The Somme Cup 2015

On 29 September 2015 the New Zealand Defence Force rugby team (now known as the “Defence Blacks”) will play a French selection in Paris commemorating a match in 1917 where the NZ Division played a French military side in front of a crowd said to number 60,000 people. The match will be held at the Jean Bouin Stadium, Paris, and kick-off is scheduled for 7.00 pm.

As part of the Defence Blacks' commemorative tour in Europe, the team will play a one-off match in the Dave Gallaher Rugby Tournament against the Belgium national team on 3 October. From there, the team goes to the United Kingdom for the International Defence Force Rugby World Cup (IDRC)

While in Europe the team will also take part in a number of services to acknowledge the sacrifice of 700 New Zealand soldiers who died in the 1917 Battle of Messines.

Download this event's order of service (PDF, 1.69 MB)