Newark Town Football Club play German side FC Emmendingen 03 in a memorial match in Ypres, Belgium

The centenary of the end of the first world war was marked by Newark Town Football Club in Ypres, Belgium, with an emotional 90 minutes of football against German side FC Emmendingen 03.

The referee’s whistle signalled a two-minutes silence, 100 years on from the very moment the war ended. Once the players paid their respects, a friendlier rivalry commenced on the field.

In high spirits and playing in memory of former Newark mayor Mr Chris Grant, the English side managed to defeat their German opposition on penalties.

But despite the win, Newark Town’s joint manager, Colin Rusby, highlighted the importance of the weekend as a whole, rather than just the peace game.

“There has been no single thing which has been a highlight for me,” he said.

“We have been to Menin Gate, we have seen the bomb holes, the trenches, the place of the Christmas Day truce match, visited museums, and witnessed the raw brutality of the war.

“How people ever managed I don’t know. I can’t describe how it must have been. It is so hard to put yourself in the position of a somebody who experienced the war.”

After a near ten-hour coach journey to Ypres, the players arrived at the Peace Village, a hostel they shared with their Armistice Day peace game rivals, FC Emmendingen 03.

Having met their opponents, the squad travelled to Menin Gate for the 8pm service.

Former solider of five years Lewis Poole, club captain Luke Parsons and peace match goal-scorer Liam Warner laid wreaths.

The next day saw the two teams visit the site of the 1914 Christmas Truce football match, in which Newark solider William Setchfield may have been involved.

The two teams posed for photographs and laid a pennant at the memorial site near Ploegsteert Woods, the place where soldiers laid down their weapons and exchanged cigarettes and alcohol, before playing the universal game of football.

Further memorial site visits followed before the two sides came together for a quiz, written in both German and English, to the frustration of the Newark players.

Renzo Dueringer, president of FC Emmendingen 03, said: “Just as strong friendships are formed the players go against each other.

“I am proud of our team and this has been a great trip for both.