the third wicket before Smith fell five runs short of a hundred. Maxwell continued scoring at a brisk rate, but, in the 48th over, he was dismissed for a 39-ball 88. Brad Haddin scored an unbeaten 20 off 9 balls towards the end of the innings to push the Australian total to 417/6 at the end of their 50 overs, which was the highest-ever total in a World Cup match.