Push to honour slain soldier at rugby clash

By PAUL YANDALL AND JOSIE CLARKE

The All Blacks may dedicate their Bledisloe Cup clash with Australia to the memory of Private Leonard Manning.

The New Zealand Rugby Football Union is considering asking the crowd at Saturday's match to observe a minute's silence for the 24-year-old soldier killed in East Timor last week.

The move follows a request from the Army and has been welcomed by Private Manning's family.

A rugby union spokeswoman said the matter would be discussed with the Manning family today.

Private Manning's mother, Linda Manning, said the family were "over the moon" that the rugby union was considering the gesture.

"He always watched the All Blacks. For them to honour him with a minute's silence would be just great."

Mrs Manning said she, her husband Charlie, their daughter Linda Rees and Linda's husband Michael Rees had been offered tickets to attend the test match at Wellington's WestpacTrust Stadium.

"We always watch the All Blacks on TV. This time we're all heading down there for the game.

"Leonard loved his rugby. He was based in Burnham [Christchurch], but always used to go to games in his Waikato jersey singing 'Mooloo, mooloo'.

"That's where he met his best friend Steve, in Otago. They were the only two there with Waikato jerseys on."

The crowd at the Warriors-Eagles match at Ericsson Stadium on Sunday also bowed their heads for a minute's silence in memory of the slain soldier.

Private Manning was shot by pro-Indonesian militia near East Timor's treacherous border region last Monday. His funeral was held in Te Kauwhata on Saturday.

He became the first New Zealander to be killed by enemy fire since the Vietnam War.