The Siam Cup

The Siam Cup is one of the oldest trophies in rugby; it is played for between Jersey Rugby Club and Guernsey Rugby Club, normally the last fixture of the season. The game alternates between the two islands, this season (2009) to be played in Jersey.

The cup itself is a large circular rosebowl, 33cm high, 23 cm in diameter. It is made of Siamese (Thai) silver, from melted down Ticals (Siamese silver dollars) and is decorated with figures of dancing girls and elephant’s heads.

The five gentlemen (four from Guernsey and one from Jersey) who organised the making of this trophy were working in Siam around 1920 and had contacts with the King. The King instructed his own silversmiths to create this trophy.

The cup is beyond value and is now kept at HQ at Twickenham, just in case the Germans come back; a replica is kept in the trophy cabinet of the victorious island. Sadly this is currently Guernsey but we aim to change its location in May.

One can throw the form book out of the window for this game; it is raw local derby rugby with no quarter given and can be very difficult to referee - usually a highly qualified official is flown in from the UK to manage this fixture.