All Black Cam Roigard celebrates after scoring a try with All Blacks Peter Lakai, Beauden Barrett and Wallace Sititi during All Blacks v France Northern Tour match on 16 November. Photo: Supplied / Bob Martin
The sale of a rare All Blacks jersey will help New Zealand's living war veterans, the president of the Returned and Services' Association (RSA) says.
When the All Blacks played France last November, they honoured veterans by wearing an RSA poppy embroidered onto their jersey as part of the Remembrance Test - to honour those New Zealanders who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service of their country.
One of the tops - a white version of the national jersey to differentiate from France's dark blue - was gifted to the RSA. It is now up for auction.
National president and former All Black Sir Wayne Shelford said it was "heartwarming" to receive the jersey, which was signed by the 2024 squad and coach Scott Robertson.
"It's a great honour... to be given one of those jerseys to auction off. The All Blacks themselves realise that by wearing the poppy they're helping our veterans out, which is awesome.
"Pulling on the black jersey is incredibly emotional for any player, but having that mark of respect for veterans embroidered on the sleeve takes it to another level. The poppy is worn to honour the fallen, but this gift from the All Blacks will now allow us to provide more support to our living veterans."
He said there were probably between 13,000 to 16,000 living veterans who had taken part in wars since World War II. Many had ongoing issues they needed support with, such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or just simply getting older, he added.
Shelford called the jersey a "true collector's item" as the jerseys were only made for the test played against France on. No supporters jerseys were produced or made available for sale.
The jersey was on Trade Me, and the auction would close at 7.45pm on Wednesday, 7 May.
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