The Canberra Raiders will wear a specially designed ANZAC jersey, when they take on the South Sydney Rabbitohs in Cairns on Sunday April 26 (Round 8) to commemorate ANZAC troops landing in Gallipoli 100 years ago.
The jersey was unveiled last night at the ‘Hearts of Valour’ Ball at the Hyatt Hotel in Canberra, an event which featured Major General the Honourable Michael Jeffery donating two medal sets (on behalf of the Cross of Valour Association) to the Australian War Memorial.
The Cross of Valour is Australia's highest civilian award for bravery. It was established in 1975 to replace the Imperial Cross, previously awarded to Australians. The Cross of Valour is awarded "only for acts of the most conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme peril". The award carries the post-nominal initials CV and only five honours have been awarded up to now.
Round eight of the NRL this season will see five matches played on ANZAC day itself (Saturday April 25), with the Raiders v Rabbitohs match rounding out a huge tribute weekend by the code.
The Raiders match, and more specifically the ANZAC themed jersey, will receive large exposure with the game telecast live as part of Channel 9’s Sunday afternoon coverage. The Raiders commemorative jersey features the silhouette of an Australian digger sitting above a map of Gallipoli.
Following the match in April, the Raiders will auction off the match worn jerseys through www.allbids.com.au to raise money for three aligned ex-service charities – Soldier On, Woden Valley RSL Sub-Branch and Canberra Legacy.
Raiders members and fans can also pre-purchase the jersey from, February 14, from Raiders Shop and Jerseys Megastore, with stock arriving for delivery from mid-late March.
