The Rugby-loving Island Nation will witness the Haka once again, as the 2nd Edition of the historic “NZ U85kg Rugby Tour” will be worked off on the 25th of April and 3rd of May 2026.
The All Ceylon Team took on the mighty All Blacks way back in 1907 in the first International Rugby Fixture between any kind of New Zealand outfit. It took 118 years since the first game for any kind of New Zealand Rugby outfit to tour the island nation.
In the year 2025, Sri Lanka, a nation that boasts of a rich Rugby heritage, turned a new leaf in the annals of their history. A blockbuster “New Zealand U85kg Rugby Tour” was planned and executed to perfection, revoking the ties between two of the oldest Rugby-playing nations in the world.
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The historic 1st edition of the New Zealand U85kg Rugby Tour consisted of a two legged fixture, where the teams battled it out for the brand new “Sir Graham Henry Cup”.
The fixtures were dominated by the visitors, as they clinched both legs of the tour to win the inaugural edition.
The results of the 2025 edition –
- 1st Leg : NZ U85kg 50 – 10 Sri Lanka
- 2nd Leg : NZ U85kg 32 – 6 Sri Lanka
The 1st Leg which was played on May 4, 2025, was worked off at a jam-packed Nittawela Rugby Stadium, Kandy. The game however was pretty one sided, with the NZ U85kg team snapping a comfortable win. Positives for Sri Lanka out of this game was the try scored off a maul.
The 2nd Leg was played on May 10, 2025, at the Race Course Stadium in Colombo under lights. Despite the game being dominated by the visitors, Sri Lanka improved on their defense in this leg to restrict the skillful and pacey NZ Team to 32 points; an improvement from the 1st leg.
With a positive mind, and renewed national Rugby spirit in Sri Lanka, especially after the impressive performance in the Asia Rugby Emirates 7s Series 2025, NZ U85kg Rugby Team will tour Sri Lanka once again for the 2nd consecutive year.
The fixtures of the 2nd Edition will be as follows –
1st Leg:
New Zealand Under 85kg v Sri Lanka Tuskers
Colombo – 25 April 2026
2nd Leg:
New Zealand Under 85kg v Sri Lanka Tuskers
Kandy – 3 May 2026
Steve Lancaster, Interim Chief Executive of New Zealand Rugby, stated,
“We’re genuinely stoked to be able to confirm this tour and give this team the opportunity to represent New Zealand overseas again. Sri Lanka are a proud Rugby nation, and last year’s tour drew passionate crowds and strong community engagement. We know the Sri Lankan team will offer another strong challenge on the field and that’s exactly what you expect when you pull on a black jersey.”
(from nzrugby.co.nz.)
With the excitement and the buzz around this tour, we wish our Sri Lankan Tuskers, whilst also wishing and thanking NZ Rugby for igniting the sporting ties between a nation that has always dared to dream bigger.
