History of rugby union matches between Australia and New Zealand

The first clash in rugby union between Australia and New Zealand took place in a test match on 15 August 1903 in Sydney, New South Wales. On that occasion, New Zealand won by 22-3.

Since 1931, they have competed for the Bledisloe Cup, named after Lord Bledisloe, who donated the trophy.

Overall summary

Details Played Won by Australia Won by New Zealand Drawn Australia points New Zealand points
In Australia 78 24 48 6 1165 1504
In New Zealand 70 15 54 1 863 1481
Neutral venue 4 2 2 0 75 81
Overall 152 41 104 7 2103 3066

Rugby Championship era (2012-)

Starting in 2012 the Tri Nations competition was renamed The Rugby Championship, and now includes Argentina.

Tri Nations and the professional era (1996-2011)

The two countries playing in 2005 at Telstra Stadium in Sydney, New South Wales

The professional era in rugby union began in 1995, marked by creation of the SANZAR group (a combination of South Africa, New Zealand and Australia)[1] which was formed with the purpose of selling TV rights for two new competitions, the domestic Super 12 competition and the Tri-Nations.[1]

The first Tri-Nations was contested in 1996, with New Zealand winning all four of their Tests to take the trophy.[2]

In 2000 in Sydney, a record crowd of 109,874 witnessed the "Greatest ever Rugby Match" when a Jonah Lomu try sealed an All Blacks win over the Wallabies 39-35. The All Blacks had led 24-nil after 11 minutes only to see the Wallabies draw level at 24-all by halftime. Only for Lomu to score for the All Blacks to seal a fantastic match. Just weeks after, the Bledisloe was retained by the Wallabies when John Eales kicked a goal from the sideline in the final moments of the match.

Another one of the most dramatic matches was played on 1 September 2001 at Stadium Australia, in what would be Wallaby great John Eales' last ever test. The Wallabies were hoping to send their skipper off in a grand style. A fairy tale ending was looking possible in the first half as the Wallabies took a 19-6 lead over the All Blacks. However, tries for Doug Howlett and Pita Alatini, along with Andrew Mehrtens kicking, saw the All Blacks back in front 26-22. Then, in the dying moments of the game No.8 Toutai Kefu scored the winning try for the Wallabies. Two years later in 2003 the Wallabies suffered one of their most humiliating losses, being defeated 21-50 by the All Blacks in Sydney.

In 2008, a Bledisloe Cup match was played in Hong Kong,[3] which New Zealand won 19-14.[4] It was rumoured that the United States and Japan would host future Bledisloe Cup matches,[5] and these rumours proved true in the case of Japan, as Tokyo hosted a 2009 Bledisloe match.

The first two Tests of the 2010 series saw the All Blacks extend their winning streak over the Wallabies to 10 games. (Australia's last previous win came on 26 July 2008 at Sydney.) The third and fourth tests were extremely tight affairs, both being won by late tries. In the Sydney test on 11 September, converted tries by Richie McCaw and Kieran Read in the last 13 minutes allowed the All Blacks to overcome a 9-22 deficit. The win saw New Zealand complete a 100% record in the 2010 Tri-Nations. On 30 October 2010 the sides contested the now-customary fourth annual Bledisloe Cup test at a neutral venue. As in 2009, the match was played in Hong Kong, and as on 11 September the game was won with a dramatic late comeback. On this occasion the Wallabies, having led early in the match, found themselves 19-24 down as the hooter went, but with possession in the All Black 22. The Wallabies recycled through numerous phases of possession, until finally the ball was passed wide to James O'Connor, who beat the scrambling All Black defence to touch down and level the scores. The 20-year old winger then kicked the resulting conversion to win the match for the Wallabies, ending New Zealand's recent domination of the fixture.

Subsequently (2011-14) the All Blacks have won eight of the last eleven games played, with two drawn, continuing their domination. This included a crucial 20-6 victory over the Wallabies in the 2011 World Cup Semi-final to enable to All Blacks to progress to the final and subsequently win the World Cup.

On 17 August 2013 the All Blacks celebrated their 100th win over the Wallabies in emphatic style with a 47-29 victory in Sydney. After a shock 12-12 draw in Sydney in the first game of the 2014 series, which ended the All Blacks' attempt at the record of 18 wins straight for a major rugby nation team, the All Blacks posted their highest ever score against Australia with a 51-20 victory at Eden Park on 23 August 2014.

Bledisloe Cup

Main article: Bledisloe Cup

Results

Date Venue Home Team Score Away Team Competitions Winner
15 August 2015 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand Australia 2015 RWC Warm-up 2015 Bledisloe Cup
8 August 2015 ANZ Stadium, Sydney Australia New Zealand 2015 Rugby Championship
18 October 2014 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Australia 28 29 New Zealand 2014 end-of-year test 2014 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
23 August 2014 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 51 20 Australia 2014 Rugby Championship New Zealand 
16 August 2014 ANZ Stadium, Sydney Australia 12 12 New Zealand   draw
19 October 2013 Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin New Zealand 41 33 Australia 2013 end-of-year test 2013 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
24 August 2013 Westpac Stadium, Wellington New Zealand 27 16 Australia 2013 Rugby Championship New Zealand 
17 August 2013 ANZ Stadium, Sydney Australia 29 47 New Zealand New Zealand 
20 October 2012 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Australia 18 18 New Zealand 2012 end-of-year test 2012 Bledisloe Cup   draw
25 August 2012 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 22 0 Australia 2012 Rugby Championship New Zealand 
18 August 2012 ANZ Stadium, Sydney Australia 19 27 New Zealand New Zealand 
16 October 2011 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 20 6 Australia 2011 Rugby World Cup New Zealand 
27 August 2011 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Australia 25 20 New Zealand 2011 Tri Nations2011 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
6 August 2011 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 30 14 Australia New Zealand 
30 October 2010 Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong Australia 26 24 New Zealand 2010 end-of-year test 2010 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
11 September 2010 ANZ Stadium, Sydney Australia 22 23 New Zealand 2010 Tri Nations New Zealand 
7 August 2010 AMI Stadium, Christchurch New Zealand 20 10 Australia New Zealand 
31 July 2010 Etihad Stadium, Melbourne Australia 28 49 New Zealand New Zealand 
31 October 2009 National Stadium, Tokyo, Japan New Zealand 32 19 Australia 2009 end-of-year test 2009 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
19 September 2009 Westpac Stadium, Wellington New Zealand 33 6 Australia 2009 Tri Nations New Zealand 
22 August 2009 ANZ Stadium, Sydney Australia 18 19 New Zealand New Zealand 
18 July 2009 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 22 16 Australia New Zealand 
1 November 2008 Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong New Zealand 19 14 Australia 2008 end-of-year test 2008 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
13 September 2008 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Australia 24 28 New Zealand 2008 Tri Nations New Zealand 
2 August 2008 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 39 10 Australia New Zealand 
26 July 2008 ANZ Stadium, Sydney Australia 34 19 New Zealand  Australia
21 July 2007 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 26 12 Australia 2007 Tri Nations2007 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
30 June 2007 Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Australia 20 15 New Zealand  Australia
19 August 2006 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 34 27 Australia 2006 Tri Nations2006 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
29 July 2006 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Australia 9 13 New Zealand New Zealand 
8 July 2006 Jade Stadium, Christchurch New Zealand 32 12 Australia New Zealand 
3 September 2005 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 34 24 Australia 2005 Tri Nations2005 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
13 August 2005 Telstra Stadium, Sydney Australia 13 30 New Zealand New Zealand 
7 August 2004 Telstra Stadium, Sydney Australia 23 18 New Zealand 2004 Tri Nations2004 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
17 July 2004 Westpac Stadium, Wellington New Zealand 16 7 Australia New Zealand 
15 November 2003 Telstra Stadium, Sydney Australia 22 10 New Zealand 2003 Rugby World Cup  Australia
16 August 2003 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 21 17 Australia 2003 Tri Nations2003 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
26 July 2003 Telstra Stadium, Sydney Australia 21 50 New Zealand New Zealand 
3 August 2002 Stadium Australia, Sydney Australia 16 14 New Zealand 2002 Tri Nations2002 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
13 July 2002 Jade Stadium, Christchurch New Zealand 12 6 Australia New Zealand 
1 September 2001 Stadium Australia, Sydney Australia 29 26 New Zealand 2001 Tri Nations2001 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
11 August 2001 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 15 23 Australia  Australia
5 August 2000 WestpacTrust Stadium, Wellington New Zealand 23 24 Australia 2000 Tri Nations2000 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
15 July 2000 Stadium Australia, Sydney Australia 35 39 New Zealand New Zealand 
28 August 1999 Stadium Australia, Sydney Australia 28 7 New Zealand 1999 Tri Nations1999 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
24 July 1999 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 34 15 Australia New Zealand 
29 August 1998 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Australia 19 14 New Zealand 1998 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
1 August 1998 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 23 27 Australia 1998 Tri Nations  Australia
11 July 1998 Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Australia 24 16 New Zealand  Australia
16 August 1997 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 36 24 Australia 1997 Tri Nations1997 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
26 July 1997 Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Australia 18 33 New Zealand New Zealand 
5 July 1997 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 30 13 Australia New Zealand 
27 July 1996 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Australia 25 32 New Zealand 1996 Tri Nations1996 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
6 July 1996 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 43 6 Australia New Zealand 

Full amateur tours (1978–1995)

Date Venue Home Team Score Away Team Competition Winner
29 July 1995 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Australia 23 34 New Zealand 1995 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
22 July 1995 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 28 16 Australia New Zealand 
17 August 1994 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Australia 20 16 New Zealand 1994 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
17 July 1993 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 25 10 Australia 1993 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
25 July 1992 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Australia 23 26 New Zealand 1992 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
19 July 1992 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane Australia 19 17 New Zealand  Australia
4 July 1992 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Australia 16 15 New Zealand  Australia
27 October 1991 Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Ireland New Zealand 6 16 Australia 1991 Rugby World Cup  Australia
24 August 1991 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 6 3 Australia 1991 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
10 August 1991 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Australia 21 12 New Zealand  Australia
18 August 1990 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 9 21 Australia 1990 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
4 August 1990 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 27 17 Australia New Zealand 
21 July 1990 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 21 6 Australia New Zealand 
5 August 1989 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 24 12 Australia 1989 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
30 July 1988 Concord Oval, Sydney Australia 9 30 New Zealand 1988 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
16 July 1988 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane Australia 19 19 New Zealand   draw
3 July 1988 Concord Oval, Sydney Australia 7 32 New Zealand New Zealand 
25 July 1987 Concord Oval, Sydney Australia 16 30 New Zealand 1987 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
6 September 1986 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 9 22 Australia 1986 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
23 August 1986 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 13 12 Australia New Zealand 
9 August 1986 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 12 13 Australia  Australia
29 June 1985 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 10 9 Australia 1985 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
18 August 1984 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 24 25 New Zealand 1984 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
4 August 1984 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane Australia 15 19 New Zealand New Zealand 
21 July 1984 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 16 9 New Zealand  Australia
20 August 1983 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 8 18 New Zealand 1983 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
11 September 1982 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 33 18 Australia 1982 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
28 August 1982 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 16 19 Australia  Australia
14 August 1982 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 23 16 Australia New Zealand 
12 July 1980 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 26 10 New Zealand 1980 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
28 June 1980 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane Australia 9 12 New Zealand New Zealand 
21 June 1980 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 13 9 New Zealand  Australia
28 July 1979 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 12 6 New Zealand 1979 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
9 September 1978 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 16 30 Australia 1978 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
26 August 1978 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 22 6 Australia New Zealand 
19 August 1978 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 13 12 Australia New Zealand 

Post War (1946-1974)

The first Test following World War Two was played at Carisbrook, Dunedin between Australia and New Zealand in 1946, which New Zealand won 31–8. Australia did not win on the three match tour; beaten 20–0 by New Zealand Maori, and then losing 14–10 to the All Blacks the following week. The 1949 tour witnessed an infamous All Blacks record – the loss of two Test matches on the same day. This was made possible because New Zealand's first team (and best 30 players) were touring South Africa at the same time. On the afternoon of 3 September New Zealand captained by J. B. (Johnny) Smith was beaten 11–6 by The Wallabies in Wellington.[6] On 23 September New Zealand also lost their second Test, 16–9, which gave the Wallabies the Bledisloe Cup for the first time.

Date Venue Home Team Score Away Team Competition Winner
8 June 1974 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 6 16 New Zealand 1974 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
1 June 1974 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane Australia 16 16 New Zealand   draw
25 May 1974 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 6 11 New Zealand New Zealand 
16 September 1972 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 38 3 Australia 1972 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
2 September 1972 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 30 17 Australia New Zealand 
19 August 1972 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 29 6 Australia New Zealand 
22 June 1968 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane Australia 18 19 New Zealand 1968 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
15 June 1968 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 11 27 New Zealand New Zealand 
19 August 1967 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 29 9 Australia 1967 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
29 August 1964 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 5 20 Australia 1964 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
22 August 1964 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 18 3 Australia New Zealand 
15 August 1964 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 14 9 Australia New Zealand 
22 September 1962 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 16 8 Australia 1962 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
8 September 1962 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 3 0 Australia New Zealand 
25 August 1962 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 9 9 Australia   draw
4 June 1962 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 5 14 New Zealand New Zealand 
26 May 1962 Exhibition Ground, Brisbane Australia 6 20 New Zealand New Zealand 
20 September 1958 Epsom Showgrounds, Auckland New Zealand 17 8 Australia 1958 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
6 September 1958 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 3 6 Australia  Australia
23 August 1958 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 25 3 Australia New Zealand 
1 June 1957 Exhibition Ground, Brisbane Australia 9 22 New Zealand 1957 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
25 May 1957 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 11 25 New Zealand New Zealand 
17 September 1955 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 3 8 Australia 1955 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
3 September 1955 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 8 0 Australia New Zealand 
20 August 1955 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 16 8 Australia New Zealand 
13 September 1952 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 15 8 Australia 1952 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
6 September 1952 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 9 14 Australia  Australia
21 July 1951 Woolloongabba Ground, Brisbane Australia 6 16 New Zealand 1951 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
7 July 1951 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 11 17 New Zealand New Zealand 
23 June 1951 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 0 8 New Zealand New Zealand 
24 September 1949 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 9 16 Australia 1949 Bledisloe Cup  Australia
3 September 1949 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 6 11 Australia  Australia
28 June 1947 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 14 27 New Zealand 1947 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
14 June 1947 Exhibition Ground, Brisbane Australia 5 13 New Zealand New Zealand 
28 September 1946 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 14 10 Australia 1946 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
14 September 1946 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 31 8 Australia New Zealand 

Between wars

Australia's last Test before World War I was against New Zealand in July 1914. The sports authorities in Australia decided it was unpatriotic to play rugby while thousands of young Australian men were being sent overseas to fight. This resulted in competitions all but closed down in New South Wales and Queensland. In Queensland regular competitions did not commence again until 1928. As a result players switched to rugby league in large numbers. Even though there was no Australia/New Zealand game after the war before 1929, 24 games were held between New South Wales and New Zealand from 1920 to 1928. The results were 18 victories against 6 for the All Blacks with 16 games taking place in Sydney, New South Wales (most of them at the Royal Agricultural Society Ground) and the rest in New Zealand. Those games are counted as Australia/New Zealand on the IRB website. Also 1931 saw the first game played competing for the Bledisloe Cup.

Date Venue Home Team Score Away Team Competition Winner
13 August 1938 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 6 14 New Zealand 1938 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
6 August 1938 Exhibition Ground, Brisbane Australia 14 20 New Zealand New Zealand 
23 July 1938 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 9 24 New Zealand New Zealand 
12 September 1936 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 38 13 Australia 1936 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
5 September 1936 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 11 6 Australia New Zealand 
25 August 1934 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 3 3 New Zealand 1934 Bledisloe Cup   draw
11 August 1934 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 25 11 New Zealand  Australia
23 July 1932 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 13 21 New Zealand 1932 Bledisloe Cup New Zealand 
16 July 1932 Exhibition Ground, Brisbane Australia 3 21 New Zealand New Zealand 
2 July 1932 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 22 17 New Zealand  Australia
12 September 1931 Eden Park, Auckland New Zealand 20 13 Australia New Zealand 
27 July 1929 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 15 13 New Zealand  Australia
20 July 1929 Exhibition Ground, Brisbane Australia 17 9 New Zealand  Australia
6 July 1929 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 9 8 New Zealand  Australia

Pre World War I

The first Test between Australia and New Zealand was played on 15 August 1903 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Despite the Wallabies losing 22–3[7] this tour greatly increased the popularity of rugby and large crowds started attending grade matches in Sydney and Brisbane. New Zealand winger Billy Wallace scored 13 of their 22 points.

Date Venue Home Team Score Away Team Competition Winner
15 August 1914 Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney Australia 7 22 New Zealand New Zealand 
1 August 1914 Woolloongabba Ground, Brisbane Australia 0 17 New Zealand New Zealand 
18 July 1914 Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney Australia 0 5 New Zealand New Zealand 
20 September 1913 Lancaster Park, Christchurch New Zealand 5 16 Australia  Australia
13 September 1913 Carisbrook, Dunedin New Zealand 25 13 Australia New Zealand 
6 September 1913 Athletic Park, Wellington New Zealand 30 5 Australia New Zealand 
2 July 1910 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 13 28 New Zealand New Zealand 
27 June 1910 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 11 0 New Zealand  Australia
25 June 1910 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 0 6 New Zealand New Zealand 
10 August 1907 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 5 5 New Zealand   draw
3 August 1907 Woolloongabba Ground, Brisbane Australia 5 14 New Zealand New Zealand 
20 July 1907 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 6 26 New Zealand New Zealand 
2 September 1905 Tahuna Park, Dunedin New Zealand 14 3 Australia New Zealand 
15 August 1903 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney Australia 3 22 New Zealand New Zealand 

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Howitt (2005), pg 7.
  2. Howitt (2005), pg 170.
  3. "Hong Kong to host NZ v Australia". BBC Sport. 3 March 2008. Retrieved 3 March 2008.
  4. "Australia 14-19 New Zealand". BBC Sport. 1 November 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2008.
  5. "US & Japan may host Bledisloe Cup". BBC Sport. 31 October 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2008.
  6. "67th All Black Test : 362nd All Black Game". allblacks.com. Retrieved 8 September 2006.
  7. "1st All Black Test: 45th All Black Game". allblacks.com. Retrieved 30 October 2006.

External links