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Wednesday, August 14, 2013

All Blacks v Australia - 5 Greatest Bledisloe Cup Clashes


It's time for the Bledisloe Cup again and while the contest has been highly one-sided in recent times - the All Blacks have held the Bledisloe Cup since the 16th of August 2003 - exactly 10 years come Friday.

With the Ashes now also having been out of Australia's grasp for some time (since August 2009 in fact), Aussie sport would definitely like to get back one of its most prized trophies, although as they have been for the last 10 years, the Wallabies have been underdogs.


Nevertheless, the Trans-Tasman rivalry is one of the most eagerly watched sporting events on the world sports calendar and for good reason. Here are 5 of the greatest clashes in Bledisloe Cup history

*We're not counting RWC Semifinals - and for good reason. We're also not counting dead-rubbers even if the Tri Nations title was up for grabs (like in 2011).

1979 Sydney, Australia 12-6 New Zealand - the modern Bledisloe Cup legend was born in this game. It had been 30 years since Australia had won the Bledisloe Cup and the trophy had become hidden at NZRU headquarters in Wellington for so long that it had become forgotten.

1994 Sydney, Australia 20-16 New Zealand - famous for that George Gregan tackle on Jeff Wilson that would have won New Zealand the game and Cup.

2000 Sydney, Australia 35-39 New Zealand - nuff said about this game.


2000 Wellington, New Zealand 23-24 Australia - the first ever test match at Wellington's then-swanky new stadium and what a way to finish - for Australian fans. No lock has ever been known to kick goals since then thankfully.


2003 Auckland, New Zealand 21-17 Australia - the start of today's dynasty, the longest in the professional era. It was a thriller of a game as the All Blacks dominated initially but the Wallabies came charging back.



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