The cup is ours!

24 years of pain are over ... But boy did they make us suffer

There was only one point in the All Blacks' victory over France in last night's Rugby World Cup final but to Rotorua fans it felt like a million.

It was an intense game with a nailbiting finish but Rotorua's All Blacks fans came away happy after the New Zealand side beat France 8-7.

Thousands of people of all ages - both All Blacks and French supporters - turned out to Rotorua's Fanzone at the city's Energy Events Centre last night to watch the final. Support for the New Zealand side was undeniable. The enthusiastic crowd dressed in black and white showed their love for the All Blacks by screaming, jumping, clapping, yelling and waving their black and white flags.

When All Black Tony Woodcock scored the team's only try, the Fanzone crowd couldn't hide their excitement, most getting out of their seats to cheer.

Rotorua's Chris Edmonds, Jo Edmonds and Audrey Savage were among the All Blacks supporters and were excited about the All Blacks victory.

"Winning it by one is like winning by a million," Mrs Edmonds said.

The trio enjoyed everything about the atmosphere at Fanzone with Mr Edmonds saying it was "better than watching it at home".

Meanwhile, French tourist Bryan Roussel said despite his home country losing the Rugby World Cup final, he was "really happy for New Zealand".

"I loved this game because the French team was playing well. We lost but we played well," Mr Roussel said.

He visited the Fanzone to watch the game with his two friends - fellow tourists Hanneke van Buren from Holland and his German friend who wanted only to be known as Chris - who were supporting new Zealand.

Jean Kinzler, from France, was proudly wearing a French flag despite his team's loss.

Rotorua District Council RWC event co-ordinator Renee Nathan was pleased with how the Fanzone had been run.

She said she had received a lot of positive feedback about the Rotorua Fanzone for being very family friendly and offering a lot of activities for the children.

"I think the win has just been the icing on the cake," Mrs Nathan said.