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Aiming for what would be just a fifth 'Grand Slam' in their legendary past, the All Blacks have headed north at an pivotal moment.

Games against the Irish team, Scotland, England and the Welsh team await the All Blacks across the coming month but, in addition to the possibility to equal the teams of 1978, 2005, 2008 and 2010 in the record books, the matches will be used as a benchmark to assess the improvement of the side under a head coach now two years on from taking up the reins.

Team Issues

Concerns over a absence of an identifiable style, continuing controversies over player choices and exits from the management team have all contributed to the perception that the best-known side in the sport is presently one in a period of transition.

Most pertinently, it is the decline in performances from a past excellence set between the World Cups of 2011 and 2019 that has led some to theorize that we have evolved beyond of the period of All Black exceptionalism.

Past Performance

Prior to their journey for the fall series, it was confirmed that in the coming year, in the non-existence of the Rugby Championship, the All Blacks will meet the Springboks in a off-season matches termed 'a tour like no other'.

Historically the game's two strongest sides, there is little doubt over who has lately dominated of what organizers have called 'The Ultimate Contest'.

Over the past seven years, the Springboks have won a couple of World Cups, three southern hemisphere titles and a series against the northern hemisphere selection to be viewed as the squad of their period.

New Zealand have maintained to beat the Irish team when it counts most, defeating Saturday's opponents in the World Cup quarter finals of 2019 and '23. They have, meanwhile, been defeated in just a pair of the last fixtures with England, have overcome Wales in all matches since the sixties and have never suffered defeat by the Scottish team.

Evolving Landscape

But the decline of their position as the game's gold standard will continue to rankle.

Although the All Blacks reigned supreme through the last ten years - winning eighty-seven percent of their Test matches, as well as claiming the Webb Ellis on several instances - the global tournament of 2019 can now be seen as when the competitive landscape changed in the international rugby.

New Zealand overcame the Springboks in their first game of the competition in the host nation, but it was the Boks' who were ultimately triumphant in the championship match.

Since then, the All Blacks' victory ratio has dropped to 71%. The Springboks themselves lost 10 of their next 26 Test matches but, commencing of 2023, have won at a rate (83%) to rival even the last great New Zealand team.

Direct Competition

Over the comparable duration, the Springboks have secured victory in five of the seven meetings between the opponents, including triumph in the latest global tournament decider.

In claiming their current continental championship, the Springboks inflicted a significant beating on the All Blacks through dominant performance in their home ground, a result which has ignited another series of controversy concerning the development of the squad under the coach.

Possibly most jarring for fans of the All Blacks will be that, allied to their usual power, the Springboks' achievement has come with an attacking verve more typically linked with their own side.

Playing Philosophy

When the New Zealand team were at the peak of their abilities in previous eras, they were a ruthless counter-attacking unit able of dismantling opponents from all areas of the playing surface and at all times of the game.

Now, their playing philosophy is more ambiguous as Robertson, who has awarded numerous first caps during his two years in control, tries to primarily create the fundamental foundations of a successful side.

It has recently revealed that the backroom staff member in charge of offense, the current coach, will leave his role after the fall series, making him the additional person of the coaching staff to depart after previous staff member left last year after just a handful of games.

Performance Gap

It was not just his winning record, but his methodology, that was expected to transfer from previous club when he took over after the recent tournament but, to date, each remain a work in progress.

Commercial Considerations

When investment group Silver Lake invested capital in All Blacks in recent years, the subsequent announcement discussed the "search of worldwide growth" for the team.

That objective has maybe been more difficult by the lack of a global icon. Their key player and the group of family members remain household names in the rugby, but the spread of talented players has expanded significantly. Savea is the only New Zealand player to win World Player of the Year in the past six seasons, in comparison to 10 in over a decade between previous generations.

International Growth

Alternatively, efforts have been made to introduce the New Zealand team into previously untapped markets.

The first leg of this 'Grand Slam' tour brings New Zealand not to the Irish capital but Chicago, a comeback to the location where Ireland achieved a landmark success in the match during past tours.

Since the easing of Covid-19 travel restrictions, the New Zealand team have furthermore