Webb Ellis Cup on Great Rugby Road Trip

A massive nationwide rugby tour to say ‘thank you New Zealand', and featuring the coveted Webb Ellis Cup will call on 41 New Zealand towns and cities over the next two months.

The Great Rugby Road Trip will see a custom-built black truck transport rugby's prized silverware from Northland to Stewart Island. It comes to the Wellington region on 16, 17 and 18 March.

"The Road Trip is about saying thank you New Zealand for the wonderful support you gave us during Rugby World Cup 2011," said Steve Tew, NZRU Chief Executive. "We're hoping the tour rekindles the excitement of those magical six weeks and encourages people to keep backing rugby - whether it's by playing, refereeing, coaching, volunteering, or simply getting along and enjoying a game."?

The Road Trip will showcase New Zealand rugby's prized trophies, including the Webb Ellis Cup, the Bledisloe Cup and IRB Women's Rugby World Cup and the IRB Junior World Championship Trophy.?

Each day the NZRU and provincial rugby unions from throughout the country will host free public events to provide Kiwis the chance to get up close and personal with these trophies currently held by the All Blacks, Blacks Ferns and the New Zealand Under 20s and Sevens teams.? The Great Rugby Road Trip will also visit 100 schools and host dedicated forums at rugby clubs in each of the 26 Provincial Union regions.?

At the public events fans will be able to enjoy a range of fun rugby activities for the whole family while plenty of prizes will be up for grabs, including Investec Super Rugby jerseys and two all-expenses paid All Blacks Weekend Test experiences. Special rugby guests will also be dropping in. In addition, the Road Trip truck is equipped with state of the art technology to allow fans to have their photo taken alongside virtual images of All Blacks Captain Richie McCaw and other members of the Rugby World Cup winning side.?

"The support for rugby comes from all pockets of New Zealand, so to be able to share the success of, not only our RWC 2011 winning side, but our other successful teams with our stadium of four million is fantastic," said Steve Tew.

"This is the traditional registration time of year for most rugby clubs, and The Great Rugby Road Trip is the perfect way to support Provincial Unions and their annual drive to get people signed up to play."

Trophies on display include: The Webb Ellis Cup - won by the All Blacks in 1987 and 2011, the trophy was fashioned in 1906 but only selected for use as the Rugby World Cup trophy in February 1987 The Bledisloe Cup - the traditional prize of trans-Tasman rivalry which the All Blacks retained for the ninth year in a row in 2011The Hillary Shield - named in honour of Sir Edmund Hillary and unveiled in 2008, it is contested between the All Blacks and England. The IRB Women's Rugby World Cup - the Black Ferns claimed their fourth consecutive World Cup win in September 2010The IRB Junior World Championship Trophy - won for a fourth straight year by the New Zealand Under 20 side in 2011.The HSBC Sevens World Series Trophy was introduced for the first time in the 1999-2000 season. New Zealand has secured the trophy nine times in the last 12 tournaments.

The Great Rugby Road Trip Wellington region schedule is:

• Fri 16 March Porirua Te Rauparaha Arena3pm - 6pm
• Sat17 March Wellington Queens Wharf2pm - 6pm
• Sun18 March Hutt Valley Venue tbc11am- 3pm