Seeking what would be just a fifth 'Grand Slam' in their legendary past, the All Blacks have headed north at an pivotal moment.
Games against Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales await Scott Robertson's side across the upcoming weeks but, in addition to the chance to equal the squads of previous successful tours in the history books, the matches will be used as a measure to assess the development of the squad under a leader now 24 months into from assuming control.
Doubts over a absence of an clear playing identity, continuing controversies over player choices and leavings from the coaching ticket have all fueled the perception that the most recognisable team in the rugby is currently one in a state of flux.
Most significantly, it is the dip in performances from a past excellence set between the global tournaments of 2011 and 2019 that has prompted some to theorize that we have moved out of the period of New Zealand dominance.
Prior to their travel for the northern hemisphere, it was announced that next year, in the non-existence of the Rugby Championship, New Zealand will play South Africa in a off-season matches termed 'a unique competition'.
Historically the rugby's premier teams, there is clear agreement over who has lately dominated of what promoters have labeled 'Rugby's Greatest Rivalry'.
During the last decade, the South African team have won a couple of global tournaments, three Rugby Championships and a competition against the home nations team to be regarded as the side of their period.
The All Blacks have persisted to overcome Ireland when it matters most, overcoming their next challengers in the World Cup quarter finals of recent years. They have, meanwhile, lost just a couple of the past 21 meetings with England, have beaten the Welsh side in every encounter since the sixties and have never suffered defeat by Scotland.
But the decline of their standing as the sport's measure of excellence will continue to rankle.
Whereas the New Zealand team dominated through the last ten years - securing eighty-seven percent of their international games, as well as lifting the Webb Ellis on two occasions - the World Cup of the previous competition can now be viewed as when the competitive landscape shifted in the international rugby.
New Zealand overcame South Africa in their opening match of the competition in the host nation, but it was the Boks' who were finally victorious in the final.
Since then, the New Zealand's success rate has declined to seventy-one percent. South Africa themselves lost ten of their subsequent fixtures but, from the beginning of 2023, have achieved victory at a percentage (83%) to match even the previous All Blacks side.
Throughout the equivalent timeframe, the Springboks have won five of the past fixtures between the opponents, comprising victory in the 2023 World Cup final.
In claiming their current southern hemisphere crown, Rassie Erasmus' side delivered a historic loss on the All Blacks courtesy of overwhelming display in their home ground, a result which has ignited another round of debate concerning the progress of the side under the coach.
Perhaps most jarring for supporters of the All Blacks will be that, allied to their traditional strength, the Springboks' success has come with an creative approach more usually associated with their own side.
At the time that the New Zealand team were at the zenith of their abilities a decade past, they were a ruthless counter-attacking unit equipped of shredding rivals from every section of the field and at any moment of the contest.
Now, their playing philosophy is less defined as the coach, who has awarded 19 debuts during his 24 months in control, tries to initially build the more prosaic core elements of a competitive squad.
It has previously announced that the assistant coach responsible for scoring, Jason Holland, will depart his position after the autumn tour, becoming the additional person of the coaching staff to exit after Leon MacDonald walked away last year after just a handful of games.
It was not merely his winning record, but his approach, that was expected to transfer from his former team when he took over after the global competition but, to date, the two aspects are still a continuous improvement.
Following financial organization investors bought a stake in New Zealand rugby in recent years, the ensuing statement discussed the "pursuit of international expansion" for the organization.
That objective has perhaps been more difficult by the absence of a international celebrity. The current captain and the trio of family members remain household names in the sport, but the spread of stars has expanded significantly. Their leader is the only All Black to receive international honors in the past six seasons, in opposition to 10 in multiple seasons between the mid-2000s.
Rather, efforts have been implemented to transplant the New Zealand team into previously untapped markets.
The first leg of this European campaign brings New Zealand not to Dublin but Chicago, a return to the location where the Irish team obtained a historic win in the contest during past tours.
After the easing of Covid-19 travel restrictions, the All Blacks have additionally
A software engineer and tech writer passionate about open-source projects and AI advancements.
