The All Blacks and Australia have played 166 Test matches, with the All Blacks winning 115, Australia winning 44, and seven ties. The All Blacks and Australia last played in Wellington four years ago. Since then, New Zealand has won three tests in Australia, while the two teams have yet to play a match on Australian soil.
The All Blacks have beaten Australia 95 times, more than any other country. They've won 25 out of the last 26 matches between the two countries. The only exception was in 1986, when Australia defeated New Zealand 33-3 in Auckland. That's as close as either team has come to losing a test match.
Since that loss to Australia, the All Blacks have won 15 out of 16 tests they've played. Their only defeat came during their first tour of Britain, in 1883 (1-4). This is the most recent series victory by the All Blacks over Australia. They will be looking to make it six wins out of six when they take on Australia in the 2015 Rugby World Cup opening game in Sydney on Thursday, 19 October.
Check out the important statistics from the New Zealand-South Africa rivalry as the All Blacks look to avenge last year's setback to South Africa on the same venue. 97: The All Blacks and South Africa have played 97 Test matches, with the All Blacks winning 58, South Africa winning 36, and three matches tied.
The first match between New Zealand and South Africa was held at Carisbrook, South Westmeath, Ireland on 4 October 1980. The All Blacks won that match by 10 points, 33 to 23. That was the only time these two teams have ever played in Europe until 2017 when they met for the first time since 2008 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. The All Blacks won that match 56-9.
New Zealand has an overall record of 58-36-1 against South Africa. That means the All Blacks are the most successful team in the history of the series. However, you cannot count the 1980 match because it was not a full Test match. If we include that game then the balance becomes 47-47-1 in New Zealand's favor.
The next meeting between these two countries will be in 2020 during the World Cup in Japan and Korea. They will play each other in two separate games - one in Tokyo on September 19 and another in Seoul on September 26. The All Blacks will be looking to win their third consecutive World Cup when they take on South Africa in June next year in Yokohama.
All of these games were won by the New Zealand XV. On October 26, 1985, the top-level All Blacks toured Argentina in the first Test match recognized by both national unions. The sides have met 27 times in complete tests, with the All Blacks winning 26 and losing one.
The Argentina vs. New Zealand match was held at Mendoza's Los Polies de Urquiza ground. It is regarded as a full test by both countries, although it was never officially endorsed by the IRB.
This game marked the beginning of an intense rivalry between Argentina and South Africa that has dominated world rugby for several years. Although Argentina lost this match, they were back again in 1987 to face the Springboks in Buenos Aires for a three-test series. Again, Argentina lost but this time it was by less than 100 points - 51-51 after two halves!
Argentina's last international victory came in 1995 when they beat Japan 49-33 in Tokyo. Since then, they have only been able to draw with Australia (in Melbourne) in a five-game series used to determine which country goes to the World Cup. This result helped Argentina qualify for their first ever World Cup, held in France in 1999. There they reached the quarter-finals before being knocked out by England.
In 2001, New Zealand visited Argentina for what would be their last tour until now.
The All Blacks, as they are commonly called, have participated in Test rugby since their first match against Australia in 1903. Richie McCaw holds the world record most Test appearances with 148 for the squad between 2001 and 2015. He is followed by Jonah Lomu (142) and Brian Lochore (141).
Now let's look at some other sports figures from New Zealand.
Lou Gehrig - Baseball Hall of Famer who played for the New York Yankees from 1939 to 1941 during the era of the World War II manpower shortage - died at the age of 37 after being diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig's disease).
Lance Armstrong - American cyclist who has won seven Tours de France and one Olympic gold medal. He has been banned from cycling for life following allegations that he used performance-enhancing drugs.
Paul Gallen - Rugby league player who has represented New Zealand at international level. He plays for the Sydney Roosters and is considered one of the best players in the game.
Steve Nash - NBA star who played for the Phoenix Suns, Boston Celtics, and Los Angeles Lakers. He is currently a co-owner of the Canadian basketball team the Halifax Highlanders.
In the Rugby World Cup, Australia and South Africa have met three times. They were drawn in the same pool in 1995, when host South Africa triumphed 27-18, going on to win the cup. Australia eliminated South Africa from the competition in a semi-final at Twickenham in 1999, winning 27-21 after extra time. The third and final meeting was at Cape Town's Newlands Stadium in June 2003, when Australia beat South Africa for the first time since 1989.
Australia and South Africa have been rivals ever since they declared themselves independent countries in 1961. Each year, South Africa hosts an international cricket series against the West Indies, while the Australians play two tests against the Poms. However, all this changed in 1994, when Nelson Mandela became president of South Africa, and he has been trying to improve relations with its old enemy ever since then.
As well as being rivals on the field, Australia and South Africa also compete against each other in other sports. Both countries have won the right to host the Olympics several times, but they never agree who should do so first. In 2000, both countries attempted to send a team to Sydney, but only Australia went ahead with their plan. In 2007, South Africa tried to get involved in the Olympic movement again by sending a team to Beijing, but they were once more beaten out by Australia who took that opportunity to win their fifth gold medal.
As of October 2018, Australia have met nine of the eleven other sides in Test cricket, with England being their most frequent opponent, having played 346 matches against them. Australia also play India and Pakistan twice each. They have won 125 matches and lost 100 games across all formats of the game.
Australia's record is better than that of both India and Pakistan, who have both won just over 50 matches out of 150 they have played so far. The Poms have won more matches than any other country - including India and Australia - with 10 victories out of 11 tests they have played under English captainship.
The only country to beat Australia more often than England is the current No. 1 Test nation India. The Indians have beaten them five times while playing four different countries. However, Australia have a clear advantage over India in terms of match result with five wins to two wins for India.
India's only Test victory over Australia came in 2001 at Delhi when Sachin Tendulkar scored a century and took three wickets with his leg-spin bowling effort. This was followed by another Indian win three years later at Mumbai.
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