The pair carried with them a Welsh rugby jersey signed with good luck messages from jubilant fans.
Admiral office workers Craig Jenkins and Julia Pring both won a competition organised by the insurance company with a top prize of a trip to Auckland and tickets for the semi final encounter at Eden Park.
Last Monday they were sitting at their desks in South Wales looking forward to watching the game on television with millions of fellow fans watching at home in Wales.
But on Tuesday morning they were both told to pack their bags and head for the airport to jet 12,000 miles to the centre of the rugby world in Auckland.
Craig got a personal phone call from an Admiral executive who asked him:”Are you sitting down?” before breaking the news of his competition success.
Julia wondered if she had dropped a clanger when bosses surrounded her desk in Swansea and until her dread turned to delight when they broke the good news.
The pair turned up at the Auckland team hotel on Friday for a personal meeting with Wales team captain Sam Warburton on the eve of the big game. They presented Sam with the jersey and wished the team success in the match against France.
Sam said: ”I am delighted Craig and Julia have won this competition to be with us at Eden Park for the game.
“Meeting them has given us a glimpse of just how excited everyone back home is about how well the boys have done so far in this Rugby World Cup.
“It is a great prize and I talking to them now I don’t think it has sunk in yet that they are actually here in New Zealand.
“We have great fans and it is great when we receive gestures of support like the signed jersey to remind us of how much the team means to them.”
Julia said: ”I still can’t believe we are actually here and will be in the ground when Wales take on France in the semi final. It has been great meeting Sam and some of the other players because I never would have dreamt this could happen this week.
“The boys have been so nice especially when you think it is so close to one of the biggest games of their lives. I feel a bit jetlagged after the jersey but I am too excited to sleep because this whole experience is just so great.”
Craig added: ”For any rugby fan winning a competition like this would be a dream come true. After entering the competition I never dreamt I would win and it all happened so quickly it still doesn’t seem real.
“I am a big rugby fan and this trip is something I will remember forever.”
Craig and Julia are also Ospreys fans and caught up with props Adam Jones and Paul James during their time inside the Welsh camp.
