For many people, a bench is ani international symbol of unity, off friendship, of camaraderie. Benches sit all over the world as a place to honour others, wrap our arms around each other, sit and reflect, or meet and connect. A bench is a symbol of connection, courage, camaraderie, care, celebration, commiseration and compassion.

In rugby, it’s the backbone of our teams in black.The eight who have the backs of the 15 on the field. It’s the bench that gets them on the field, and the bench beyond that supports them all year round. It’s our communities, our whānau, our first coaches, the volunteers, the orange slicers, the refs and the fans.

To say thank you, the All Blacks officially extended their bench to supporters on the field, on the sidelines, in the stands and at home all around
the world. The All Blacks gifted a bench to 26 communities across Aotearoa New Zealand and the Kindness Collective, our children and community were invited to part of the official blessing of all the benches along with Ngāti Whatua.

We were also part of two other events around the Rugby World Cup and over 250 tamariki got to spend time with the All Blacks thanks to this campaign.