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Pursuing what would be just a fifth tour victory in their legendary past, the New Zealand side have headed north at an crucial period.

Matches against Ireland, the Scottish side, England and Wales await the New Zealand team across the coming month but, beyond the opportunity to join the sides of 1978, 2005, 2008 and 2010 in the annals of rugby, the fixtures will be used as a yardstick to evaluate the progress of the squad under a head coach now well established from beginning his tenure.

Present Difficulties

Concerns over a shortage of an clear playing identity, enduring debates over player choices and leavings from the coaching ticket have all added to the feeling that the best-known side in the game is now one in a time of change.

Most pertinently, it is the drop in performances from a previous peak set between the World Cups of the last decade that has prompted some to speculate that we have transitioned away of the age of All Black exceptionalism.

Team Record

Ahead of their departure for the northern hemisphere, it was revealed that next year, in the non-existence of the Rugby Championship, the All Blacks will meet the Springboks in a warm-weather tour dubbed 'a tour like no other'.

Traditionally the game's two strongest sides, there is little doubt over who has currently outperformed of what promoters have called 'The Premier Rivalry'.

Over the past seven years, the Springboks have secured a couple of World Cups, three Rugby Championships and a tour against the British and Irish Lions to be regarded as the squad of their era.

The All Blacks have persisted to beat Ireland when it is crucial, beating this weekend's rivals in the global competition of the past two tournaments. They have, additionally, lost just a couple of the last fixtures with England, have defeated the Welsh side in every encounter since the sixties and have never suffered defeat by Scotland.

Evolving Landscape

But the decline of their position as the sport's measure of excellence will remain frustrating.

Although the All Blacks excelled through the previous decade - securing eighty-seven percent of their fixtures, as well as claiming the World Cup on several instances - the global tournament of 2019 can now be regarded as when the hierarchical structure shifted in the global game.

New Zealand beat South Africa in their initial fixture of the championship in the host nation, but it was the South Africans who were ultimately triumphant in Yokohama.

After that event, the New Zealand's success rate has declined to seventy-one percent. South Africa themselves lost ten of their next 26 Test matches but, commencing of last year, have achieved victory at a rate (eighty-three percent) to rival even the former Kiwi champions.

Head-to-Head

Over the comparable duration, the 'Boks have secured victory in five of the recent encounters between the opponents, featuring triumph in the 2023 World Cup final.

During their pursuit of their most recent southern hemisphere crown, the Springboks administered a historic loss on the New Zealand team thanks to 36 unanswered second-half points in the capital, a score which has ignited another round of debate regarding the direction of the team under their leader.

Possibly most troubling for fans of the All Blacks will be that, alongside their usual power, South Africa's triumph has come with an attacking verve more typically linked with their own side.

Team Identity

At the time that the New Zealand team were at the zenith of their abilities 10 years ago, they were a clinical transition team equipped of shredding rivals from every section of the field and at any point of the contest.

Now, their offensive approach is more ambiguous as the coach, who has given multiple new players during his two years in charge, tries to initially build the more prosaic building blocks of a successful side.

It has previously announced that the backroom staff member overseeing scoring, their offensive coordinator, will leave his role after the autumn tour, making him the additional person of management team to depart after previous staff member left last year after just a handful of games.

Performance Gap

It was not merely Robertson's success, but his approach, that was anticipated to translate from previous club when he began his tenure after the recent tournament but, to date, the two aspects remain a continuous improvement.

Organizational Strategy

After private equity firm Silver Lake bought a stake in All Blacks in the past, the ensuing statement mentioned the "pursuit of worldwide growth" for the team.

That objective has perhaps been more difficult by the shortage of a global icon. The current captain and the group of related players remain recognizable personalities in the sport, but the distribution of key individuals has never been spread wider. Their leader is the only All Black to earn World Player of the Year in the past six seasons, in contrast to 10 in 13 years between 2005 and '07.

Worldwide Reach

Rather, efforts have been undertaken to establish the New Zealand team into previously untapped markets.

The first leg of this 'Grand Slam' tour brings the All Blacks not to the Irish capital but the American city, a comeback to the stadium where Ireland achieved a landmark success in the match in previous seasons.

After the relaxation of pandemic limitations, the New Zealand team have additionally