The Super Rugby Pacific community will unite this weekend to commemorate the Anzac spirit and to honour those who have served and continue to serve our nations.
Anzac Weekend Round is an opportunity for all in our game to reflect on and pay tribute to the selflessness, courage and sacrifice of our servicemen and women.
All matches in Round 11 will feature traditional pre-game ceremonies and a number of teams will don specially designed jerseys to mark the occasion.
History will be made on Anzac Day, Friday 25 April, as the Chiefs welcome the Western Force to a sold-out Bay Oval in Tauranga for the first-ever Super Rugby game played at the venue.
The second game on Anzac Day will see the Queensland Reds and Blues compete for the newly unveiled Sellars Dixon Medal at Suncorp Stadium.
The medal honours two-Test All Black George Sellars and Queensland five-eighth William Dixon, who faced off on the rugby field in 1910 and died within days of each other on the Western Front in 1917.
On Saturday Moana Pasifika will take on the Fijian Drua at North Harbour Stadium, while paying tribute to the servicemen and women of the wider Pacific region.
The Highlanders will don their Anzac Jersey for their showdown with the Crusaders at Forsyth Barr Stadium and invite fans onto the field after the final whistle.
The weekend will conclude with the ACT Brumbies, wearing a jersey featuring Australian Navy flagship HMAS Canberra, hosting the Hurricanes at GIO Stadium.
The two teams will compete for the inaugural Captain Shout Cup, named in recognition of Captain Alfred John Shout, who served both New Zealand and Australia, took part in the Gallipoli campaign and was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions at Lone Pine.
The game day in Canberra will begin with two curtain-raisers between the Army and Air Force men’s and women’s sides, with all former and current Australian Defence Force personnel to receive free entry prior to 4.15pm AEST.
