Can the All Blacks find their spark during the fall tour?
Seeking what would be just a fifth tour victory in their legendary past, the New Zealand side have headed north at an crucial period.
Games against the Irish team, the Scottish side, England and the Welsh team await Scott Robertson's side across the upcoming weeks but, in addition to the chance to join the teams of previous successful tours in the annals of rugby, the fixtures will be used as a yardstick to assess the improvement of the side under a head coach now 24 months into from assuming control.
Team Issues
Questions over a absence of an identifiable style, enduring debates over selection and departures from the management team have all contributed to the sense that the most recognisable team in the game is now one in a time of change.
Most pertinently, it is the drop in performances from a historic high watermark set between the World Cups of the last decade that has led some to suggest that we have evolved beyond of the era of All Black exceptionalism.
Team Record
Ahead of their departure for the fall series, it was confirmed that during the following season, in the non-existence of the southern hemisphere competition, the All Blacks will face South Africa in a warm-weather tour called 'a tour like no other'.
In the past the sport's top competitors, there is little doubt over who has lately dominated of what organizers have called 'Rugby's Greatest Rivalry'.
During the last decade, the Springboks have won a two of World Cups, three Rugby Championships and a series against the British and Irish Lions to be regarded as the squad of their period.
New Zealand have persisted to defeat the Irish team when it is crucial, overcoming this weekend's rivals in the global competition of the past two tournaments. They have, at the same time, lost just two of the past 21 meetings with the English team, have overcome Wales in every encounter since over sixty years ago and have always been victorious by the Scottish team.
Changing Dynamics
But the diminishment of their position as the game's gold standard will continue to rankle.
Whereas the All Blacks excelled through the 2010s - winning eighty-seven percent of their Test matches, as well as lifting the global trophy on several instances - the World Cup of the previous competition can now be viewed as when the competitive landscape moved in the world sport.
New Zealand defeated South Africa in their initial fixture of the tournament in Japan, but it was the Boks' who were ultimately triumphant in the championship match.
From that point, the All Blacks' victory ratio has declined to seventy-one percent. South Africa themselves lost ten of their subsequent fixtures but, commencing of last year, have achieved victory at a percentage (eighty-three percent) to match even the previous All Blacks side.
Recent Encounters
Throughout the equivalent timeframe, the 'Boks have won five of the seven meetings between the opponents, comprising triumph in the latest global tournament decider.
In claiming their most recent regional title, Rassie Erasmus' side delivered a record 43-10 defeat on the All Blacks through overwhelming display in their home ground, a score which has triggered another series of discussion regarding the progress of the squad under the coach.
Possibly most concerning for supporters of the New Zealand team will be that, allied to their usual power, South Africa's achievement has come with an creative approach more typically linked with their opposition team.
Style Evolution
At the time that the All Blacks were at the height of their powers a decade past, they were a clinical transition team able of shredding opponents from all areas of the pitch and at any point of the contest.
Currently, their attacking style is less defined as the coach, who has handed out multiple new players during his two years in charge, tries to first establish the fundamental foundations of a successful side.
It has previously announced that the assistant coach responsible for scoring, Jason Holland, will depart his position after the fall series, making him the next individual of the coaching staff to depart after Leon MacDonald walked away last year after just a handful of games.
Performance Gap
It was not only Robertson's success, but his style, that was anticipated to carry over from Crusaders when he took over after the 2023 World Cup but, to date, both are still a work in progress.
Commercial Considerations
When private equity firm the company bought a stake in All Blacks in 2022, the ensuing statement mentioned the "search of new global opportunities" for the team.
That task has maybe been more difficult by the absence of a global icon. The current captain and the group of related players remain recognizable personalities in the game, but the spread of talented players has never been spread wider. Their leader is the sole All Black to win global recognition in the current era, in contrast to 10 in 13 years between the mid-2000s.
International Growth
Instead, initiatives have been undertaken to introduce the New Zealand team into new territories.
The first leg of this European campaign brings the All Blacks not to Dublin but the American city, a revisit to the stadium where the Irish team achieved a first ever victory in the fixture nine years ago.
After the easing of Covid-19 travel restrictions, the All Blacks have additionally
