SYDNEY (AP) — Prince Harry was at Sydney’s Olympic stadium 23 years ago when England won the 2003 Rugby World Cup, celebrating later with the players after England flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson kicked a drop goal in the last minute of extra time to defeat Australia.

The Duke of Sussex is expected to be back at a rugby match in Sydney on Friday after Harry and his wife Meghan Markle were invited to attend a Super Rugby match in a private suite at the former Sydney Football Stadium.

The person who issued the invitation was none other than Rugby Australia chief executive Phil Waugh, who has far different memories of that 2003 final — he was on the field as vice captain of the Wallabies and was actively involved in the play when Wilkinson kicked the winning goal.

Harry and Meghan have only one night in Sydney as part of their first visit to Australia since 2018. They arrived in Melbourne on Tuesday on what they have described as a privately-funded visit.

The 10th-round match between the New South Wales Waratahs and Moana Pasifika will be played exactly 18 months before Australia’s follow-up Rugby World Cup begins in October 2027.

“Harry loves his rugby and we are looking forward to hosting him and Meghan at Friday night’s game,” said Waugh. “Australian audiences will remember Harry celebrating as England held aloft the Webb Ellis trophy on these shores in 2003.

“And with the Rugby World Cup returning to Australia next year, we are delighted to welcome him back for a match that will feature test players from Australia and across the Pacific.”

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AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby